美國農民:「我一毛錢都沒看到啊!」
lanlan 環球時報 今天
美國的農民們快瘋了。
自從特朗普政府挑起跟中國的貿易摩擦以來,美國的農民就苦不堪言。
因為他們真的很慘……
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這兩天,美媒NPR(美國國家公共電台)播放了一期訪談節目。節目中,一位豆農向主持人大吐苦水,直呼特朗普政府搞的貿易戰都快把他們逼上絕路了。
(圖via WSJ)
China was a major buyer of U.S. soybeans until last year when they all but stopped these imports in retaliation for Trump"s tariffs. That"s been hard on American farmers who have long grown the crop.
中國曾是美國大豆的主要買家。直到去年,為反擊特朗普增加的關稅,中國幾乎停止進口美國的大豆。這對長期種植大豆的美國農民來說,日子實在難熬。
▲Soybean Farmer Loses From Retaliatory Tariffs With No Bailout Funds In Sight (via NPR)
出現在節目里的這位豆農名叫約翰(John Wesley Boyd),來自佛吉尼亞州。這已經是他第二次上NPR的節目吐槽了
在節目中,主持人馬丁問他的第一個問題就很高能:
MARTIN: Well, the last time we spoke with you, which was in December of last year, you had too many soybeans. You had nobody to buy them. You said your grain elevator was full of soybeans. And you were trying to wait out this 90 day truce called by the U.S. and China to see how the tariffs would shake out. But what"s been happening since then?
主持人:約翰啊,我們上次和你聊天是在去年12月。你有那麼多大豆,但是沒有人來買。你說你的穀倉里塞滿了大豆。當時你還試著去等中美提出的90天「休戰」結束,看關稅會如何調整。但從那以後,又發生了什麼呢?
聽主持人這麼一問,約翰立刻打開了話匣子,大吐苦水……
BOYD: Well, basically, the situation has not improved for myself and other American farmers. The price is still around $8 a bushel.
好吧,基本上呢,我和其他美國農民的情況都沒啥改善。目前大豆的價格仍然是每蒲式耳8美元左右。(註:「蒲式耳」是一種農產品計量單位,1蒲式耳大豆約等於27公斤大豆)
And President Trump said that all of this stuff would be over in a few months. And this week, he came out with something else with China.
特朗普總統曾說這些事兒都會在幾個月內結束。結果本周呢,他又去和中國搞了點別的事。
And right now, it"s difficult for farmers to actually borrow money for farm operating loans. If you try to tell a banker that the going rate is $8 dollars a bushel and you really don"t see any relief in sight, it makes it difficult for farmers like myself to borrow farm operating money, to make plans.
到了現在,農民們已經很難借到經營農場的貸款了。如果你去和銀行說,現在的大豆價格還是每蒲式耳8美元,而且還看不到任何好轉的跡象,那我這樣的農民就很難借錢去搞農場、制定生產計划了。
▲Soybean Farmer Loses From Retaliatory Tariffs With No Bailout Funds In Sight
(圖via Al Jazeera)
大豆價格依然高不起來,收益沒有,豆子賣不出去,錢又借不到……
那叫一個愁啊!
約翰還沒有吐槽完,他繼續接著鬱悶道:
BOYD: And, you know, the president says to just wait it out. But I"m not in the position to wait it out. You know, we have to plan a season ahead.
而且你知道的咯,總統說要我們靜待結果就好了。但是我等不了啊!下次該種什麼,我必須提前一個季度去準備啊!
And I thought as a farmer that the price would break through by now. But right now, we"re at a stalemate with the president. And the price has not improved for myself and other American farmers.
作為一個農民,我本來還覺得現在的大豆價格會有所上漲。但現在呢,我們和總統陷入困境了。對於我和其他美國農民來說,(農產品的)價格並沒有提高啊!
不過……雖然約翰說得的確很慘,但主持人這時也想起了一件事:
——「我聽說,特朗普要買你們的豆子,拿去救濟窮人?」
這方法聽起來……似乎還不錯?
「特朗普買豆子」是有這個說法的:據說,他打算花上150億美元來買農民的莊稼,買回來的莊稼則拿去搞「人道主義救援」。
(via upi.com)
既給農民挽回點損失,又能拿買回的糧食去做點「慈善」,似乎是個一舉兩得的好方法。
在節目里,主持人也特意問約翰:特朗普說要買你們十幾億的糧食,你看到那些錢了嗎?("Have you seen any of that money?")
結果約翰呵呵噠:我一毛錢都沒看到啊!
BOYD: I haven"t seen a dime of that money.
約翰:我一毛錢都沒看到啊!
And I"ve been calling and calling USDA. And they continue to say that the funds are in process, and the funds are going to be sent to me. I have yet to receive these funds.
我還一直在打美國農業部的電話,那邊也一直說,撥款正在走流程啊走流程,錢會送到我這來的。反正我迄今還沒收到錢。
And I"ve reached out to the agriculture secretary, Sonny Perdue, to ask him for a meeting to see why the payments are late to farmers like myself and other small-scale farmers around the country. And that meeting has fell upon deaf ears and blind eyes.
我還聯繫過農業部長桑尼·珀杜,請他開個會來看看為什麼像我這樣的農民(和全國其他小規模生產的農民)的錢會遲遲不到賬。結果呢,那個會也被他們裝聾作啞地搪塞過去,視而不見聽而不聞。
心真的……好累啊……
更不用說,特朗普這個「看上去很美」的買糧食計劃,其實也是各方都不看好。
先有前農業部高官直言援助「困難重重」:
▲前美國農業部部長:特朗普援助農民的新計劃會遇到許多阻礙 (via CNBC)
接著農民們自己也站出來吐槽:
▲特朗普計劃買150億美元的糧食用於人道主義援助,但農民們並不為此開心 (via SCMP)
(圖via REUTERS/Daniel Acker/File Photo)
面對港媒《南華早報》的採訪,美國大豆協會的副主席、第四代農民比爾·戈登(Bill Gordon)甚至來了個「吐槽三連發」——
「Here』s a handout to make you happy? That doesn』t make us happy. We want our markets back,」
1. 「這個所謂的『施捨』能讓你開心?得了吧,這一點都沒讓我們農民開心。我們想把市場要回來!」
"The markets are so low, we cannot even break even to pay our bills. Farmers are losing their farms every day. The suicide rate among farmers is at an all-time high,"
2.「市場現在這麼慘淡,我們甚至已經入不敷出了。農民們每天都在失去他們的農場,農民的自殺率創歷史新高。「
「It is not up to us to tell the president how to negotiate, but a handout from the government is not how I want to run my business,」
3.「輪不到我們去告訴總統如何談判,但是……政府的施捨真不是我們想要的做生意的方式。」
(via SCMP)
面對這一系列的幺蛾子,在NPR節目中,約翰也表示,他的心快要「涼了」。
他甚至說,由於種大豆實在太冒險,根本不知道活不活得下去,他已經打算去種點大麻了……
("this year, I am changing a little bit. And I"m taking a chance on planting some hemp.")
說句題外話。當年特朗普競選時,投他票最多的就是農民。
(圖via Rmuse)
結果到頭來,被傷得最深的也是農民。
▲愛荷華州的農民因中美貿易摩擦升級而遭殃:「簡直不能更糟了」(Des Moines Register)
(圖via AP)
上台幾年,大搞兩敗俱傷的貿易摩擦,把國際經濟形勢弄亂不說,還把自己國家的許多人搞得日子不好過。
就這……還想著2020年連任?
文:lanlan
圖:外媒、網路