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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Since You Asked: La Tapatia is inspected, not graded App Finder: Best basketball apps Phoenix council races draw a crowd — and debate Rite Aid cub well, could come back to southern Oregon Wednesday night windstorm fells large tree at Darkwing Manor Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Medford police arrest 7 in domestic violence sweep Community blog: Domestic Violence- "No More Silence" Emergency services Winters worn down by criticism Home invasion robbery suspect who skipped town two years ago arrested in L.A. Politics and Elections Phoenix council races draw a crowd — and debate Winters worn down by criticism Eagle Point might get on the bus Richardson accuses Kitzhaber of 'corruption' in final debate Green Party won't back its own candidate Education SOU student says free speech issue overblown SOU interim president leads in a different direction Medford school officials consider costs of full-day kindergarten Foundation kicks off ambitious 'Count Me In' fundraising campaign 100 hours and counting Environment Rite Aid cub well, could come back to southern Oregon Neighbors smell trouble in proposal to spread waste on Sams Valley farmland Bear cub captured in Ashland pharmacy Work begins on Southern Oregon's first dedicated mountain bike trail Applegate Dam hydroelectric project dead in water State news Nation - World Obituaries Anne Johnson Gayle Myrna Glover Ronald J. Hupp Death Notices Gary Wayne Campbell Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Sports Latest Stories Crater nails down outright MWL crown Dobry leads Crusaders to district crown North Valley forfeits all seven games App Finder: Best basketball apps Manning, Sanders lead Broncos past Chargers Varsity 541 College Sports No. 7 Raiders try to bounce back at College of Idaho No. 6 Oregon looks to extend streak against Cal Arizona clear-cut favorite in the Pac-12 Slumping Bears hope to slow No. 6 Oregon, Mariota Shaw shoulders blame for Stanford's slide Pro Sports Manning, Sanders lead Broncos past Chargers Serena rebounds from WTA shellacking Compton among early leaders at Sea Island Guthrie gets the call for Royals in Game 3 Rookie Randle leads Lakers past Blazers 94-86 Community Sports LOCAL EVENTS LOCAL RESULTS Business Latest Stories Old-fashioned hat maker Sportsman's Warehouse to add Klamath Falls store County OKs partnership to lead business recruitment People's Bank sees 64% net earnings gain New I-5 interchange puts south Medford on fast lane to fast food Real Estate News New I-5 interchange puts south Medford on fast lane to fast food Lithia buys Clovis dealership Rental vacancies increase Jackson County real estate sales, prices continue rebound Pallet Wine Co. expands in downtown Medford People In Business People in Business Transportation Frontier Airlines to end Eugene-Denver service Business Resource Fair has answers Erickson's Navy contract extended Lithia buys Clovis dealership Agriculture Hundreds look for work at Harry & David hiring fair Umpqua Holdings more than doubles net earnings Harry & David will hold hiring fair Thursday Ranchers offer livestock exchange 1-800-Flowers CEO: Labor shortage an issue for Harry & David Opinion Latest Our View: SOU's 'free speech zone' constitutionally questionable Letters to the Editor, Oct. 23 Michael Gerson: For GOP, no victory lap Granlund cartoon: Canadian terrorist attack Our View: Kitzhaber is still the best choice Editorials Our View: SOU's 'free speech zone' constitutionally questionable Our View: Kitzhaber is still the best choice Our view: Merkley-Wehby race leaves us unconvinced; Walden seems destined for permanent position Our View: Falls for sheriff, our picks for state House Our view: Endorsements include Bates, Talbert, Hoppe Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Oct. 23 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 23 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 22 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 21 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 20 Guest Opinions Don't overlook importance of Jackson County commissioners race Measure 92 misleads rather than enlightens Oregonians have a right to know what's in their food Infill is the answer to growth issues Guest Opinion: Who’s really to blame for 2014 wildfires? Lifestyle Latest stories Religion Briefs Looking Up: The North Star — for now Angler embarks on 'Big Fishing Year' Gates of the Arctic — a different world Rusty rocks and bloody stones Food Community blog: Barrel Aged and Sour Beers Community blog: There's a method to mix, match alternative grains Ashland resident's cookbook showcases gluten-free creativity Legder David Cellars has a new winemaker and big plans Kitchen Call: New interest in old-fashioned buttermilk Home and Garden How to live and work in a tiny home Dear Monty: Rent-back clause prevents financial disaster​ Recycle plastic at The Expo Friday and Saturday How to know when trees and shrubs need to go Dear Monty: Is your real estate agent a secret agent? Health Community blog: The Crowd And The Win - Better Health Joan Endyke: The importance of a healthy diet when pregnant Community blog: Listening Skills for the Brave and Passionate: Taking it to the Next Level Held captive by whimsy Community blog: My New Best Selling Book Hiking Biking Faith Religion Briefs Religion Briefs Religion Briefs Religion Briefs Religion briefs Milestones and Achievements New arrivals Southern Oregon Pride parade celebrates gay marriage ruling New Arrivals Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Back Porch Bar & Grill Southern Oregon Repertory Singers present harmonious voices, dissonant notes Scottish music duo plays highland magic Beekeepers Ball is one sweet soiree Dean Angermeier rediscovers his 'roots' Theater Camelot presents 'The Lion in Winter' 'Carnage' is short, smart, darkly funny Music Southern Oregon Repertory Singers present harmonious voices, dissonant notes Scottish music duo plays highland magic Beekeepers Ball is one sweet soiree Dean Angermeier rediscovers his 'roots' Moonalice plays Applegate Lodge Community Events Review: Funny 'Lion in