I have learned over the years that sneaking chocolate bars and other goodies loaded with sugar is not good for me – so I almost 100% abstain.  This is hard for sugar permeates most of the comfort foods we resort to in times of stress – which is most of the time.  But the power of sugar goes deeper than diet.

When I first began teaching and attended an annual meeting of the NJEA in Atlantic City.  I listened to prim lady teachers talk as the meeting progressed into avenues of subjects, control and proper behavior expected by both teachers and students.  Ever in a hurry to get to important points I rose and made a speech that seemed important to me.  This concerned the willingness of Americans to stop growing tobacco and, instead, grow corn that fed people and animals AND which could be converted into ethanol, cheaper than gas, which could run the machines that were subject to burning oil for power. I was ignored and shunned.

Thomas Friedman in the NYTimes this morning reported from Brazil (once touted as the coming leader of the future – meaning this century) a prime producer of sugar.  Brazilians have realized that they can produce sugar-ethanol that would be even cheaper than if they raised corn for the same purpose. While you munch on your power bar laced with sugar – consider the following.

In Florida the sugar industry is so powerful that it can outspend any other source to elect representatives to keep sugar King as the south once relied on King Cotton to keep the status quo.  In other words, the power of sugar here in the U.S. could replicate what Brazil has learned – except that Big Sugar in Florida is a political power house to control who gets elected.  Changing sugar into ethanol rather than questionable foods would make a lot of sense.  But there is a glitch in the way we think and do things.  As an agribusiness, Sugar is distinct from corn and there is much more corn raised in the U.S. than sugar.  So, as corn goes so sugar must follow.  Corn is used to make ethanol and it is more expensive to do this than to make ethanol from sugar.  There is no question that corn will win and Sugar will continue to sweeten elections here in the Florida peninsula.

Ethanol is cheaper than oil.  Corn is cheaper than oil when converted into ethanol.  But sugar is cheaper to convert into ethanol than corn used for the same purpose. But we will continue to consume our power bars loaded with sugar.

Tobacco that is useless except to corrupt lungs will not be used for land that can produce corn and other biodegradable products that can make our cars run. It would be cheaper to use sugar for this purpose but that would divert attention from elections. Big Sugar outspends you and me to elect representatives to do their will.