The United States government continues to provide subsidies for the production of ethanol because the future benefits of providing ethanol subsidies outweigh the costs of providing ethanol subsidies. Since taxpayers provide the funds for ethanol subsides, the subsidies do not directly cost the government financially. In addition, by providing ethanol subsidies the government would benefit in the future because the ethanol subsidies act as a strong incentive for the people in states whose economic structures greatly benefit from the ethanol subsidies to support the government officials who continue to provide economic subsidies.
The U.S. government spends billions of dollars every year subsidizing corn production, livestock feed, processed foods, and ethanol production account for the greatest uses of corn in the United States. Supplying the livestock and processed food industries with cheap corn ultimately leads to an American diet that is heavily based on the consumption of meat and sugary processed foods. This diet is thought to contribute to America’s obesity epidemic. Corn subsidies also encourage production of ethanol. Ethanol may be no better than fossil fuels because of the required energy inputs and the environmental damage caused by its production.
The Prohibition or the Eighteenth Amendment was a huge failure for a law in 1920. There were many factors that led to its downfall that included illegal means, rise of gangsters, and the Twenty- First Amendment. Despite the Prohibition, it did not stop the people from drinking it and accessing it through thousands of speakeasies. It became a most lucrative business for criminals that led to dangerous competition. In 1933, the failed amendment was repealed and most people rejoiced that alcohol was legal again. The Eighteenth Amendment was an experiment that went horribly wrong and did absolutely nothing to bring any positive change. This was proof “that you don’t have to be drunk to come up with a really, really, bad idea.” (Carlson. 141)
In conclusion, Corn Ethanol Biofuel has many negative and positive effects. It has a negative effect because it releases greenhouse gases but positive effects as well because it is inexpensive to produce and use, and is a renewable source. The future of corn ethanol is uncertain: “Corn-based ethanol will most likely not be the staple fuel source in the future, as it is only a short term solution and poses problems in the long run. Ethanol contains 33% less energy than gasoline, and corrodes engines that it is used in. Average production and final sales are 62 cents/gal higher than conventional gasoline. Even though political support is waning, Congress will most likely not abandon corn ethanol.” ("Future of Corn Ethanol.) I think corn ethanol
During the duration of this paper, I will discuss an issue that has been controversial for over a century; prohibition and how it has effected, currently effects, and will, most likey, continue to effect American society. The aspects that I choose to address from this issue are political, historical, they make you wonder, and they should effect anyone who reads this paper. For decades, the American government has had a restriction or ban on drugs and alcohol. Also for decades, these restrictions have been met with resistance from our society. In the early twentieth century, from 1920 through 1933, it was the prohibition of alcohol. A corrupt time, in which, so called, "criminals" and law makers both manufactured and sold bootlegged alcohol. There was high demand then and everyone was in it for the money, everyone. A time which proved to be a failed attempt by the government to take away what is now one of the United States' top commodities. During the 1970's President Richard Nixon started an ongoing "war on drugs" and every president since Nixon has continued this fight to, somehow, rid the entire country of illicit drugs. Today, a few states have taken a new approach to one of these drugs and eyebrows are being raised to the war on drugs all together. States, such as, California, Washington, and Calorado have loosened their tight grip on prohibiting marijuana and even have medical marijuana dispenseries. This idea has been proven to have boosted those economies, and it has allowed people with cancer to use a medication that actually gives them comfort. However, marijuana is still illegal. Why would we restrict the nation from something that beneficial...
In the late 1960’s to mid-70’s the legal drinking age was 18 because the voting age of 21 was lowered to 18. However, in 1984 a bill was passed that every state in the United States was to change the legal drinking age from 18 to 21. Although this is a highly controversial topic many young adults believe lowering the drinking age back to 18 is best because if they may vote at the age of 18 then, they should be allowed purchase alcoholic beverages. In an article “Should the U.S. lower its drinking age?” written by Brandon Griggs introduces the pros and cons of lowering the drinking age. Griggs explains two generations ago young adults didn’t have to worry much about getting caught drinking or buying their way out to purchase alcohol. Nowadays
The gas prices started dropping so low that people are available to fill up their cars with gas. There is a good side of these gas prices going down but there is also a bad side. We can say that the good side is people are actually excited because they spend less money on gas and have extra money to spend it on other things. The bad side of the gas price is people are losing their jobs and they sometimes they can't afford for their bills or as simple as not being able to eat.
