You Have Chosen to Incite a Riot

You are a textile worker in a small village a two day's trip from London. The recent harvest has produced much less than was previously expected and people are getting nervous. It is beginning to look like there might be a food shortage! However, as it turns out, there will be enough food to feed everyone and be sold at a reasonable price. At the last minute, however, a local farmer informs the rest that he has contractual obligations to bring his grain to London. This drives up the price of agricultural products throughout the village. As a result, you won't be able to afford food for your family!

You organize a meeting that is attended by most of the town. Everyone is in agreement that subsistence is a right afforded to all, and that right needs to be protected by the aristocracy. Something has to be done to assure that this right is not lost (12). You decide that there are two options afforded to you. First, you can organize a price riot where you all determine a "fair" price for grain and then, with threats of violence, force the farmers to set the price there. If a farmer agrees, then you will pay him a little extra for complying. Secondly, you could simply blockade and seize the shipment of grain that is leaving town and distribute that grain to everyone. As a result, the farmers would be forced to lower their prices as well (13). The group agrees that the decision is yours to make. Do you: