Eric Schlosser, author of “Fast Food Nation”, the history of fast food in America, has some comments on the USDA and this most recent mad cow disease situation.
After reading his book, I’ve sworn off all fast food in the US.
The Cow Jumped Over the USDA
I have been reading in the news lately that meat is safe? Hunh????
Meat is safe? ThatǃÙs a good joke! Meat promotes health? That is an advertisement from industry or from Dr. Atkins (and other quacks) who promoted a terrible diet by selling books and products to the gullible. If you think animal products are safe, consider the following:
What animal products do to people:
Promote–
Cancer
Heart attacks
High blood pressure
High cholesterol
Strokes
Arthritis
Bursitis
Osteoporosis
Flu
Obesity
E-coli
Mad Cow (CJD in humans)
Salmonella
Allergies
Acid Reflux
Cellulite
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Diabetes
Headaches
Graves Disease
Cirrhosis
Diarrhea
Anemia
Insomnia
Dementia and other mental problems
Emotional problems
Increase costs related to medical care
Increase taxes to aid poor people who come down with medical problems
What animal products do to the environment:
Use up massive supplies of fresh water. (ex. 5000 gallons to make one pound of beef). Lake Ogallala, an underground reservoir larger than Huron that took millions of years to form shall be dry in 2 to 3 generations in order to irrigate crops to feed to live stock.
Use up massive amounts of land to grow grain. (80% of the grain grown is fed to livestock)
Manure pollutes the land and the water with nitrates and pesticides with other poisons. (livestock in the US outweighs people by 5 to 1)
Pollution from nitrates kills off other wildlife that keeps the Earth in balance.
Clear cutting of rainforests in order to graze cattle.
Stripping away of top soil so that neither grains nor trees can grow in some areas.
Using up energy including fossil fuels in order to transport and refrigerate animal products.
Neither list is by any means complete!