Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1943-09-10
Your
Standard
Or Living
By CLAYTON Rusch.
BY Clayton Rusch,
Chairman of The Food
Price Control Committee
of Local IL UAW-CIO
Agricultural High Command
Needed

VI hOSdl IL " "A -1lO
Agricultural High Command
Needed
We are nearing the end of ouI
second year in the war. The news
from the fighting fronts looks
good. This is, of course, the result
of long range planning which means
always keeping in mind ultimate
detectives.
In order for the military front
to get the support from the home
front that is essential, the same
coordinated planning should be
applied to civilian production.
The need for a high overall
economic command in the prod
uction of ammunition and other
war supplies has often been point
ed out by Walter Reuther, Interna-
tional Vice-president of the UAW-
CI0, and others Of our union. II
we are going to have an adequate
food program, sufficient for the
needs of both the military fight1
ing army and the civilian produc-
ing army, an overall high COM
mand is sorely needed in the agri-
culture industry also and if such
an organization is not established
soon, we may be confronted with
an actual food shortage.
Farm Workers and
City Workers
As this column has previously
pointed out the idea that the price
the city workers pay for food goes
to the working farmer is all wrong.
Nor does the exorbitant price the
farmers pay for equipment 60 to
the city worker, either.
There are two types Of working
farmers. First, those who labor on
the huge farm factories for small
wages. 1t is the owners of these
farm factories who control the So
called Farm Bloc" of Congress.
The other type of working farmer
is the small independent farmer
who owns or rents a small piece
of land. These small independent
dirt farmers (small farmers who
own their land although generally
subject to mortgage) and tenant
farmers (small farmers who rent
their land usually at high rates)
hire no help to speak of, and get
only a small part of what the con-
sumer pays for food, for they must
deal through middle men and not
direct, as the owners of farm fac
tories do. Out of the fraction they
get of your food dollar these work
ing farmers pay exorbantly high
prices for fertilizers, seed and
farm equipment.
The first step required in OBJ
tanning an adequate food supply is
to relieve the plight Of the work
ing farmers.
In regard to the workers in the
farm factories the only solution to
their problem, is an effective or
ganization after the manner of
the city industrial workers. These
employee farmers must be organ
lied into unions.
In regard to the problem of the
dirt and tenant farmers nothing
less than an overall planning
system subsidized by the govern
ment could effectively correct con-
ditions.
Needed
One hesitates to use the word
Subsidy" for the mere mention of
it irritates big business no
end. Yet a little observation will
show that big business interests
only object to subsidies for small
farmers and worker consumers.
Big business heartedly indorses the
oaning of money by government
TO industry, the setting up of ma
owned by the government
n war plants and a government
guarantee of huge profits. In fact,
huge industry is highly subsidized,
and the criticism against the plan
% save the food situation by at
subsidies is therefore, un-
sound.