Thursday, March 22, 2012

The Jealous Father: An Essay on the Father/Son Theme as Expressed in August Wilson's Short Story "Fences"




      August Wilson’s Fences presents a multitude of conflicts. It presents internal conflict in Troy Maxson, in dealing with what he has and has not become and with his actions on a day to day basis. It presents conflicts between friends as Bono continually confronts Troy in an effort to get him to do the right thing. It presents conflicts between spouses, as Rose is faced with Troy’s adultery and his new, motherless child. The biggest conflict, however, is that between Troy and his youngest son, Cory. A cursory glance at the relationship between Troy and Cory could suggest a father’s required actions to provide that his son pursues something stable within the context of the ‘American Dream’, thus projecting a sense of honorability, but a closer look shows that Troy is projecting his disappointment in his own failures onto his son.
Troy Maxson is presented as an individual whose whole worldview is based on  being successful and responsible. He viewed responsibility as going to work, making money and paying bills. He didn’t bother himself too much with emotional relationships, saying to Cory that it doesn’t matter if someone likes you. All that matters is that they give you what they owe you, which is interesting for Troy to say at all, let alone to Cory. Forgetting the fact that Troy did not give Rose what he owed her when he had an affair and a child by another woman, it seems like a copout for Troy to suggest that he gave Cory what was owed to him by giving him food and clothes and a place to sleep. In that respect, Troy is giving Cory what is necessary to exist and survive. But when you have a talented, hardworking youth and all he needs is your signature and you don’t give it to him, you are not giving to him what you owe him.
It really seems like this stems from jealousy. One wonders if Troy’s mindset isn’t, “Why should you be successful when I wasn’t able to be?” Troy tries to suggest that his lack of success in baseball was due to his race, thus justifying keeping his son from getting involved in sports, even when they promise to be his path toward a higher education. But as Rose points out, his inability to get into the major leagues had nothing to do with his race, but with his age, he was simply too old. Because of his late start, a start that came from playing in prison, Troy appears jealous of the fact that Cory has an opportunity to get a start at his sport of choice at such a young age, and tie work and a higher education into it.
Troy tells Cory that he needs to go back and get his job at the store, that playing football is fruitless and that if he wants to be successful, he needs to work hard at the store, instead of playing football. He holds Cory back, even as he fights for his own advancement in the work place. As Troy tells Cory that he can not do something because of his race, Troy is in fact making advances in his career, and the general consensus is that he is making those advances in spite of his race.
In every father/son relationship it seems that the father attempts to dictate to his son what his goals and dreams and aspirations in life should be. In Troy’s case, the case of an absent father, it seems that the youth will gravitate not toward finding oneself and taking risks in that respect, but they will instead gravitate towards comfort and stability. When they realize that they are not happy in these situations where they are comfortable and stable, then they begin to internalize and project that lack of happiness onto others. In the case of the masculine, all - American male, they do this by having affairs and squandering the dreams of their sons.
In Cory’s case, Troy dictated that he needed to have a dream of stability. That he needed to be able to work and have a house and have a family, that he needed to accept the limitations his race placed upon him, that he needed to stop dreaming about playing football and he needed to go back and ask for a job he did not want. In Troy’s mind it was not a matter of what Cory wanted, it was a matter of his responsibility and what was right. Which is completely projectionist and not at all how Troy lives his life, as he pursued his baseball dream to its furthest reaches, and excused his affair saying that it felt right in his heart.
And what this does to Cory is leave him feeling no lose for his dad. He says he has no intention of going to his fathers funeral. It seems great symbolism that Cory would return at the end a member of the Armed Forces. This shifts him from being a happy, energetic, potential all - American football legend, to being a cold and calculated cog in a machine, as his father was as a trash collector and as his grandfather was as an indentured servant.
The Father/Son relationships in Fences is sad and simple. Troy ran from his father at a young age, he struck out and did what he ‘had to do to survive’ before ultimately going to jail and settling for living a life of unsatisfying comfort. Any semblance of a dream he had, he lost to his age and he punished his son for it, just as his abusive father may have been punishing him with physical abuse for all of his short comings as an indentured servant. The relationship in this play between a father and his son, between Troy and Cory, is a matter of pride. Troy was too proud to submit to the white man at his place of work and simply ride the back of the truck as a garbage collector, he was too proud to submit to his monogamous marriage and not have an affair, he was too proud to admit to his best friend that he was having an affair, and ultimately he was too proud to let his son play football, to pursue his dream, to become his own person.



