Fully one-third of Nebraska's economy relies on agriculture. That's great news for those individuals associated with the industry, but Nebraskans as a whole ought to be concerned. Nebraska should be striving for more economic diversity, not less. And yet, if you listen to Nebraska's noisiest politicians (Governor Heineman, Rep. Tom Osborne, Pat Ricketts), you get the impression that there is no such thing as too much dependence on agriculture.
Nebraska is an ag state, and will be for the forseeable future. We should be proud of agriculture's history and future in our state. But where others see the upward slope of agriculture's rise, I see the downward slope of the contribution of Nebraska's other assets. Excessive reliance on any one piece of the economic machine can be extremely dangerous for our state, especially in the long term. It sure would be nice for Nebraska's economic development plan to emphasize the importance of products and services other than ethanol and cows.
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