Early this week‚ if you opened the maps app on your phone and zoomed in on Paris‚ you would notice something peculiar: Almost every major highway leading into the country’s capital city was marked in dark red. There hasn’t been a bizarre pattern of accidents or terrorist attacks encircling the city. Instead‚ French farmers have finally become fed up with onerous government regulations and subsidy policies and have been laying siege on Paris since Monday with the best tools at their disposal: tractors. (READ MORE: The Buzz on ‘The Great Honey Bee Die-Off’) France24 reports that farmers from around the country are participating in the protests and are prepared to make a nuisance of themselves until at least Thursday — when the European Union convenes for a summit discussing financial aid for Ukraine. “We have everything we need to eat‚ barbecues‚ and a wall of hay to shield ourselves from the wind‚” Jean-Baptiste Benoit‚ a farmer‚ told France24. “We have the equipment and we’re settling in alright!” Woke Red Tape for Farmers France is the EU’s largest agricultural producer‚ and its farmers receive the equivalent of $9.8 billion a year in subsidies. That may sound like a lot‚ but many of France’s small farmers claim they simply aren’t making a living wage‚ and they are fed up with the impossible maze of regulations and bureaucracy that are primarily a result of climate change policies from the EU and the French government. For instance‚ one incoming subsidy requirement will require that farmers leave 4 percent of their farmland fallow (a measure usually implemented to avoid surplus production and to restore soil fertility). Farmers are also dealing with what they believe are onerous EU policies to restore France’s hedges — ones that have resulted in at least 14 different regulations. In addition‚ the EU’s decision to support the war in Ukraine by not taxing Ukrainian imports has negatively affected the farming economy across Europe. Ukrainian farmers may be dealing with a war‚ but they aren’t dealing with the kinds of environmental regulations being imposed on their EU counterparts‚ which means that production is far cheaper. (READ MORE: New EPA Regulations Are a Death Sentence for Small Oil and Gas Producers) The farmers believe that the threat is existential. Serge Bousquet-Cassagne‚ leader of farmers association‚ told protesters this week that they “are fighting this battle because if we don’t fight we die.” Karine Duc‚ a farmer who joined in on the protest‚ told Agence France-Presse: “This is the final battle for farming. It’s a question of survival.” Meanwhile‚ the French government is trying to prevent the protest from becoming any more disruptive than it already has. Police have threatened action if the farmers and their tractors try to roll into the center of the city‚ the airports‚ or Rungis‚ the city’s largest wholesale marketplace. But the threats didn’t stop the farmers from driving a bit closer to the city on Wednesday. This Is What Successful Protesting Looks Like Of course‚ French farmers aren’t the only ones irritated at the EU — and they certainly aren’t the only ones using tractors to express their frustrations. Convoys of farmers have moved in on other major cities in Italy and Belgium‚ especially around Brussels‚ where the European Commission is meeting on Thursday. The protests have been surprisingly successful thus far. The commission announced plans on Wednesday that could help reduce the impact of cheap exports from Ukraine and may even reduce the amount of land lying fallow for environmental purposes‚ according to the Associated Press. While those plans aren’t finalized‚ they are a sign that EU leaders may be concerned about the major disruption the farmers are causing. (READ MORE: Green Mythology Runs Rampant at COP28) As the Washington Post noted earlier this week‚ farmers don’t appear in the mood to simply accept half-baked concessions meant to pacify them. They’ve been turning road signs upside down and spraying government buildings with manure for months now. Furthermore‚ they know they have the government in something of a tight spot. The annual Paris farm show is scheduled to take place at the end of February‚ EU elections are scheduled for June‚ and Paris is hosting the Summer Olympics in July — it would be rather embarrassing if France’s farmers attended with their tractors. While the EU has yet to appease its farmers‚ the protests are a good lesson in what successfully combating elitist climate policies and government bureaucracy looks like. Small family farms in the U.S. currently struggling to cope with regulations‚ big government‚ and big business should watch closely. The post French Farmers Are Fighting Woke Climate Policies in Paris With Tractors appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Is Nikki Haley in on the “in” crowd? Why did her campaign sputter? And is she just another Bush Republican? On today’s episode of the Spectacle podcast‚ hosts Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay bring on American Spectator contributor Keith Naughton to talk about what he does and what doesn’t see in Republican presidential nominee Nikki Haley. (READ MORE from Keith Naughton: Haley Made Strategic Blunders. They’re Costing Her the Campaign.) They discuss her Clemson degree and career at the UN‚ and whether those factors make her a member of the cultural elite. Keith points out that‚ while poll numbers show she might do fairly well in a general election‚ Haley has run an uninspiring campaign and has demonstrated her inability to take advantage of the opportunity to effectively undermine her opponents. Listen in to hear their analysis! Order Scott’s new book‚ Racism‚ Revenge and Ruin: It’s All Obama‚ here. Read Scott’s and Melissa’s writing here and here. Listen to The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Spotify. Watch The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Rumble.  