Andrew's Blog

Robert F. Kennedy on GNP

Our gross national product counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors, and the jails for the people who break them. It counts the destruction of the redwoods, and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic sprawl. It counts napalm, nuclear warheads, and armored cars for the police to fight the riots in our cities. Yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages, the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile.

“Prince Charles takes on agricultural lobbies on both sides of Atlantic”

“Today’s food system works against those growers and consumers who want sustainably produced food, the prince said, and ‘favours overwhelmingly’ intensive agriculture which leads to environmental damage.”

“‘And so this raises an admittedly difficult question – has the time arrived when a long hard look is needed at the way public subsidies are generally geared?’ said the prince.”

“He did criticize the American agricultural system, citing the fact that 40% of corn grown on US soil now goes directly into petrol tanks as fuel and that each pound of beef produced flushes away 2,000 gallons of water.”

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/may/05/prince-charles-sustainable-agriculture-farming