The Land of Opportunity

Alternative Column: The government shutdown is mostly just a way to assign blame and gain power. As usu-al, those doing the assigning aren't out much. Neither am I.
I'm lucky the beer brand I prefer had planned for an un-certain future like farmers did before they became hooked, like dope addicts, on govern-ment. Sierra Nevada Brewing stocked up on approved labels and should do fine for a while. Other craft brewers have fin-ished product sitting in vats but are waiting for government approved labels.
I suppose some folks blame Trump because he promised the Mexicans would pay for “the wall.” Apparently he doesn't have the same influence over the Mexican government that the drug cartels do. U.S. tax-payers are the go-to safety net once again.
The shutdown, like an early winter, presents a learning opportunity. Is there really someone out there who be-lieves the government needs to approve beer labels?
The federal government shutdown is troublesome, not because it performs essential services, but because we have become accustomed to those services. When we hear that only essential services will be funded, what does that say for the services that are not? If they are not essential, should they be done at all?
When we received word of the “Market Facilitation Pro-gram” it was worded in a letter from the USDA as to compen-sate us for “illegal [sic] Chi-nese tariffs.” Some farmers are not getting their expected band-aid and they owe rent.
I wonder how many of them feel cheated, and how many see it as an avoidable conse-quence of government inter-vention in free markets. What if the government avoided do-ing favors for anointed groups to begin with? Farmers could earn an honest living and con-sumers could pay fair prices. Lobbyists could be electricians or run printing presses.
In Los Angeles the teachers are on strike. Parents have to find a place for the kids or take time off work to watch them. I imagine some kids get bored watching their phones. Parents dream up things to do with them. They could clean up the neighborhood, walk or ride bikes at the beach or in the mountains, help at a food bank, or even study some sub-ject they get curious about. The parents might find they enjoy the time together and find a way to economize or make money outside a regular job. They could become that fabled single income household that was once the norm.
Winter hit and the ground froze here before many farmers were done with harvest. Usual-ly there is time for a lot of till-age to be done in preparation for next year's crop, supposed-ly so the soil will dry and warm faster. This year much soil was left undisturbed. Some farmers fret that that soil will not be ready for planting at an optimal date.
But there are quite a few farmers who deal with this undisturbed springtime soil every year and still turn a prof-it. In fact, after a couple years the soil profile returns to some-thing similar to what God in-tended. The root channels and worm holes provide pathways for the next year's water, nu-trients, and roots. Yields are maintained while soil and time are saved.
Here is an opportunity to do more with less. This is still a land of opportunity, despite the claim that it is a land of rights; rights obtained by claiming the property of others. I hope these opportunities are not squandered by focusing on the blame game. A lot of posi-tive things can come from mo-mentary adversity.
Any opinions on this column are welcome at 4selfgovernment@gmail.com or through a letter to the editor. The blog is updated almost daily at www.alternativebyfritz.com. Try it. You’ll like it.