4 ms·

Isn't this just a variant of the broken window fallacy?

• simonsarris 9y ago
  It's a variant of protectionist policy. At least farm subsidies mimicking the European way of doing things are. > like Switzerland, where 55% of farmer income comes from the state
  • vidarh 9y ago
    Farm subsidies often have a national security origin. Norwegian farming subsidies for example to date still is based on a principle of food security that first gained widespread support in Norway as a result of the British naval blockade of Denmark-Norway during the Napoleonic wars that caused occasional famines. The importance of this was driven home again during World War 2. So protectionist, yes, but widespread support has largely boiled down to food security rather than caring particularly much about farmers.
    • simonsarris 9y ago
      Yes, I mention this in the article.
    • Aaargh20318 9y ago
      Except that security is total bullshit the way the economy works today. You don't just need agriculture, you need every other industry that agriculture depends on.