The question “Should tougher DUI laws be enacted?” has several pros and cons to answer this that people want to know. Throughout various projects and studies people have done it has determined that it could go both ways. People want something to be done with drunk drivers all over the world because they have cause accidents and kill/injure people and could walk away without any consequences.
For example, increasing taxes on gasoline will make people want to drive smaller cars because they are more fuel efficient. In turn, pollution decreases and people carpool more and limit their driving as much as possible. Another example would be the seat belt law. Having a seat belt law helps people avoid more severe injuries due to auto accidents and there is more incentive to drive slowly and more carefully. Despite the intentions, there is a higher number of accidents.
Alternative energy is the world’s race as of now. As the space race concluded and the nuclear arms race died down, alternative energy became the race of the ages. In today’s society, with today’s technology there are all sorts of forms of alternative energies. These energies include hydro power, geothermal, biomass, nuclear power, and so much more. With all of these variations of alternative energy the question now becomes, which form is the best to use? Are any of them safe? Which ones would effectively solve the world’s depleting energy crisis? Of course, the country that is able to produce clean efficient energy; that country would become the new world power virtually overnight. With today’s technology, should we resort to food/corn as our primary source of energy?
GMO’s are essential parts of society and are eaten everyday by billions of people. Unfortunately the majority of people never ask what a GMO is, and what is in one. Essentially a GMO is a crop that has been modified to be resistant than its non-modified counterpart. The enhancement of desired traits has usually been undertaken through breeding, but normal breeding methods are slow and are inaccurate. Genetic modifying, on the other hand, can create plants with the desired trait very quickly and rarely fail. With the rapid increase in the world’s population, GMOs can be the answer, but there are still problems that organizations like Forbes and Greenpeace have pointed out, such as the safety factor, moral issues, and outright cost of the process. However GMO’s are already used on farms and are found in almost every grocery store. GMO corn is the most abundant GMO crop, with 40 different types of it. This is because corn is America’s most abundant crop, and our entire economy depends on it. With GM corn, it will become easier to mass produce corn. Different types of GMO corn can increase herbicide tolerance, pest resistance, and nutrient availability. However GMO’s contain some cons such as health risks and Economic concerns.
In the United States, as in other federal countries, grants from the national government play a very important role. Yet the authority has the national government to provide subsidies was the subject of one of the great constitutional debates of the nineteenth century. The issue was finally resolved by the Supreme Court at the time of the New Deal. This is the interpretation of the Spending Clause of Article I: "The Congress shall have power to impose and collect taxes, duties, taxes and excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States ... Subsidies are found in many areas - basic education, local police, public health, etc. - Previously considered to belong to the states. And subsidies are accompanied by conditions that dictate the actions, and often the organization of recipients. It grows even - typically American phenomenon - a "subsidy law"; federal courts monitor the practices of beneficiaries. So federal grants are revealed as a powerful centralized instrument for national government as many people has feared. It is not at all surprising that these developments have led to a strong reaction against powerful national government and States are complaining more and more control or guardianship, by the national
Agricultural subsidies is a very complex and controversial economic topic today. It will continue to be a hot topic as government continues it. It is largely debated in the United States as well as in other countries. The reason it is so largely debated is because it literally have an effect on the entire world market. Not to mention that the farm has been booming the last 5 to 10 years. This topic also tends to draw strong opinions in our area in particular due to the large agricultural community in our region. However, even within different states there are many supporters as well as opponents to these government subsidies.
There are two potential losers from such action. First, all domestic producers who are not competitive would lose because they would be out-competed by low-cost import. Second, all exporters who previously enjoyed local subsidies would lose because their governments cannot subsidize their production.
Alcohol abuse is the most common problem, nowadays. In fact, majority of people drink alcohol repeatedly to the point where they have difficulty to stop. Statistics show that, as much as, “40% of college students report drinking five or more drinks in one episode” (Walters & Baer, 2006). Alcohol has become more popular over the years as advertisements, simultaneously with commercials of it, filled the media. It also is easily accessible and cheap in comparison to other psychoactive substances. On the other hand, alcohol safety awareness programs are barely noticeable. My research will present how alcohol and its abuse gets into people’s lives and how it influences their physical and mental health, as well as, social existence.