OK, cutting the rambly 5 paragraph rant I just wrote to bring you these histroical tidbits: here’s JackieD‘s submission about chemical residues in beef that we don’t really know a lot about, because the USDA had some kind of pre-mad cow “don’t ask, don’t tell; it’s really expensive to look for this stuff” policy back in the day. Yes, I said pre-mad cow; the article was from 1983. I thought it was fascinating until I saw the date, then I put it back on the shelf. The next day, Kirk sent in an amusing piece about poopy poultry products. This one was also fascinating, but from 5 years ago. Then I got to thinking.
The news covered two different topics (residue versus feces, beef versus poultry), but if somehow I were to focus on even one subject and graph it out over time, I suspect I’d be like the kid in class making sailboats on the multiple choice checkboxes, except mine would look like sad faces. The main takeaway isn’t one of bleakness and despair, but more of acknowledgement: most people (Americans, in this case) don’t really care what they’re eating and what it’s doing to their bodies, and the longer this goes on, the stronger the “people have been doing this forever” argument gets. Is the “health argument” dead, or is it still effective as a conversation starter?