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

"I Need Your Vote Today" Gov. Buddy Roemer

Friends,

As you've already heard, I am seeking the Americans Elect nomination as an Independent candidate. I am pursuing this nomination so that I can build a coalition of support which transcends party lines and includes the very best of America’s voices calling for reform and better government. Americans Elect, which will be on all 50 state ballots and requires a bipartisan unity ticket, is our best hope of finding a path to meaningful change. With the power of the people, we can fight the corrupt system and put our country before party and reform before status quo. America’s problems are not Democrat or Republican problems that require either/or solutions. We must work together to rebuild our nation, and I humbly ask for your support.

In order to continue this fight, I must get at least 10,000 supporters to vote for me on the Americans Elect website by May 1. The process is free and requires little effort -- similar to registering to vote in your state. Please read the following instructions in order to get started once you visit the Americans Elect site at http://www.americanselect.org.

Registering to participate at Americans Elect is a 5-part process:

1. Register and confirm your email address. When you enter your email address, they will send you an email message. Click the link in the email message to verify that your email address is correct.

2. Create a PIN number 6 to 10 digits long. When you enter your PIN by clicking the numbers on the screen, you ensure that no one can log into your account besides you.

3. Select security questions and enter your answers. When you choose questions with answers that no one else knows, Americans Elect can confirm that no one besides you can recover your PIN if you forget it.

4. Confirm your identity by answering background questions. When you provide your current address, date of birth and the last four digits of your Social Security number, Americans Elect compares your answers to background questions with a database of your personal information to make sure that you are a real person and a registered voter so that no one can vote more than once.

5. If you have already done the above process you can vote for me HERE. Once you have voted I ask you to please tell your family and friends to do the same. Every single vote will make a difference.

At times, the process can be a little tricky, and my team knows that. Therefore, we have staff on call to help you if needed. Please feel free to e-mail Josh atJoshua.Chavers@buddyroemer.com with any questions or concerns or call him at 1-855-BUDDY12 beginning Wednesday.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you all for your continued support.

-Buddy

P.S. The more people that sign up for my bracket challenge, the higher our ranking will move up so Yahoo visitors will see it, which means more visibility and name id. You have until Thursday to sign up here.


Copyright © 2012 Buddy Roemer for President, All rights reserved.
Paid for by Buddy Roemer for President
Our mailing address is:
PO Box 84877
Baton Rouge, LA 70884 




@BuddyRoemer
FreetoLead.com
Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer
Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Governor Roemer's Americans Elect Widget

If you support Governor Buddy Roemer for president, then please consider putting this on your personal blog or page:




Here's the code:


<!-- START Profile Badge -->
<iframe src="http://www.americanselect.org/candidate/widget/234993" width="300" height="250" scrolling="no"></iframe>
<!-- END Profile Badge -->

Thanks,

- Alexander Fisher


 "Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Buddy Roemer on the Independent Youth of the Occupy Movement



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Rise Above- Black Flag



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Friday, March 9, 2012

I Want To Know What It's Like



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Bipartisan: "War is Big Business"



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Motivational Speech by Samwise Gamgee

I'm not sure who wrote this monologue. But it's absolutely beautiful. I cannot help but to live everyday believing that there is still good in the world.



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Join the Coalition

Team, 

Thank you all for your continued support. Together we are going to have a major impact on this race.  Every single day people are getting more and more excited about Buddy's message and they ask how they can help the cause. 

Here’s what you can do to have an immediate impact on the campaign: 

1. Donate one tweet a day to Buddy. Tweets will be sent by the campaign automatically, so you can sit back, relax, and help all at once. All tweets sent on your behalf will be attributed to the Buddy Roemer campaign. You can sign up here

2. Write a letter to the editor. Explain to your local newspaper why you are supporting Buddy. Want a quicker way of showing the press your support? Find them on Twitter and tweet them and ask them to interview Buddy. 

