UK Versus US Government

Don't remember to whom I owe a hat tip, but this provides an overview of how social policy is administered in the UK.  A couple excerpts:

Local authorities are forbidden by law to do anything which is not expressly permitted by Parliament; local authorities which want to undertake any special initative need to promote a private Act of Parliament

Despite the existence of a "council tax", local government has very limited discretion in its ability to raise money, and it is not permitted to exceed central government limits. Loans cannot be taken without express sanction. Central governments can make the availability of grants conditional on compliance with their policy.

Compare this to our federal system and we see once again how weak our government really is.

How Do You Know a Blogger Is Far Gone

When he writes something like this:

"I CAN’T STOP MYSELF:  I subscribe to all the NASS California Crop Reports.  I love these, mostly because they read like poetry.

His real reason is the eminently logical one: statistics gives him a basis in reality, unlike the ephemera of the media.  And who is he: a very good blogger on water issues in California, water which grows much of our fruits and vegetables.

USDA IT a Big Loser

According to this post at Gov Loop,  the Obama administration's drive to consolidate federal data centers has one of its biggest targets in USDA, going from 46 data centers now to 5 in the future. (Only DHS has a bigger percentage drop.)  The large number of data centers is a reflection of the decentralized nature of the department, which I've referred to in the past.  The history of USDA is the development of individual agencies, each doing business its own way, and each resisting efforts by the departmental offices to consolidate. 

When I joined ASCS, we had data processing centers in New Orleans, Kansas City, and Minneapolis. In the 70's the department took over the mainframes and the Minneapolis office was closed.  But today, FSA uses centers in New Orleans, Kansas City, and St. Louis, having picked up the latter from the 1994 reorg with FmHA.  I say "uses", because the centers are run by the department, though last I knew FSA had programmers in both KC and St. Louis.  Congresspeople tend to resist closures, so whether the new Tea Partiers can overcome that chauvinism and the Obama administration can enforce its ideas will be interesting.

Announcement on Women/Hispanic Claims of Discrimination

Vilsack announcement.  Ironically, Firefox tells me the http://www.farmersclaims.gov site is untrusted. The link is now working.

Big Versus Small Farmers

Even in the UK there's tension between big farmers and small farmers.  See this post from Musings of a Stonehead on the position, as he sees it, of the National Farmers Union in the UK.  (Also see the sunset photos and the Victor Hugo poetry of the preceding post.) 

It's the old story: if government regulations apply equally to everyone, the burden is greater for the small producers and therefore the big guys get a competitive advantage.  If they don't apply at all, the little guys get the advantage.

What I Don't Understand About Crop Insurance

This quote:

For quite a few years, GRIP has had a good grip on many farmers.  It is a crop insurance policy that is easy to deal with, and it usually pays, despite how good of a crop you had.  GRIP is the Group Risk Income Policy that is based on county averages, and if calculated revenue was below the projection at the early part of the year, GRIP policy holders would get an indemnity check.

What I don't understand--how can an insurance company make a profit on a policy which "usually pays off".  

Google Goes After Farming

Just what farmers need, the world's biggest search engine going against them.  (Turns out it's something called "content farms", I've tried wikipedia but I can't figure out whether "content" is a field crop, fruit or veggie, or some kind of livestock.

It's Called Catch-22

If you insist on time to read about the issue on which you're voting, you get bad press. If you vote without having time to read all the pages, you get bad press (as when the Dems last year were criticized for voting on healthcare reform without reading the bill.)

The Sound of Bloggers

That is, chewing the cud, which fits someone who grew up on a dairy farm.

Confounding Stereotypes

At the back of our minds, I suspect many liberals believe some of the opposition to President Obama is based on race.  That's why this Nate Silver post this morning is surprising.  It seems when you compare his 2008 vote percentages by state with 2010 poll percentages by state Obama has gained in the deep South and has lost less in the Plains states.  In other words, the nation is less divided in their opinions of him.  Presumably he's surprised some (a few) in those states by outperforming their expectations, which were low, and disappointed his most fervent supporters by being more centrist and less the prophet of change.