For those of you still under the impression that federal environmental regulators are sober-minded professionals who cooly and reasonably guide regulatory policy in the public interest with both emotional detatchment and common sense, I offer you this story, which reports that farmers will now be required to control the amount of dust kicked up from their fields.

Iowa Senator Charles Grassley was quick to tag the rule profoundly “idiotic.” While I agree, it’s hard to muster much sympathy for farmers given the economic assault they have launched on non-farmers via federal and state ethanol subsidies and consumption mandates. So in this case, I root for mutually assured destruction.