3. Spread our important message by forwarding this email to all of your friends and family and ask them to sign-up to help the campaign.  Volunteers and supporters like you make this campaign possible by sharing Buddy's message one person at a time. 

4. Donate. Every small donation helps. Go to www.buddyroemer.com/contribute 

Thank you for your support.  

Carlos Sierra 
Campaign Manager 


P.S. March Madness is just around the corner and Buddy will be hosting a March Madness tournament bracket. Sign up to be a part of it HERE


 BuddyRoemer.com
@BuddyRoemer
FreetoLead.com
Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer
Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids



Copyright © 2012 Buddy Roemer for President, All rights reserved.
Paid for by Buddy Roemer for President
Our mailing address is:
PO Box 84877
Baton Rouge, LA 70884


Monday, March 5, 2012

H.R. 2306: Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011

If your congressperson is in any of the following committees or subcommittees, please contact them, email, snail mail, Facebook, phone call and/or Twitter to encourage them to move forward on this bill. If your congressperson is a sponsor or cosponsor, then show them your appreciation and urge them to move forward. And keep in mind that when Congress doesn’t like a bill, they attempt to kill it by locking in Committee.


H.R. 2306: Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011


House Committee on Energy and Commerce: 


http://www.govtrack.us/congress/committee.xpd?id=HSIF - Phil Gingrey is on this committee.


House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Subcommittee on Health:


http://www.govtrack.us/congress/committee.xpd?id=HSIF14 - Phil Gingrey is on this committee


House Judiciary:


http://www.govtrack.us/congress/committee.xpd?id=HSJU 


House Judiciary, Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security:


http://www.govtrack.us/congress/committee.xpd?id=HSJU08 


Co - Sponsors:


Eleanor Norton [D-DC]
Earl Blumenauer [D-OR3]
Michael Capuano [D-MA8]
Steve Cohen [D-TN9]
John Conyers [D-MI14]
Sam Farr [D-CA17]
Raul Grijalva [D-AZ7]


Michael Honda [D-CA15]
Dennis Kucinich [D-OH10]
Barbara Lee [D-CA9]
James McDermott [D-WA7]
James Moran [D-VA8] Jerrold Nadler [D-NY8]
Ronald Paul [R-TX14]
Chellie Pingree [D-ME1]
Jared Polis [D-CO2]
Charles Rangel [D-NY15]
Dana Rohrabacher [R-CA46]
Janice Schakowsky [D-IL9]

Fortney Stark [D-CA13]




Rep. Barney Frank [D-MA4] 


Supporting Organizations:


National Organization For Reform of Marijuana Laws
Marijuana Policy Project
American Humanist Association
Students for Sensible Drug Policy
Drug Policy Alliance
Americans for Forfeiture Reform
Unemployed Workers Action Group
WinLiberty



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Even Ron Paul Has Super PACs

     I was campaigning in Manchester, New Hampshire for then Republican Candidate Governor Buddy Roemer. I was setting up some volunteers across from City Hall to do some sign waving for the Governor when some curious passerby's asked us who Governor Roemer was. So I started on the usual spiel, "Former Governor and Congressman, doesn't take more then $100 dollars." But when I got to the line "Only candidate without any Super PACs." The gentleman almost lost it. "What about Ron Paul! What are his SuperPACs? Who funds them?" I admitted I didn't know all the exact details to his questions, to this he responded, 'EXACTLY!' before he stormed off in a huff.

Today, I intend to prove my point and to answer these gentlemen's questions.

According to OpenSecrets.org, Ron Paul has three Super PACs:


Endorse Liberty
RevolutionPAC

&

Santa Rita Super PAC

Let us discuss each one of these on an individual basis, shall we?

Endorse Liberty:
Despite these numbers, including the ten thousand from one Super PAC to another, Ron Paul is an Independent, grassroots kind of candidate, isn't he?

