ABSTRACT
The national government has done little that really matters in eliminating the causes of rural poverty. At most, US policymakers create marginal relief, disguised behind a thin veneer of political rhetoric. Rural poverty is a contemporary socioeconomic problem that must be dealt with by changing contemporary institutions. Public policy decisions are made by choosing among values, and in a democratic society where all values are articulated and pursued, choices are difficult. They cannot be made without some movement toward consensus. The existence of agrarian fundamentalism meant that public policy solutions were at once idealistic in their conception and perceived to be pragmatic in their purpose. While those who worked on farm policy lacked a coherent plan, political and administrative forces converged to offer solutions consistent with agrarian beliefs. Modernization/development policy, as a consequence, created an early dilemma for agrarian producers.
