Paul Betancourt

There has been a lot of recent talk about billionaires and gazaillionaires. Frankly I don’t care who’s gone to space and I don’t spend any time worrying about the rich and where they are going to get their next meal.

We have always talked about the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.

In recent years there has been a lot of talk about the income gap.

My perspective is shaped by my experience as a farmer. Land is the most expensive asset we have on the farm. We may not be able to pay all our bills some times, but we look good on paper. (One problem is land is a non-liquid asset, but that is for another time.) My point is, if farming works, if farming is prosperous, the workers get paid well, the vendors and tradesmen have plenty of work, rural communities prosper and the cities get affordable and wholesome food. And farmers get rich, at least in land. Is there anything wrong with that? Everyone benefits from the farm workers to the city folks.

Now, what if that model applies to the rest of the economy? In farming there are some incredibly wealthy families and individuals, and then there are the rest of us. Look at the technology sector. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs amassed huge wealth. Personally, I am OK with that as long as I have an opportunity to do the same thing.

Here’s a question for you — so what? Other than we all felt a little jealous when some people have what we do not, what does it matter if my family is healthy, well fed and we have a roof over our heads?

I think some of this discontent is driven by jealousy and some of it is driven by fear of the future. Jealousy is part of human nature. I am not sure we are going to solve that.

We all feel a measure of uncertainty about the future. I know I do. There is an irony in the issue of fear. The response to fear is that we let the government have tighter and tighter control on the economy. That government control makes it harder for business people to thrive. Even the Communist government in China has learned to give more freedom to their business people. The irony is this: The best solution if you want more prosperity for everyone is you have to allow some people to accumulate wealth.

So, what is government’s role in all this? I think the old idea that the government that governs least governs best applies here too. There are those like Gov. Newsom that say look at California, it is the fifth largest economy in the world, yadda yadda humma woof woof woof. My answer is that California succeeds IN SPITE OF GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE IN BUSINESS. We grow because California is such an amazing place, not because the state government has a clue of what it is doing. I have to peddle harder every time the state tosses in a new regulation or adds a new fee.

Most people do not appreciate the risk in a free market economy. Until I began farming I sure didn’t understand the risk. For every Bill Gates or Steve Jobs there are people who lost their shirt in technology. For every restaurant that succeeds there are four that fail in the first five years. There are no slam dunks in business. Have you heard from Blackberry lately? Ten years ago they were on top of the tech world. Their phones were amazing. And they couldn’t keep up with demand. Now? Poof.

I suspect the fear is fanned by politicians whose main goal is to get reelected and activists who are trying to raise money for their organizations.

Bottom line? Sure, I can get jealous when I see people driving fancy cars and I drive an old pickup. Sure, I am concerned about the future and the economic stability of our country and our family. But, I am ok if some people get rich as long as the rest of us prosper.

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Farmer, writer and educator, Betancourt is a lecturer at Fresno State and written books on Swiss political history and environmental policy.