Bread for the World mentioned on the House Floor

Jerry Lewis (R-CA), who is the ranking Republican member of the House Appropriations Committee (and was once the Chair of the committee), mentioned Bread on the House floor the other day (Wednesday, 6/20) in his opening statements about the Foreign Operations Bill (catch a summary of the bill here). His remarks were in support of the United States government putting their money into ending poverty. The people that I am working with in my internship, David Gist and Holly Hight, have been working with the congressman for quite some time and it is a wonderful reward to see that their efforts have really made a difference.

Here are his remarks:

Now, I know most Members feel they weren't elected to support international assistance programs. In fact, Mr. Chairman, I am sure there are many Members who feel that the United States should dramatically reduce the amount of money we spend around the world and focus our resources on domestic priorities. This sort of isolationist point of view has no place in today's shrinking world. One needs only to look to Europe as an example of a once powerful and influential nation withdrew its resources from around the world and focused inward. What has since been termed as the ``French model'' resulted in massive inflation, high unemployment rates within the country, and severe internal crises. The United States should not follow the ``French model,'' a misguided path that essentially has caused the French to disappear as a powerful force in the world.

I remember as a young man attending UCLA I was fortunate to participate in a program that preceded the Peace Corps called Project India . As I joined other young students in traveling to villages around a country where poverty and ever-present caste systems were always visible, I was struck by the importance that personal freedom and opportunity have on the human condition, especially if you had the good fortune of being born in the United States of America .

Today, India has outlawed the caste system and is the largest democracy in the world, as well as our strong ally in the global war on terror. I am particularly pleased that in any congressional district there are large numbers of my constituents who are actively involved, advocating for increases in our international assistance program.

In recent meetings with the Results Group, with CARE, Bread for the World and others, I have noticed that more and more people are beginning to understand that they, too, have a role in our role for leadership in the world. Theirs are the voices from the grass roots, a perspective that we need as Americans to recognize that we must continue to lead in the world, for indeed, without our leadership, the poor of the world will suffer most. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to support this fabulous demonstration of work on both sides of the aisle together.

Teach-in on the Farm Bill at All Saints

I just got back from a teach-in session at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena this afternoon in which David Gist offered information on the "Farm Bill." Lunch was offered, with a suggested donation of $5 at the door. We sat down at tables and made small talk while starting later than was advertised. David was introduced, and then made some introductory remarks.

One of his comments was, I think, especially important when thinking about this "Farm Bill" thing. He said that it is a poorly named bill. It is not merely about "farms." It might as well be called "The Bill That's So Big We Don't Have a Name for It." The bill, he said, affects just about every person in America.

He asked the audience why we need to care about the Farm Bill and people were whipping out all kinds of reasons. And not just the general "because farming affects us all" kinds of answers. They were saying things so specifically informed that David responded to one woman from the crowd: "You just covered three pages of my notes!"

Then we watched Bread's "Offering of Letters" 15-minute video (which can be found at their website).

After the video, David opened it up for questions. Here are some of the questions that people were asking:

• It seems like we hear of "breakthroughs" every couple years on these issues, but then later we hear that it's the same old story? Are we really making breakthroughs on these issues or not? (As far as David's concerned, something really isn't a "breakthrough" unless it is in the year when the bill is on the table)
  
• Does the Farm Bill discuss water rights? (I think this was about water table usage)
• Why don't we get rid of all subsidies? (Bread's position is more of a "phasing out" of subsidies, rather than a complete halt of all subsidies)
• What is the timeline for the bill? (The House is ahead of the Senate. The House will be voting on this just after the Fourth of July, the Senate a couple weeks beyond that. This is why letters to House Representatives are more important than to Senators at this point.)
• What does "markup" mean?
• What are some of the arguments for subsidies? (They are kind of self-serving for the lobbies: rice, cotton, corn, etc.)
  
• Who is going to be the policing agent overseeing the changes if they come to pass? The USDA? (the gentleman speaking has strong opinions against the USDA: "they are all pigs," he says)
• Comment: The large farms are a health concern. Think of the contaminated Spinach.
• What is the relationship between this bill and any link between corn farming and the possibility of ethanol? (David tried to tame this line of questioning, but a lot of people got on the topic and rode it out for the remainder of the discussion)

What interested me was the fact that nobody talked about food stamps. I was the only one. During the "why do we need to care" section of the session, I raised my hand and mentioned food stamps. It was also a significant section of the video. Nobody picked it up, though. I thought a progressive place like All Saints would be interested.

Many of the comments were more concerned with the oppression of some big corrupt group over a large portion of small have-nots. So, many people were demonizing large farms that put small farms out of business, the USDA, etc. Is it that poor people on food stamps have no clearly defined "big bad guy" oppressing them? Is it too complex a problem to rally up a bunch of passion?

The corn and ethanol thing seems to be a hot topic in the news, but you know, the food stamp program still needs our attention. There are a lot of struggling people out there.

Any good intern should blog, right?

Since my other blog is more interested in New Testament interpretation, Christian Origins, and the road to academia in general, I didn't think it would be the best outlet for my thoughts on my Summer internship with Bread for the World (or as the insiders say, "Bread"). And it's just plain common sense that I should blog about my internship experience. Learning opportunity + 20-something with wireless = blog posts. Well, at least that's the way it works for me.

One initial question that you may have: What is Bread? In their own words:

Bread for the World is a nationwide Christian movement that seeks justice for the world's hungry people by lobbying our nation's decision makers.

They also have the Bread for the World Institute, which has the same goal, but a different means: the Institute seeks justice for hungry people "by engaging in research and education on policies related to hunger and development." The website would, of course, answer plenty of the questions you may have about the organization. Additionally, the website offers tons of information about how to be active.

Follow-up question: What will be blogged here? You can expect to see my thoughts on hunger in the Bible, how to communicate to Christians about hunger, learning about public policy and lobbying, and other such uplifting and inspirational thoughts [tongue residing in cheek]. I hope to tackle these things with at least a modicum of levity [do I get points for using GRE words?], since the topic carries enough seriousness of its own. Oh, and if I catch David Gist, California Organizer for Bread and my internship supervisor, having too much fun on the job, I'll be sure to blow the whistle on him.

By the by, I also intend to share links that I think are relevant and/or interesting and/or generally entertaining to the right. I'll do this as I come by them. I'm still learning things, so I may put something up there that is really bad. For example, I may link to a site that, at first glance appears to be the online presence of the House Committee on Agriculture, but is actually an organization against fluffy bunny rabbits. This will be remedied as soon as Dorothy finds me a brain. . . . any day now.