‘Twas the season of all our seasons — and for good reasons
A nostalgic look at Christmas traditions on a southern Illinois farm, where the magic of Western Auto shaped childhood memories.
Three strikes and you’re out
Congress extends the 2018 Farm Bill again, leaving farmers facing rising costs, lower prices and unstable markets despite billions in federal payments.
Farmers and ranchers are major SNAP beneficiaries, too
Examining the contrast between halted SNAP payments and rapid farm aid, and why farm groups stayed silent despite SNAP’s major impact on rural economies.
If you ever felt hunger, you’d never condemn the hungry
A mother’s memories of Dust Bowl hunger reveal how hardship leaves lasting scars — and how compassion endures through generations.
And you thought ‘business’ people knew economics
U.S. food policy is full of contradictions, as billions go to farmers for tariffs and SNAP funds run dry, showing politics, not people, drive the decisions.
US Labor Dept.: Less pay means more farm employees
A crackdown on undocumented workers and cuts to farm wages threaten U.S. food production. Labor shortages grow as Americans reject farm jobs.
Farmers are holding a bad hand in a rigged game
U.S. soybean farmers face a losing hand as tariffs, a government shutdown and a $20-billion Argentina bailout stack the deck against American agriculture.
RFK Jr.: Making rural America less healthy again
Cuts to SNAP, Medicaid and vaccine programs threaten to make rural America sicker, not healthier, despite promises to “make America healthy again.”
At the White House: Two holes, $20 billion and one big mess
Tariffs, currency moves and U.S. aid to Argentina are deepening the crisis for American soybean farmers as exports plunge and rivals capture global markets.
Flag-less, sign-less but definitely not clueless
On a southern Illinois dairy farm, politics stayed private. A father’s quiet choices — and rare political moments — revealed values deeper than party lines.
