SOUTHERN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS JULY, 1988 SOUTHERN FARMS AND RURAL COMMUNITIES: DEVELOPING DIRECTIONS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOP- MENT RESEARCH AND POLICY: DISCUSSION

Dr. Henry has prepared a very thorough ment work, we tend to rely too much on anec-and thoughtful assessment of research needs dotal empiricism in drawing conclusions about concerning the relationships between farms what is happening to farms and to farmers and and rural communities in the South. He has other rural people. Dr. Henry is correct in been true to his reputation-Dr. Henry does asserting the importance of a better data not skim lightly over any topic. He has system to monitor who and what is out there diagnosed the subject area carefully, referenced in rural America. His proposal for investing in current literature in his appraisal of research a consistent set of social accounts makes real and policy needs, and drawn very defensible sense. There are frequent requests for the conclusions. Better still, his conclusions are analysis that would be possible from such a basically consistent with my biases. To have system. Policy makers want to know, for ex-one's intuitive conclusions substantiated by ample, the total economic consequences asso-the experts is heady stuff indeed. The points ciated with a certain change in the local in his paper with which I disagreed most con- economy. These are real questions, not theses sistently were found in extensive quotes from or dissertations or journal articles, thoug