Rural Crisis

Message / Question

Don't want to seem harsh, but to OP who says that farmers are committing suicide because of droughts, I think the bible makes it clear that it's their own fault if you look at the story of Joseph. You knew that it would come. Farming is in cycles. You could have bought insurance like "put options," "futures", or "forwards" from the bank but you decided not to. What do you say Dr Dave?

Response:

If doing that worked for you, that’s great, but the evidence around Australia is that it didn’t work for most people. Agreeing ahead on price and delivery is fine if you have adequate resources but for a lot of people it wasn’t a viable option. Farming may “go in cycles” but this “down cycle” has lasted for a long time and has seen the demise of many Australian properties.

Having said that, now is not a good time to apportion blame for the losses that have been incurred. The reality is, for whatever reason, the rural sector in Australia is in crisis, with huge numbers of rural dwellers facing genuine economic hardship. Many people have simply walked away from their properties – some of which have been in their family for generations. Land that is being sold is being sold at a fraction of its real value and often to overseas investors so that banks can get some of their loan money back. These among many other factors, is causing emotional strains and family breakdowns in rural Australia and far too many people (a vast majority being men) have turned to suicide as their means of escape. Deciding what should have been done in the past may seem fine, but it is simply unhelpful to those facing crisis. We must act with care and compassion and do whatever we are able to do to help those in our Nation facing such a bleak future.