Do you know those thirteen minute 'ads' that seem to be at the beginning of EVERY video you try to watch on Youtube (in fact, while trying to listen to music while I type up this blog, I've had to skip past two), they're paid for by the Ron Paul Super PAC Endorse Liberty.



Revolution PAC


The 'Independent' Revolution PAC has decided to do exit polling for Ron Paul.

Lastly, The Santa Rita Super PAC


And they aren't even trying to hide the fact that they are Pro-Paul Super PACs, which I think is kind of counter-intuitive to the whole independence thing that Super PACs are 'supposed to' abide by:




Now, before I wrap this up, I'd like to discuss the biggest donors to each of these three Super PACs: Peter Thiel, Margaret Bowman and Mark Hart.

Peter Thiel is a Venture Capitalist and Hedge Fund Manager who was originally from Germany. He's also a part of the Bilderberg Group, a controversial group of influential business and government leaders who meet annually behind closed doors under a media blackout to discuss world issues.

Margaret Bowman is self - employed. Opensecrets.org identifies her has a Rancher. She is a tough one to google beyond that.

That leaves Mark Hart. Mark Hart III is a hedge fund manager who made millions betting against subprime mortgages in the U.S. and betting on the debt crisis in Europe, according to Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal. (Factcheck.org)


     Ron Paul does have Super PACs, three of them. And who are they funded by? Venture Capitalists and Hedge Fund Managers. While Ron Paul supporters try to usurp Occupy Wall Street, the campaign efforts to get Ron Paul elected are being paid by the super rich, the ones who play with money, who play with money while some people don't have enough money to eat, to afford a house to sleep in, to afford to go to the doctor when their sick. I'm not talking about the people who face these adversities in foreign countries like Africa or Asia, I'm talking about the people right here in America!


There's the Truth.


Alexander Fisher
@JAFThrasher

"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Buddy Roemer v. Nick Gillespie on $$ in Political



BuddyRoemer.com

@BuddyRoemer

FreetoLead.com

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids

http://www.americanselect.org/profile-candidate/234993/topic-answer


"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Buddy Roemer - YNN, Your News Now

BuddyRoemer.com

@BuddyRoemer

FreetoLead.com

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids

http://www.americanselect.org/profile-candidate/234993/topic-answer


"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Death Race 2012 Death Race 2012: GQ on Politics: GQ.com

Death Race 2012 Death Race 2012: GQ on Politics: GQ.com

BuddyRoemer.com

@BuddyRoemer

FreetoLead.com

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids

http://www.americanselect.org/profile-candidate/234993/topic-answer


"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

"We Have a Tax Code That is Unfair"- Gov. Buddy Roemer on MSNBC Morning Joe



BuddyRoemer.com

@BuddyRoemer

FreetoLead.com

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer

Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids

http://www.americanselect.org/profile-candidate/234993/topic-answer


"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Buddy Roemer



BuddyRoemer.com
@BuddyRoemer
FreetoLead.com
Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer
Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids
http://www.americanselect.org/profile-candidate/234993/topic-answer

"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Free To Lead

     If you support Governor Buddy Roemer. If you want to send a message to the President, if you want to send a message to the current GOP candidates, if you want to send a message to the 1%, to the corporations that didn't pay taxes, if you want energy independence, if you want to pay fair taxes, if you want to see everyone pay fair taxes, if you want to see Fair Trade as opposed to Free Trade, if you want to see 'Made in America' again, then please consider supporting the former GOP Presidential candidate and current Independent Presidential candidate former Governor and former Congressman Buddy Roemer.

Please join us on BuddyRoemer.com

on FreetoLead.com

on Youtube.com/BuddyRoemer Youtube.com/BuddyRoemervids

on Facebook.com/BuddyRoemer

on Twitter @BuddyRoemer and @ElectRoemer

and please consider supporting the Governor on Americans Elect at: http://www.americanselect.org/profile-candidate/234993/topic-answer

I think that the Governor is THE candidate to vote for, the person we need in the White House. But also, in this primary season, wouldn't you find it productive to send a message by voting for him in your GOP Primary and supporting him on Americans Elect? If your tired of the status quo, I'd encourage it.

