I Know It When I See It...

Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart used the phrase, “I know it when I see it,” in the opinion he wrote about a landmark 1964 case that decided whether a French film, The Lovers, was an example of pornography. Almost 44 years later, another scourge has surfaced and holds the potential to inflict great pain and suffering on Americans. Like Judge Stewart, I can honestly say, “I know it when I see it!” and what I see is this: “Corn ethanol is Cornography!”

Like Judge Potter Stewart, I can honestly say, “I know it when I see it!” and what I see is this: “Corn ethanol is Cornography!” Granted, Stewart was talking about pornography. But the fact remains that corn ethanol is bad for society in similar ways.

Much like it’s seedy “ography” cousin mentioned above, cornography is offensive to the senses — primarily the common sense — and it has been spotted by others, including someone at National Review’s The Corner, who described it this way:

“Corn ethanol is a boondoggle of gigantic proportions, foisted on the American public by an uncompetitive corn ethanol industry that sees the global warming scare as its lifeline. And this boondoggle harms the world’s poor, not just working Americans who have to pay more for gas. A responsible Congress would cut the ethanol mandate and subsidy to nothing.”

One might surmise that cornography is harmful to the economy, especially after reading this news release from some people who out to know — the folks at the Grocery Manufacturers Association:

“Consumers have already seen an increase in the cost of food, as corn traditionally used for livestock feed and processed food is increasingly used for fuel. In fact, the price of corn has nearly doubled in the last nine months.

“In addition to its inflationary impact, there are many unintended, but nonetheless important, consequences of an ambitious corn ethanol strategy. For example, a 35 billion gallon ethanol mandate will require a substantial increase in the use of fossil fuels for corn and ethanol processing and transportation, as well as an additional fifteen million acres devoted to corn crops, which will encroach on agriculturally marginal and environmentally sensitive land.

“An aggressive ethanol mandate will also require the U.S. to significantly reduce its corn exports to ensure an adequate supply of corn for food and fuel. Such a reduction will result in a decrease in the amount of food available overseas, which in turn will have a negative effect on world hunger.”

If the folks at GMA are accurate in their analysis, Americans should expect to be confronted with more and more images of starving people — in places like Africa, India and, who knows, maybe West Palm Beach — as the corn ethanol industry gains an even-stronger foothold as an alternative fuel. Those images, destined to offend the senses of caring individuals everywhere, will not go unnoticed. In fact, they’ll come to be regarded as “cornographic images” due to their association with corn ethanol.

And, who knows, corn growers and their cohorts in the powerful corn lobby might become so hated by consumers that millions of their corn-based products will no longer be sold in reputable establishments. Instead, they’ll only be available at convenience stores and seedy retail outlets, wrapped up in brown paper wrappers.

Bob McCarty Writes at BobMcCarty.com