Various Revelations II

A continuation of my random thoughts. I don't feel like devoting full essays to them, but they've planted themselves in my head. I don't know if my concerns are legitimate or if I'm just looking at reality through a distorting lens, but here are some of my peeves. Feel free to disagree.

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I've been wondering about the sexual revolution. No. That took place many decades ago. What I'm really wondering about is the genderal revolution which has exploded this century. I hear more and more about LGBTQ rights, and most recently these have revolved around those with sexual dysphoria. I note that more and more clergy are willing to perform wedding ceremonies for those who are – same-sex marriages and the like. And the courts are moving in the direction of making it a crime to have objections, religious or otherwise, to such acts.

And the religious establishment is falling into line. More and more faiths are accepting the trend and approve of what used to be forbidden. Not only do clergy perform same-sex marriages, but increasing numbers are themselves gay or lesbian. All with the approval of the religious hierarchy. I'm interested in learning what their reaction will be (or already is) to transgender ministers and cross-dressing rabbis. Biblical thought has become a fascinating subject. Even for those who reject it.

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There is no question that Donald Trump is my president. And yours. And the president of all those who deny that he is theirs – though they never say who is. In any event, there can be little doubt that he is a very smart man. Anyone with his achievements in business, entertainment, politics, and whatever else must be smart.

But that does not mean that he is wise or good. He has a reputation for being a thin-skinned shoot-from-the-hip type with little concern for the truth, the feelings of others, or the image of America that he is projecting to the world. He is our president, but that doesn't mean we approve of his behavior. It doesn't mean that we're not embarrassed by it. Perhaps it is a pose and his policies will have a beneficial effect on our country; perhaps he'll grow up and grow into his office. We'll see, but I'm not optimistic.

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Most of what I've heard (and some of it may be true?) comes from the radio although the newspapers have some fascinating, if not verifiable, information as well, This particular harangue arose, as usual from a radio report. I knew that soda and most sweet drinks were considered as poison for children (and, to a degree, adults) but I was surprised to hear that some nutritionists recommended that children not drink fruit juice, only water. After all, there's sugar in fruit juice and children should learn not to drink anything sweet.

Over the years I have heard and read an assortment of nutritional (and medical) “truths” only to find that, sometime later, contrary regulations are presented. Eggs have had a rise and fall (I'm not referring to Humpty-Dumpty); the “nutritional pyramid” is revised periodically; salt restrictions, once declared for everyone, no longer apply to much of the population. Add to that the dispute about whether it's good to be skinny or a little overweight and whether skimmed milk is preferable to whole milk. There is disagreement among nutritionists, and with some doctors as well. My choice is to ignore it all and eat what I like. I may not live as long as I might (though I'll never know) but I'll enjoy what I eat.

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There's a big flap over ecology. I've heard about great concern regarding the extinction of various species. Cost should not be the issue. Save them! But evolution's been going on for a long time and, as far as we know, we wouldn't be here if some of the previous species had remained. My children believe I had a pet dinosaur but that's not the case. In fact I'm happy that they're gone.

What's never discussed is that along with losing some, there are new species developing all the time. Some of them may be more beneficial than the ones that are disappearing, but no real comparison is possible. However it's the way of the world. There's nothing to be gained by burdening society in order to preserve species that block our progress.

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That's it for now. I'm sure more will cross my mind as the days go by and this is far easier than writing long essays on each. Stay tuned.

A La Whatever

                                                                                                       

                                                                                               

When was the last time you had a good home-cooked meal? Not one that came from the freezer and was simply defrosted.

(The times are different from what they were when our great-grandparents were young.ⁱ In their time there were no pre-cooked foods except the ones they made and stored themselves. There were only home cannedⁱⁱ fruits and vegetables, and some foods that were preserved in salt or by drying,ⁱⁱⁱ but these preparations were usually done by the cook herself.^iv And although commercially produced frozen foods appeared in the mid-1940s, some dishes were probably made and frozen at home before that. And others were canned.)

Additional sources of pre-prepared foods are the local take-out restaurant and the counter in the supermarket that holds the salads, meat dishes, and the like. And the supermarkets also have the packaged cereals, candies, cookies, salad dressings and the numerous other items that are so popular in the last-minute preparation of the meal on the fly that you get at home.

