Down with King George

摘要

Cotton has always reigned in the South. Northern jealousy of the region's slave-labour cotton plantations helped spark the civil war. But the crop remained long after the fighting stopped and the slaves were set free. It has also survived mechanisation and various pests. Can it survive a free market? This month has seen two blows to cotton farmers' prospects. First, the Bush administration, trying to cut the budget, has proposed reductions in cotton subsidies, limiting them to $250,000 per fanner. Second, the World Trade Organisation has ruled that America's cotton subsidies exceed the limits determined in 1994. If the United States does not fall in line by July 1st, Brazil, which brought the complaint, can impose retaliatory sanctions.