The return of the hungry horses

It is amazing that even here in food-producing Queensland, the party of the workers is contemplating increasing the cost of putting food on the tables of the workers. This will occur if they cave to minority pressure to mandate a greater percentage of ethanol in motor fuels. This would ensure that more farm output will be converted to ethanol and burnt in cars, bikes, SUV's, yachts and limos, and maybe even for the "going-green" US Navy when it visits.

An ethanol mandate pits plant farmers against animal farmers and consumers. It will ensure that every feedlot, piggery, chicken house and family farm will see a reduced supply of animal feed because some has been diverted to motor fuel. In rich countries, the "Ethanol Tax" will be paid at the breakfast table where the prices of cereals, milk, cream, sugar, syrup, treacle, molasses, bacon, eggs and steak will be higher than they would have been without ethanol distilleries. Poor countries will see the return of periodic famines and food riots when destitute people cannot afford to buy the more expensive imported food.

The Return of the Hungry Horses

Permission to reproduce this illustration is granted freely providing the artist is acknowledged and/or the following is attached: Cartoon credit: http://stevehunterillustrations.com.au/political-cartoons/

This ethanol madness threatens to take us back towards those hungry years before the kerosene-powered tractors arrived. But now they want the farms to feed not just their own horses, but also those pulling cars, buses, SUV's, trucks, even battleships, for other people.

The ethanol mandate is the problem – the need for a mandate shows there is no real demand for it. It is a vote-catching exercise pandering to a few vocal politicians and a few vocal farmers. People who wish to use ethanol-laced fuels on climate, economic or religious grounds should be free to do so, but at their own cost.

There is no moral, scientific or economic justification for the law to enforce such foolishness.

The hungry horses are coming back, but now they live in upper-class stables in the cities.