Thanks for listening,

Alexander Fisher
@JAFThrasher

"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

"8": A Play about the Fight for Marriage Equality

Wonderful. Starts at about 18 minutes in.



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Friday, March 2, 2012

NOFX - Codependence Day



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Greg Graffin on Politically Incorrect [3/3]



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Greg Graffin on Politically Incorrect [2/3]



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Greg Graffin on Politically Incorrect [1/3]



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

Anarchy Evolution: Faith Science & Bad Religion In A World Without God! ...



"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."

The Food and Drug Administration: A Healthy Part of the Government or Another Bureaucratic Mess?

Joshua Fisher
@JAFThrasher
J.Fisher2028@yahoo.com
Georgia Highlands College


FYI: I'm trying to publish this for real, so let me know what you think.


Have you noticed any rat feces in your food lately? More than likely not. There are at least two possibilities for why this is. The first one is that thriving corporatists decided that it would be in the best interest of the public to regulate their plants and make healthier food, in a more thorough and healthier way, no matter the cost. This, however, is doubtful. In the early nineteen hundreds, corporations proved they would rather make money than make healthy products. This is where the FDA comes in. The FDA, or the Food and Drug Administration, was created to keep rat feces, among other things, out of consumers’ food. The question however, is how has the FDA affected the health of Americans since it was founded? What is the FDA’s relationship with additives the preservatives that are most affordable for corporate food producers, and how does their regulation impact the organic foods and farmers markets that are the healthiest for us? The FDA seems more concerned with the revolving door than with the health of the American people.
            In the early twentieth century, near the end of Theodore Roosevelt’s second term as President of the United States, Upton Sinclair, a journalist from Chicago, wrote a book titled The Jungle. Sinclair’s intent when writing this book was to inspire a socialist society and form of government and to also advocate for workers’ rights. While he did not exactly achieve that goal, he did contribute to the safety of American society. He opened the eyes of the public, and of Theodore Roosevelt, to the problems of the food production industry at the time. Because of The Jungle, Theodore Roosevelt took immediate action to first investigate, and then regulate food production. Being as fit and health conscious as he was, one can imagine how disgusted President Roosevelt might have been at the things in Sinclair’s book. Not only was it the age of yellow journalism and sensationalism, but Roosevelt did not trust or like Upton Sinclair, writing to William Allen White after the publication of The Jungle, “... contempt for [Sinclair]. He is hysterical, unbalanced, and untruthful. Three-fourths of the things he said were absolute falsehoods” (Morison 340). Still, Sinclair was in Roosevelt’s head - and Roosevelt took action. His first action was to send Labor Commissioner Charles P. Neill and social worker James Bronson Reynolds to Chicago to make surprise visits to meat packing facilities. Roosevelt wouldn’t allow for the release of the Neill-Reynolds report even though he couldn't deny what was in it and how it verified everything that Sinclair had written. So in addresses and speeches to the public, Roosevelt would talk about these issues until public pressure lead to Congress passing regulatory legislation. There were two Acts to immediately come out of Congress: The Meat Inspection Act, which worked to prevent adulterated or misbranded meat and meat products from being sold as food and to ensure that animals were killed and meat was processed under sanitary conditions; and, two - the Pure Food and Drug Act. This act, when passed into law, provided federal inspection of meat products and forbade the manufacture, sale or transportation of adulterated food products and poisonous patent medicines. The Pure Food and Drug Act also established the Bureau of Chemistry, which would become the Food and Drug Administration in the 1930s.
            What was it about The Jungle that drove people, even the President of the United States, to action? In the year of 1904, Upton Sinclair, a journalist as well as a political and social activist, spent seven weeks in disguise working undercover in a Chicago meatpacking plant so that he could do research for a fictional expose he wanted to write on workers’ rights. The aforementioned project, when it came to fruition was ‘The Jungle’. Again, his original intent was to show how bad the working conditions in these plants where and so he was dismayed when people didn’t react to how bad the working conditions were, saying that his celebrity rose, “…not because the public cared anything about the workers, but simply because the public did not want to eat tubercular beef” (Sullivan 222).
