"Bitter" vs. "Roses"

Several days ago, we noted the controversy where Obama used the word "bitter" to describe some of the disappointment ... and anger ... in rural America today. We wrote, "... a lot of rural folks have lost their dreams in these last 25-30 years ... suffering through the "farm crisis of the 1980’s" and communities losing plant after plant of good union jobs moving overseas."

My Rural America has joined a new coalition lead by Al Cross (writer of The Rural Blog and Director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Communications), which calls for a presidential forum or debate about the issues facing rural America. Cross sites the challenges of No Child Left Behind, the still-undone Farm Bill and environmental issues in his request to the presidential candidates. Certainly, there is much more to talk about, including:

• Re: Jobs Lost. Have you ever noticed that when the Department of Labor releases their figures on jobs lost, they never even count the jobs lost from the farms of America ... only "off farm" jobs get counted.
• Re: Soldiers Lost ... in the war in Afghanistan and the occupation in Iraq. According to the University of New Hampshire's Carsey Institute, our brave men and women soldiers who come from the small towns and country roads across America have a 60% higher death rate higher death rate than do the soldiers who come from urban America. For many of our rural kids, joining the military is the only way they can get to college. For other rural kids, serving in the National Guard and getting that extra pay is the "extra income" that keeps them above the poverty level.
• Re: Health Insurance Lost. 6% more of our rural kids get their health care from SCHIP -- State Children's Health Insurance Program -- than do urban kids, yet enough proudly conservative rural members of Congress voted no on the need to expand this great program so that more of our kids nationwide could take advantage of it.
• Re: Education Funding Lost. Rural schools serve 40% of our nation's students but receive only 22 percent of federal education funding.
  

Combine these issues and more with rural America's shrinking voice in Congress caused by the emptying out of rural America and what you get is forgotten. In my home state of Iowa, our "shrinking voice" has meant Iowa is down to five U.S. representatives. That's down from 11 in 1930. Next to come is 2012 when we can expect to have only four Members representing us.

Rob Rose, reporter for the Meadville Tribune in Indiana, writes, "Bitter is as Bitter Does", as he adds his voice to the growing call for a rural presidential forum:

ROSE -- "The presidential primary votes of Hoosiers are, for the first time in nearly a half-century, meaningful. Obama’s remarks give us an opportunity to back two national politicians into corners and keep them there until they give us real answers to real problems — and we should."

We agree. Everything is NOT coming up roses in rural America and it's high time the presidential candidates started talking in more detail. Obama started the conversation. Clinton criticized. Now let's put some meat on the bones of this discussion.