Jayaraman Rajah Iyer comments on one of my recent posts. Being down with a sinus infection (it’s still hanging on), I wasn’t able to do it justice in my comments, so now I remedy that by letting you all see it as a direct post.
James Pilant
Yes all nations are in the wrong track. Quote from my book:”When the priority is already set, the hungry man accepts
the inevitability of the human race which is non-reacting,
non-acting, non-responding, inert-like entity. The change that
is needed from a Government to shift the gear from
advanced technology and space exploration to a mundane
agricultural economy is a process very tough to implement in
a short notice, even if one realizes that more than a billion
people are below poverty line. Nuclear submarines,
armaments, security initiatives of trillion dollar valued
business enterprise have precedence over morality and
therefore prudence is what the government feels they should
adopt. Not because it is not the priority but effecting change
in increasing the arable lands, increasing the yield per
hectare, linking satellites facilities for better farming,
conclusion on Genetically Modified seeds, advanced
agricultural machinery, increasing the total agricultural
production etc. involve a clear long-term strategy of many
years to implement.
“The new pledge to commit $20 billion to global
agricultural development.. has the potential to dramatically
improve the livelihoods of more than 700 million of the
world’s poor living in rural areas, so says Catherine Bertini,
former executive director, UN World Food Program; and Dan
Glickman, former secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture.”
$20 billion is a minuscule amount, given the defense
expenditure and the estimated sum tax evaders who have
effectively squirreled away between 7 and 11 trillion dollars
in safety deposit boxes and offshore bank accounts, as
Lesley Curwen reports in BBC, it gives the state of
affairs of the economy driven by forces beyond the control of
the world governments. Agricultural production gets stagnated for years but world, if ever takes cognizance of
increased production in agriculture, then the society as a
whole has to be brought into action. The canvas is much
larger, expansive, broad and comprehensive in its strategy
to execute. Without involving many in the society it is
conceptually difficult to materialize major results.”
Recent visit by Obama to India has again pushed defense equipment for sale that would at the most protect a few jobs. India is stagnated at 300 million tonnes agricultural produce for too long and there seems to be no strategy to scale up to 500 million tonnes. Leadership is very much needed lest those who remain hungry takes the leadership in their hands – at the street level.
Pilant's Business Ethics Blog 
Thanks JP. Governments should have large heart as you have.
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It is the same old, same old.
What would we do?
Plant the seeds for a harvest next year or give them away to placate the hunger?
We know the answer that will yield survival of mankind.
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Do you have a web site, Ed? jp
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