This disturbing editorial in the New York Times reminds me about a comment I made on another blog a while ago:
“I do not find it surprising the Upton Sinclair chose to use the meat packing industry as an example of the ills of capitalism. It almost makes me want to join the Reds, and I lean heavily Libertarian.” –Freemarket, 12/18/06
The meat industry has disturbed me for years and continues to do so. The entire industry relies on propaganda and duping consumers. This is the reason why I say I lean Libertarian, not that I am a Libertarian. Although, I am not sure government regulation is the answer either.
From the NYT editorial:
The powerful meat and produce industries can be counted on to call on their allies in Congress and the White House for help in resisting. That would come as no surprise to Sinclair, who was already complaining loudly in 1906 that Armour & Co. had contributed $50,000 to the Republican Party, and that the meatpackers had hired a prominent government official “as confidential adviser as to federal inspection problems.”
The answer, Sinclair believed, was always the same: providing the American people with the gritty truth that they needed to protect themselves. “The source and fountain-head of genuine reform in this matter,” Sinclair insisted, “is an enlightened public opinion.”
Mr. Sinclair, I agree.
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
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1 comments:
I wish that "The Jungle" were required reading for high schoolers. It was the book that initially inspired me to be a vegetarian.
Concurrently, watching Dateline exposes on the handling (or mishandling) of meat by Food Lion in the early '90s solidified my decision to abstain from carcass-filled meals.
I think if more people knew the truth behind the cellophane shrink-wrap, they would choose meatless dishes much more often.
Three cheers for propaganda!
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