This is all George W. Bush's fault, like everything else in the world that has gone wrong over the last seven years! If he was anything but the money-grubbing, oil-loving fanatic that he is, we simply wouldn't be in this mess. The liberals believe it, the conservatives just shrug their shoulders, and the rest of us level-headed down-home Americans are stocking up on food supplies knowing in our heart of hearts that the only thing we can do is to prepare for that which is to come. As Boler so aptly says at the end of a close Jazz game, "Buckle up folks -- it's going to be a rough ride."

Previously almost heretical to think, it may turn out that the resources of the world are finite. If so, and it turns out that we are living right at capacity, we may have to one day accept that there are too many of us. A system with no reserve capacity can suffer problems very easily, and in the case of humanity becoming unable to feed even more of itself than it already cannot, it's going to be an unpleasant situation.
I think denial is the wrong place to be on this anymore.

Energy policy in this country, lead by Bush in the production of ethanol, and fear mongering by environmentalists are driving food prices up. We should be tapping the plentiful oil reserves and building more oil refineries to meet the needs of everyone. The earth is not fragile and has the power to rejuvenate -- Trees love CO2!

The US and Brazil should stop producing ethanol right now, and produce food instead. Ethanol production is blamed for much of the food price increase in the US according to experts.

George Bush's fault?!? How powerful do you think the president really is in the big scheme of things? The article points out the real culprits, which are bigger than any president.

Ask your congressmanwhy they support the CRP program for farmers. Why should the US government be paying farmers NOT to raise crops?

You are right. It is Bush's fault. He causes bad weather, I wish I had that kind of power...

Now that we've figured out that the same starches, sugars, and oils that we grow to eat can also be adapted to fuel our cars, there will be a lot more hunger. A person can subsist for a year on what it takes to make a tank of SUV fuel. 7 billion stomachs are now in direct competition with 900 million gas tanks.

"Please die, so that I may drive."

I was just waiting to hear how someone would blame Bush for this!
Anyone who reads this article carefully can see that the whole issue is extremely complex. There is no easy fix, but there are many things we can do individually, and we should be doing them. Check into square foot gardening, for example. LDS people have been encouraged to produce and store food for decades--and now we can see why. Personal overconsumption of resources is a spiritual wrong--whether we're talking about oversized houses, or cars, or electronic gadgets, or overconsumption of expensive food--do we really need escargot? Or a heavy meat diet? Or 60 inch TVs? There's a lot to be said for a more simple life and the ability to share with others in need. And if we are joyful about our lives, our children will learn to be also.
Folks, we don't NEED all this stuff.
We raised a large family on a small income and without debt--but we had to get extremely creative about it--I have faith that people can rise to meet these problems, too. If we will. Blaming won't help--hard work will.

There are a lot of small steps one can take here in the U.S. to help with the food supply/demand problem. Buy locally- join a community supported agriculture program and pay attention to where your food comes from and how it got here. It's great for folks that don't have space, time, or know-how to grow their own crops in their own garden. You'd also be amazed what one can grow in a container on a small porch or patio. Be aware of where your beef, chicken, eggs, and dairy products come from. It IS possible to buy locally or at least regionally. This would apply to other things such as clothing. Consumer awareness will go a great distance in curbing many of these huge issues we as a nation and world are facing.

Unfortunately, there will still be millions of people worldwide who can't afford a bag of rice. So it's up to those of us who are more fortunate to do something about it and help them.

Thats right its Bush's fault, if we didnt have a government with only one branch where one man made 100% of the decisions maybe this would be a better situation. In fact I'm going to drive over to my friends house in my huge 10 mile per gallon vehicle to let him know that too. And if people refuse to make more oil for me to have gas I'll just put a months supply of food in my tank, I can afford it(or rack up debt for it) and if I can afford it it doesnt hurt the world.

The trib had an article today about vanishing farming in Utah. During world war II our country was on the verge of starving. Victory gardens were promoted, and saved the day. As far as Haitian not being able to buy duram wheat to make pasta because of the price. I would blame that mostly on drought. Making ethanol is stupid. Use huge amounts of natural gas to distill the ethanol. Why not just burn Natural gas straight in your car? Nuclear power and compressed air cars, that would be the smart thing to do.

So....This is when the prophets could say. "Told you so" but they won't. Get your food storage not your toys. Listen to the prophets voice.

Sorry Conservatives. When you go from a surplus to the largest deficit in our nation's history under the watch of Bush/Cheney and a never-ending war to boot, it seems entirely logical and fair to give credit where credit is due.
I didn't vote for them.

Your post should read "Sorry Republicans"....not "Sorry Conservatives". These have become two different definitions. The current Republican administration has Not been behaving like conservatives. Please don't confuse the two.

I would encourage people to use at least part of their upcoming "tax rebate check" to contribute to some humanitarian effort somewhere in the world. Stories like this only underscore that fact.

Dare I ask, how much farm land is currently used to grow tobacco, grapes for wine, and potatos and other grains for alcohol? How many more mouths could be fed if that land were used for food production?

How much food is lost or wasted because of poor distribution systems, farming techniques, or blatant greed?

I've heard conflicting stories as to whether or not ethonal production actually used more energy than it produced. If there's even a question about the cost/benefit of ethonal production, it's probably not a good idea; it's just another pork-barrel for farm state senators and reps to brag about come re-election time.

Did anyone look at that photo?
It really is disturbing.

My vehicle runs on bread, cheese, beans, soda, cookies, lettuce, eggs.

It has two wheels and it clips along pretty good.

I plan on using it as much as possible while the weather is good.

You are right about the photo...it is disturbing. These people are hungry and hunger is very uncomfortable. I agree with the person who said quit blaming and do something to help yourself be prepared so you will be able to help someone else. Those women in that photo are not able to help anyone else...We should have a supply of food in our own homes, be out of debt and work hard to plant a garden, fruit trees and have a few chickens if possible. We may be called upon to help others. It would be a lot easier to do this if we were in good shape ourselves.