Declare Farm Income Tax Exempt

Look, if HP and Halliburton don't pay taxes on their massive income, what justification is there to milk the family farm dry?

From Max Sawicky:

That IRS data I discussed has a tidbit continuing a long-standing trend: net income in the farm sector is way negative. It has been according to the table since 1985, if not earlier. For 2002, over $20 billion in losses, versus less than $7 billion in gains.

MaxSpeak's solution, resurrecting what Lester Thurow pointed out many years ago: declare farm income tax exempt. This should increase revenues, since taxpayers would not be able to use farm losses, some premised on fertilized tax avoidance accounting devices, to offset taxable income elsewhere.

I daresay we need farmers more than we need Halliburton.