Within hours after Yarnell’s announced it was closing shop, the Republican Party of Arkansas was ready with a press release blaming the Democrats.

This, of course, is what politicos do – play the blame game, and the Democrats are no different.

But really, it’s not Beebe’s fault, or the Republicans’ fault, that this Arkansas institution is shutting down. It’s my Mom’s fault.

Mom told me last weekend that she didn’t buy Yarnell’s for a simple reason: She didn’t like its fat-free flavors. She likes Blue Bell – you know, that Texas company.

Mom is one of millions of consumers simply making choices in a free market economy. It turns out that a lot of them – in fact, too many of them for Yarnell’s to survive – chose of their own free will to purchase another brand.

Certainly government can enact policies that make it easier for regional independents like Yarnell’s to survive – mostly by NOT enacting policies that favor big corporations. But this never-ending blame game really doesn’t solve anything.

To read more about Yarnell’s – and my mom – check out my Arkansas News Bureau column here.