            “This is no fairy story and no joke; the meat will be shoveled into carts and the man who did the shoveling will not trouble to lift out a rat even when he saw one” (Sinclair 162). This quote shows that is seems a great possibility that a lack of workers’ rights, as it were, lead to a couple of different issues that affected the quality of the food, and thus, how healthy it was or was not for a person to consume. This is glaringly obvious in the above quote as the workers were either so unhappy with their working conditions and pay that they did not care how the meat turned out – that is, they did not care if it had an entire rat in it or not. Or, the second possibility is that they were too over worked to notice such a thing as a rat in meat meant for human consumption. One of the two above reasons is probably why they washed their hands in water that would later be used to produce meat.
            The hope is that now that the FDA exists, Americans do not have to worry about mice or rats in our food. Not according to Pepsico. Defending itself in a recent lawsuit claiming that the plaintiff found a rat in his Mountain Dew, Pepsico contended that a rodent would have disintegrated and been transformed into a “jelly-like substance between the time of the bottling and the day the plaintiff claimed to have purchased it (Mountain). And unfortunately this is only the beginning of the FDA’s neglect. “The agency under the Department of Health (DOH), in its Advisory 2011-016 signed by Director Suzette Lazo, urged the public to adopt safe ways to prevent illness that might be acquired by eating food contaminated with microbial or chemical elements” (Pigging). While the FDA could take measures to prevent microbial and chemical elements from contaminating food, they instead choose to wait until it is too late. They wait until the American people are going to be eating a lot of a certain food and then decide to issue an ‘Advisory’ and encourage people to be careful of the things they buy. This, of course, allows the FDA to look like they are doing their jobs while someone who works twelve hour shifts, seven days a week, must now take on the dubious task of making sure he buys non-contaminated food for his children, a task the FDA could have relieved him of. The point is that the FDA is supposed to regulate the industry, from growth to production to sales; they are supposed to make sure there are no mice, poisons or unfriendly chemicals in the foods that Americans consume.
            Congress recently passed a bill called The Food Safety Modernization Act. What did it do for the public? According to a recent Newsweek article, “ while it would go a long way toward dealing with pathogens in our food supply, the bill largely ignores a different type of food-safety worry: hazardous man-made chemicals” (Yarett).  While this source can be seen to show the neglect of Congress, it is not meant to, instead, it just shows further the neglect of the FDA. The FDA was created to regulate the food and drug industries, not to take kickbacks from Monsanto and Pfizer. In two thousand and eleven alone, Monsanto and Pfizer were just two of the companies who paid a grand total of thirty-seven million to the lobbying firm Gump Akin (OpenSecrets). Another example of a kickback is the case of Ralph Tyler, who retired from the FDA only to take a job at Venable Law Firm which is known for helping drug and device makers (Silverman). It is an agency of the federal government; isn’t it supposed to regulate the food, the way it is grown or raised, and the way it is produced? Was not the FDA an organization formed in reaction to the poor quality of food that Americans faced? Maybe not. Congress dealt with pathogens in the food supply, but neither Congress nor the FDA address or have addressed man-made chemicals.
            What are these man-made chemicals, and why are they so bad anyway? Recently Proctor & Gamble, a Fortune 500 multinational corporation that received $82.6 billion in sales in 2011, created a synthetic fat substitute called Olestra. The selling point of Olestra is that it is neither absorbed nor digested in the body, so it can be sold in foods as a ‘zero calorie’ alternative to other fats. And in this rushed, diet-oriented culture, zero calorie foods are appreciated. Here’s the problem: "Olestra may cause abdominal cramping and loose stools in some individuals, and [it] inhibits the body's absorption of certain fat-soluble vitamins and nutrients" (Fake). The FDA, again lobbied by the Gump Akin Lobbying Group, who received one hundred and sixty thousand from Proctor & Gamble alone, approved this synthetic fat substitute to be used in food. While this sounds like an issue, some would counter, saying that consumers understand what they are buying and are okay with the drawbacks. They may have a valuable point, but look at the counter argument. These snacks will be marketed to the parents of growing children, who will need the fat-soluble vitamins and the nutrients that should otherwise be in those snacks. These snacks will also be marketed to those on diets, as they want to consume as few calories as possible. There are, of course, a few problems with this. Someone who works out may need to cut calories, but calories are energy and without energy one would not want to perform optimally, especially if that someone ends up having less energy and becomes bloated. Ultimately a concerned citizen could conduct his or her own research, but with the tax dollars we pay every year to the federal government, we should not have to do any research to be guaranteed healthy food that is actually healthy.
