More on Agri-business

This article shows how continuing malpractice by slaughterhouses and meat processors saves them money and puts carnivores at risk. A quote from a USDA official, exasperated by Cargill's probably not unrepresentative reluctance to improve its food safety precautions, wrote during USDA's four months of negotiations with Cargill, "How is food safety not the ultimate issue?"

If you don't want to read the whole article, there's a reader's digest quality video a little bit down the page.

If nothing else, break up this affair

As noted in this article, doctors stand to profit greatly from intercourse with pharmaceutical companies. Here we have the suggestion that the federal government take more power, involving itself in relationships between corporations and professionals in related fields. This, viewed from this fundamental perspective, may seem like a bad idea, granting more power to what seem already to many a federal government swollen with powers, at a time when less federal interference might seem the direction the pendulum aught to swing.

However, in this particular case, the corporations under examination appear even more swollen and powerful than the government, or at least in ways that are more disgusting and potentially malefic, and the professionals happen to be more directly involved in the health and survival of those they serve than perhaps any but those patients themselves. In this particular case, as there exists the potential for mutual backscratching between corporations and professionals, and to the detriment of the public whom it seems they aught to serve, it seems here reasonable to ask the government to offer its people some protection from this abusive practice.

This article addresses these points, with specifics, confirming that this practice is in fact in effect, and does in fact benefit pharmaceutical companies and doctors alike. While the article does not support its claim that by presenting material provided to them by pharmaceutical companies, doctors "cease to be unbiased caregivers for their patients," though, in fairness, this is an opinion-editorial piece, and it seems true intuitively, and frankly, the exploration of that topic is not well suited to the medium.

All in all, this is a well-written and effective article, asserting ideas with which I largely agree. As members of this society, and particularly of roughly its middle-class, we would all do well to take note of this, and, until greater transparency and control are required of our health care professionals, we should not take prescriptions blindly, that is without recognition of the state of 'affairs' between doctors and corporations that provide them with incentives to peddle their wares; in short, maintain perspective!

Yahoo news, or the Onion?

This is just the sort of soft journalism that is chasing away serious news seekers. Still, it's pretty funny.

1st amendment rights under fire

I am glad to see that active citizens are filing a lawsuit against Pittsburgh police. The G20 convention protests would certainly not have been the first or most incredible instance of institutional suppression of peaceful gatherings, even in our dear union. I hope the lawsuit does much to discourage this sort of behavior in Pittsburgh.

1st amendment rights under fire

Health Care Op-Ed article

I mentioned an article in the last post, an op-ed, and linked to it.

This article is well written, full of great one-liners and stingers, and is worth the meager time it asks to be read. It's written by Michael Pollan, journalism prof at Berkeley, author of "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto," in which he puts forth the idea that we should stop eating edible food-like substances and eat food. (And while we're at it, actually eat, instead of just stuffing the face.) He points out that, just as health insurance companies took an interest in seeing a reduction in smoking once they realized how much each smoker was costing them, they are likely to do the same when forced to accept people with other preventable illnesses, many of which are direct results of indulgence in what is coming to be called the western diet. He puts forth the idea that agribusiness is so big and powerful that no one has been able to fight them thusfar, but that if insurance companies go after them, well, we might start to see some change in the way food is grown, distributed, prepared, and consumed. Worth reading.


As one who believes that much of our woe comes from imperfect living, much of which is all but required of us to participate "freely" HAHAHA in society, I am hopeful of this change.

I was about to write that "While our abilities to affect the course of things may be quite limited, perhaps we are responsible; perhaps, as my father believes, it is our responsibility to leave the world better than we found it. Well, for our generation, this is an extremely difficult task on some axes. I'd be happy to see a change in sign of the second derivative for now.", but could not in good conscience write the first subordinate clause. Only men, women, and groups thereof ever have "changed the course of history," as the arrogant phrase goes. Be empowered, oh ye with guts and gumption, or the will to get them growing! There is much to be done!

Health, Western

(The title of this blog is not meant to imply that the physical health of any person or population is distinct and separable from mental and spiritual health.)

I did much of my growing up in College Station, TX; my youngest brother, almost all of his. College Station is home to Texas A&M University, known to many as the home of the bonfire tragedy of about 10 years ago. My mother describes it as "the young, white, Republican capitol of the world," and I think you have to add "Christian," and probably "conformist" to the list.

John, my youngest brother, calls it a social experiment.

With that in mind, it may be less surprising to know that my brothers and I have all developed non-standard perspectives on society, judging more harshly the effects of socialization and inclusion to the group, and generally thinking more analytically, more critically about societies large and small.

This has led John to devote his life to spiritual betterment for himself, and to seek to educate and enlighten the public for his work. He sees our society as thoroughly unsustainable. People are unhappy and unhealthy, power and wealth are concentrated, and the environment is suffering. Species are dying out, and climate change is so complex that even the world's best don't know what to expect.

I'm pleased that health care reform is in the wind. That was a really good speech.

I was pleased to read a good op-ed article in the paper the other day. The more I learn about agribusiness, the less meat I eat. I'm on the fence about fish even! It sucks to learn this stuff. Ostriches don't save the world, though, and as we have a world, or it has us, or however you want to look at it, and who knows but no-one.

What to do.

Another test

This is a test of email to post mail2blogger system.