Winter' roars to life at Camelot Theatre Theater's haunted house not for faint of heart Third Fridays in downtown Medford Works in progress Southern Oregon Pride Festival celebrates diversity Dining Back Porch Bar & Grill Yu's Yummy Yan's offers great take-out Agave offers tasty tacos Asian cuisine for all seasons at Misoya Bistro Spoons Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Our View: SOU's 'free speech zone' constitutionally questionable ... Wednesday night windstorm fells large tree at Darkwing Manor ... Granlund cartoon: Canadian terrorist attack ... Our View: SOU's 'free speech zone' constitutionally questionable ... Wednesday night windstorm fells large tree at Darkwing Manor ... Granlund cartoon: Canadian terrorist attack ... How to keep them down on the farm — beholden to government Someone who is determined to disbelieve something can manage to disregard an Everest of evidence for it. So Barack Obama will not temper his enthusiasm for increased equality with lucidity about the government's role in exacerbating inequality. MailTribune.com Writer Posted Mar. 16, 2014 @ 12:01 am Updated Mar 16, 2014 at 2:00 AM Posted Mar. 16, 2014 @ 12:01 am Updated Mar 16, 2014 at 2:00 AM » Social News Someone who is determined to disbelieve something can manage to disregard an Everest of evidence for it. So Barack Obama will not temper his enthusiasm for increased equality with lucidity about the government's role in exacerbating inequality. In the movie "Animal House," Otter, incensed by the expulsion of his fraternity, says: "I think this situation absolutely requires a really futile and stupid gesture." Such thinking gives us minimum wage increases that do very little for very few. Meanwhile, there are farm bills, like the one Obama signed last month at Michigan State University. MSU was one of the models for the land-grant colleges created under the 1862 Morrill Act, whose primary purpose was to apply learning to agriculture. Today, we apply crony capitalism to agriculture. The legislation Obama lavishly praised redistributes wealth upward by raising prices consumers pay. Vincent Smith of Montana State University says small non-farm businesses are almost 30 times more likely to fail than farms, partly because the $956 billion farm legislation continues agriculture's thick safety net. The geyser of subsidies assures that farm households will continue to be 53 percent more affluent than average households. Certain payments are, however, restricted. People making more than $900,000 annually are ineligible. Seventy percent of Agriculture Department spending funds food services. Nearly 48 million people — almost as many live on the West Coast (in California, Oregon and Washington) — receive food stamps. This dependency, inimical to upward mobility, is assiduously cultivated by government through "outreach initiatives" to "increase awareness" and "streamline the application process." Between 2000, when 17 million received stamps, and 2006, food stamp spending doubled, even though unemployment averaged just 5.1 percent. A few states have food stamp recruiters. An award was given to a state agency for a plan to cure "mountain pride" that afflicts "those who wished not to rely on others." Nearly two-thirds of households receiving food stamps qualify under "categorical eligibility" because they receive transportation assistance or certain other welfare services. We spend $1 trillion annually on federal welfare programs decades after Daniel Patrick Moynihan said that if one-third of the money for poverty programs were given directly to the poor, there would be no poor. But there also would be no unionized poverty bureaucrats prospering and paying dues that fund the campaigns of Democratic politicians theatrically heartsick about inequality. The welfare state, primarily devoted to pensions and medical care for the elderly, aggravates inequality. Young people just starting up the earnings ladder, and families in the child-rearing, tuition-paying years, subsidize the elderly, who have had lifetimes of accumulation. Households headed by people 75 or older have the highest median net worth of any age group. In this sixth year of near-zero interest rates, the government's monetary policy breeds inequality. Low rates are intended to drive liquidity into the stock market in search of higher yields. The resulting boom in equity markets — up 30 percent last year alone — has primarily benefited the 10 percent who own 80 percent of all directly owned stocks. Charles Wolf writes in The Weekly Standard: "The financial sector's profits rose from 18 percent of total corporate profits preceding the recession in 2007 to 23 percent in 2013." Richard Fisher, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, says the total reserves of depository institutions "have ballooned from a pre-crisis level of $43 billion to $2.5 trillion." And? "The store of bank reserves awaiting discharge into the economy through our banking system is vast, yet it lies fallow." The result is a scandal of squandered potential: "In fourth quarter 2007, the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) was $14.7 trillion; at year-end 2013 it was estimated to be $17.1 trillion. Had we continued on the path we were on before the crisis, real GDP would currently be roughly $20 trillion in size. That's a third larger than it was in 2007. Yet the amount of money lying fallow in the banking system is 60 times greater now than it was at year-end 2007." The monetary base having expanded 340 percent in six years, there is abundant money for businesses. But, says Fisher, the federal government's fiscal and regulatory policies discourage businesses growing the economy with the mountain of money the Fed has created. This is why "the most vital organ of our nation's economy — the middle-income worker — is being eviscerated." And why the loudest complaints about inequality are coming from those whose policies worsen it. George Will is a syndicated columnist in Washington, D.C. Email him at [email protected]. MailTribune.com Writer Posted Mar. 16, 2014 @ 12:01 am Updated Mar 16, 2014 at 2:00 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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