            Surely amongst all of this, the FDA would at least allow for General Mills to market Cheerios as ‘Heart Healthy’ without too much fuss. Actually, it seems that the FDA wants to create a level playing field. They seem to want the positives and the negatives to be as minimally marketed to the public as possible. “Foods that promote certain benefits are now, according to the FDA, considered to be and must meet the regulatory requirements for drugs” (Your). That’s okay though; a little extra paperwork, a little more money out of pocket and our favorite oat cereals stay on the shelves and continue to carry the ‘Heart Healthy’ label. Not exactly. It takes the FDA eight to ten years to approve a new drug. Imagine ten years without Cheerios, or walnuts for that matter. The medical experts at the Mayo Clinic “…trumpet the value of eating walnuts as part of a heart-healthy diet and endorse the nuts' cholesterol-lowering benefits, the informed Diamond Foods that it cannot tell consumers its shelled walnuts can help prevent heart disease” (Your).
“The U.S. has made tremendous progress in the area of food safety since the early 20th century. However, in recent decades the globalization and mechanization of food production has given rise to a variety of food-safety concerns. For example, bacterial contamination of lettuce grown on a California farm, or the use of an unsafe food additive made at a plant in China, can harm a fast-food consumer in Pennsylvania” (Food). Ultimately every example comes down to one very huge problem. People within the FDA, according to GlassDoor.com, make anywhere from ten thousand a year (as interns) to two hundred and seven thousand dollars a year as a Lead Medical Officer (GlassDoor). If the FDA did not exist, then this money could be freed up to go anywhere, to go into Social Security or to go into Education. What is the task of the FDA? To make sure that the food production industry delivers to the populace healthy food. The FDA seems to be moving in the opposite direction.
            The Food and Drug Administration was created during the Progressive Era as a response to some of the atrocities seen in the food production industry. The FDA was founded in part to regulate the food production industry. But instead of regulating the plants that produce the food that the American public eats, the FDA listens and capitulates to the lobbyist. The unfortunate problem with these lobbyists is that they are paid by big corporations, like Monsanto, who care more about a profit then they do about the health of the American public. It is because the FDA lets money talk that the American public at large end up with rats in the Mountain Dew they drink, diarrhea-inducing synthetic fat substitutes in snack foods and a cereal aisle with no Cheerios, at least for eight to ten years while it goes through the same regulatory process as Lipitor, Viagra and Claritin. Why? Not because the FDA is worried that Cheerios may have the same adverse side-effects as these drugs do, but because Cheerios are actually healthy for you and probably do not use Proctor & Gamble's fat substitutes or have oats grown with Monsanto’s chemicals. Still, no matter what happens to the public, no matter what is in the food that they consume and no matter what adverse effects these foods have on the people who eat them, the employees, from the interns, to the inspectors, all the way to Margaret Hamburg, who is the Commissioner of Food and Drugs over at the FDA are still going to take home their tax payer funded paycheck each and every year. This leaves the average American to fumble around in food aisles, restaurants and the internet, wondering what is healthy and what is not. This means that Americans have to pay to have an FDA, but all they get from it are synthetic fat substitutes, preservatives and foods made primarily of chemicals. Next time you are at the store and you pick up a three year old ham or a two year old can of green beans and smile at the wonder of science, remember that preservatives cause everything from asthma and vomiting, to cancer and death; and the FDA is not doing a single thing about it (Jordan).


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"Those that dream by night, in the dusty recesses of their mind, wake in the day to find that all was vanity, but the dreamers of the day, are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams and make them real."