From those crazed radicals at Foreign Policy
Don’t blame American appetites, rising oil prices, or genetically modified crops for rising food prices. Wall Street’s at fault for the spiraling cost of food.
Instead blame the Goldman Sachs Commodity Index (GSCI) which provides no way to short commodities. Hence traders must continually roll over their longs at expiration, goosing food prices.
And since the deflationary impact of shorting a position simply wasn’t part of the GSCI, professional grain traders could make a killing by anticipating the market fluctuations these “rolls” would inevitably cause. “I make a living off the dumb money,” commodity trader Emil van Essen told Businessweek last year.
Goodness, what a remarkable coincidence. Banksters get to make easy money while the rest of us get screwed. As the government stands by mute.