Big Ethanol Is Questioning Your Patriotism

As you’ve probably noticed because of the slow posting, I’ve been traveling this week on business, and on my way from Bismarck to Fargo I caught sight of this monstrosity alongside the road:

Based on some web searches these billboards have been around for a while. It’s not clear who is running them, but whoever is responsible should be singled out for scorn and derision.

Not only is questioning the patriotism of would-be consumers of your product a decidedly unsound marketing strategy, but this sort of propaganda is inherently un-American.

Using ethanol doesn’t make you an American. America is not defined by any one product, especially not one inserted into the market place through mandates, subsidies and protectionism.

What is American is supporting free markets, which allow free people to make free choices in an open economic environment. Forcing Americans to subsidize a product they don’t want (judging by what happens to ethanol sales when the subsidies disappear), and then mandating its sales, is exactly what America isn’t supposed to be.