In the Museo Del Prado in Madrid there hangs a painting, bleak in its imagery and haunting in its implications. The primary colors are black, white and red, the composition stark and raw. It shows a crazed and famished giant feasting on a human form, eyes bulging, mouth agape.
The work, from the early 1800s by artist Francisco Goya, is called “Saturn Devouring His Son.” It depicts the Greek myth about Cronus, the god of time, who, having defeated his father Uranus to become king of the gods, hears a prophecy that his children, the Olympians, will dethrone him, after which the power-hungry deity sets about eating Demeter, Hestia, Hera, Hades and Poseidon. The story, whose primary source is Hesiod’s “Theogony,” has always interested me in the kind of primal and moralistic way that only myth can.
It’s been on my mind lately because it seems an apt metaphor for what the leaders of our country have done to the hardwood lumber industry.
The story is as old as Ross Perot and as loud and obnoxious as Donald Trump; but, for those who don’t know it, it goes like this: Once upon a time, a president whose name was Clinton signed a bill called NAFTA, setting into motion an economic strategy that, by the time George W. Bush and Barack Obama gave it their own peculiar additions, much of American industry, including that of hardwood lumber, would find itself a mere shadow of what it once was. In terms of American lumber, these trade deals would create the nightmarish situations we live in today, in which competitors like China can ship American logs overseas, manufacture the lumber, then sell it back to our consumers cheaper than we ourselves can. Further, our government’s consumer-driven strategy has evolved into a hyper-focus on cheap, short-lasting goods, which favors not American wood products, but composite and synthetic materials such as those sold by overseas companies like IKEA. These policies have already destroyed our domestic furniture industry, and are now set to devour other segments as well.
Consider the following numbers. In 1999 there were approximately 12.6 billion board feet of hardwood lumber produced in the U.S., while last year, this number was down to 4.1 billion. Based on conversations with industry insiders, this number isn’t expected to go anywhere but down in 2026.
I’m not one for government assistance, but it seems that, in this case, the laws of laissez fair economics must give way to the greater law of morality. From this standpoint, the answer is simple: those who broke it ought to fix it … and the people who broke it are the American government.
The National Hardwood Lumber Association, in conjunction with various private organizations, is currently lobbying the government to assist in saving our industry. Requests include government incentives to buy American hardwood products as well as mandates that our own government do the same. Everyone who cares about the America First agenda, loves our country, believes in our workers, or has national security concerns about countries like China taking over our wood industry, should do some investigating, for lives, livelihoods, economies, and security issues are on the line.
The destruction to the American Hardwood Lumber Industry inflicted by the trade deals of Clinton, Bush and Obama is without a doubt akin to Cronus eating his children; however, according to this ancient myth, there is ultimate hope. The Olympians are victorious in the end when Cronus’ son Zeus, who was hidden by his mother Rhea, returns to defeat his father, causing him to regurgitate the captive children, an event that brings peace and order when the Olympians take over. The Trump administration, including everyone currently holding power in Washington, as well as all readers of this article, can be those Olympians. All of us can work to bring back our industry. All it takes is a right and common strategy … along with the willingness of Zeus.
Everywhere you look, companies are going out of business; when you’re in a downturn, as we are now, it is not increased demand that must bail you out, but rather enough suppliers going out of business so that the supply and demand curve once again reaches equilibrium. This game of musical chairs, in which every time the music stops those left standing go out of business, is a disgrace, but one whose remedy can and should be achieved by the initiation of new government policies.
Along with his father, Allen Keller runs a lumber business in Stevenson, Alabama. He has a Ph.D. in Creative Writing from Florida State University and an MBA from University of Virginia. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to [email protected].
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