Dear Editor:
Prime Minister Mark Carney seems quite frustrated these days in dealing with the scatterbrain trade tactics of Donald Trump. And it appears he has almost emptied the cupboard of possible concessions.
All but one.
So now it’s supply management’s turn in the corporate crosshairs, eh? The big brains in Ottawa – always eager to bend the knee to whichever blow-dried orange demagogue is barking from across the border – are sniffing around our dairy and poultry system like it’s some socialist menace to free trade. Oh no! Canadians pay a bit more for milk, eggs, and chicken … but at least we know where it came from! Probably from a farmer down the road, not some antibiotic-laced bovine gulag in Wisconsin.
But hey – who cares about that when you can sell your soul for a few more export contracts and a pat on the head from Uncle Sam?
Here’s the dirty secret nobody in a tailored suit wants to say out loud: American farms aren’t just big, they’re bloated with subsidies. Billions. Billions with a B. It’s not capitalism. It’s corporate welfare for Godzilla-sized agribusinesses. The same people who treat cows like widgets and workers like barn rats. And somehow our system is the problem?
Supply management isn’t perfect – but at least it gives small family farms in Mildmay, Teeswater, and every cow-speckled corner of Canada a shot at surviving. It keeps the barns full, the feed stores open, and the local economies breathing – you know, the stuff politicians claim to care about every four years when they show up wearing plaid and pretending they drink bagged milk.
Scrap it, and you won’t just kill the quota – you’ll kill off the next generation of farmers. Because no 20-something in their right mind is going to take on $2 million in debt to go toe-to-toe with some corporate Franken-farm in Arkansas that milks 10,000 cows a day and gets a cheque from Washington every morning before breakfast.
And let’s talk food quality, shall we? Ever read the ingredient list on a $1.49 American chicken nugget? It’s like a chemical romance novel. Why do you think they’re always inventing new dipping sauces? It’s not flavor – it’s camouflage.
So no, it’s not about free markets or consumer choice. It’s about selling out the people who feed us to please the same bastards who brought us Walmart, subprime mortgages, and meat glue.
Here’s an idea: how about we update the system without throwing it under the tractor? Keep it fair. Keep it local. And for once, just once, let’s stop pretending Donald Trump’s trade advice is anything more than a con man’s grift echoing through the halls of Parliament.
David Wood,
Mildmay