The post <;i>;The Spectacle<;/i>; Ep. 65: Nikki Haley Proved She’s on the B Team appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Over the years‚ I’ve offered many explanations about why the trajectory of the national debt is deeply troubling. At this point‚ though‚ my worry isn’t rooted in a dogmatic adherence to the principles of a balanced budget. Nor does it come from my desire for a smaller government. Instead‚ I’m alarmed by politicians’ unwillingness to look at the numbers and have a serious discussion about changing course. READ MORE from Veronique de Rugy: Embracing Economic Freedom: We Must Heed Milei’s Warnings When I first started paying close attention‚ the U.S. was essentially carrying a credit-card balance of 40 percent of America’s GDP. Today‚ according to the Congressional Budget Office‚ that balance hovers around 98 percent. Imagine credit-card debt equal to your yearly salary‚ interest costs piling up‚ and more inevitable debt coming your way. Congress doesn’t seem to mind‚ which partly explains why even optimistic scenarios project the debt to soar to a staggering 180 percent within 30 years. Many politicians would rather pretend there’s nothing to fear‚ that the U.S. is such a powerhouse that there will always be people paying our bills. But even for a financial powerhouse of sorts‚ this reality raises questions about the kind of future we want to leave for the next generation. Further down the path we are on lies a point where interest payments alone consume such a large portion of the budget that government will be unable to fund essential programs and respond to unforeseen crises. We also risk inflation skyrocketing again‚ which makes the debt-to-GDP look more sustainable on paper as it worsens Americans’ standard of living. We also face the prospect of tax increases at a time when economic growth is slowing down. Still‚ some would have us believe these are mere theoretical possibilities. That perspective requires the real imagination. The retirement of 75 million baby boomers is not a speculative event. Their exploding health care cost is also a reality happening now‚ and the obligation is set in law. As a result‚ the government’s deficits are ballooning‚ adding to our debt and interest costs. Even if interest rates remain low‚ deficits are undermining the very foundation of our fiscal stability. In 2021‚ the Manhattan Institute’s Brian Riedl wrote a comprehensive report warning of the folly of assuming interest rates will remain indefinitely low. His concerns have since been validated by higher rates further straining the budget. CBO scenarios‚ in which the government never pays more than 4.4 percent interest rates for the next 30 years‚ seem increasingly Pollyannaish. Rates above and beyond that are likely‚ and even a single percentage point will add trillions to the debt over the next few decades. The pushback against what you’ve just read often comes from those who believe interest rates can remain perpetually low. That belief was the foundation of the fashionable but short-lived theory of “R versus G” — the relationship between real financing costs and economic growth. According to this theory‚ if economic growth (“G”) outpaces the debt’s financing costs (“R”)‚ there’s little to worry about. Unfortunately‚ things fall apart as soon as R goes up‚ as we’ve seen in the last few years. The main mistake behind the R–G theory has been believing that because interest rates had been declining and relatively low for years‚ they would always stay low. Many of these same people also believed that because we’d had no real inflation since the 1980s‚ inflation was somehow defeated. Keep politicians’ propensity for wishful economic thinking in mind when‚ for example‚ someone argues that we can handle a debt-to-GDP ratio of 200–300 percent like Japan does. Japan is not a model we should emulate. Relative to America‚ Japan is poor and its economy stagnant‚ the victim of decades of slow economic and wage growth. Let’s stop confusing the speculative with the imminent and tangible. If we can finally clear that up‚ we can address the urgent need to find pragmatic solutions and get our national debt under control. This involves making difficult decisions‚ including‚ yes‚ reforming entitlement programs — especially Social Security and Medicare. And while some reform of the tax code is needed‚ we must also acknowledge that we cannot solely tax our way out of this situation. Raising taxes on the wealthy‚ while politically appealing to some‚ would not only fail to close the gap but also dramatically slow the same economic growth which was supposed to keep us ahead of the debt burden. To accomplish all of that‚ we first need politicians who will stop pretending we can continue down this fiscal path. Veronique de Rugy is the George Gibbs Chair in Political Economy and a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. To find out more about Veronique de Rugy and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists‚ visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2024 CREATORS.COM The post Why Keep Worrying About Debt?: Speculation vs. Reality appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

The New Gold Rush -- The American Border

Why Keep Worrying About Debt? Speculation Versus Reality

How Strong Is America's Economic Chain?

Perfectly Legal Corruption

The Black Swan Events That Could Determine This Election

Mark Cuban Learns He’s on the Losing Team