You may choose to go out and get a Big Mac^® or have a pizza delivered at home, or even have daily deliveries of fully prepared meals – especially if you're on a diet. Those meals are likely to have small portions and large prices, but they save the work of actually cooking the meal.

But why not? Why should we live in the past? There was a time when the cleaning of clothes required that they be beaten by rocks in a nearby stream. Now we use washing machines. And at one time we rode on horses if we didn't walk, but now we drive automobiles with GPS units. We now prefer antibiotics and other modern medicines to leeches and enemas. Times are changing, and we should as well. Ready-made meals – “less work for mother”^v – is a concept that makes sense.

Well, yes and no.

For the most part the modern improvements are just that. They are improvements. Washing machines clean better than rocks; automobiles get us to our destination faster than horses or our own legs; and modern medicines have far better results than leeches. The same can be said for many other devices. And in addition they work faster than the methods they're replacing. That concept certainly makes sense. Society has chosen to adopt these practices even though aware of the potential of some laundry products to cause allergies, the cost of automobile accidents in lives and money, and the side effects of many medicines.

But food products don't have such a clear record of benefits in relation to costs. It is undeniable that cooking from scratch has become more difficult as families have been forced into the position of requiring two bread-winners. One of the problems is that there is no one home to cook, and a particular dish may require more time than is available following return from work in the late afternoon or in the evening. And both partners may be exhausted and hungry by that time, so it is easier to assemble a meal than to cook. It's also hard to pass up food that's already prepared and food you can pass off as home-made by just heating it up. Some may even taste good, but there's more to the story than that.^vi You may even notice that the ready-made products often come in pans that can be used for cooking and then thrown out rather than washed. More time saved. Not only that, but with things like TV dinners, and other plastic meals, each diner can have something different. Something for everyone, including the person preparing the meal.

But, as I said, there's more to the story. Whereas the ingredients for meals made in season from scratch are typically tasty and of high quality, the main considerations in formulating the ready-made treats and the fast foods are shelf-life, appearance, and price. That means additives of various sorts, including artificial colors, stabilizing agents, and numerous preservatives.^vii When it comes to taste, which isn't the first consideration, in addition to added salt, sugar, and fats,^viii there are many artificial flavorings. Portion sizes tend to be small so the manufacturer can advertise a lower price (and calorie count) per “serving.”

In this age of easy travel, transport, and communication, everything is in season somewhere, and available all year around. But because it takes time to bring fruits and vegetables to market from somewhere around the world, harvesting may be necessary before the produce is ripe so that it won't be past its peak when it reaches the consumer. Or a variety may be produced that looks^ix and travels well even if its taste is not all you might like. It's far better to sell a product that may not taste good, than not to sell one that tastes better but doesn't look as good.

So people wind up without the meal made from scratch. The “comfort” foods don't do the trick. And the portions aren't big enough.^x And whoever made dinner isn't eager to talk about how (s)he defrosted or reheated what was on sale at the local store and was served. No one will beg for the recipe anyway. On the other hand, talking about a dinner made from fresh local ingredients will probably be a source of enjoyment for the chef, and a tasty home-made dish is the kind of thing that guests will want to repeat in their own kitchens, so be prepared for recipe requests.

There's nothing like a home-cooked meal. But wait. There's more.

Next episode: “More Food For Thought” – There are more important problems with that home-cooked meal.

i       Or at least mine. The level of ancestry needed to reach back to the early twentieth century and before will depend on your age.

ii       Actually they were bottled, but the term used now is “canning.”

iii     Fermentation also has a long history as a method of preservation (at least 10,000 years to drying's 12, 000 years – see http://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/nchfp/factsheets/food_pres_hist.html for more history), but is somewhat more limited in its application than some of the other methods and infuses the contents with alcohol.

iv      I do not mean to be considered sexist, but the reality is that most of the cooking at home was done by women – wives and mothers or, in the case of a well-to-do family, by a paid cook.

v       Horn and Hardart.

vi      Somewhere below. I haven't figured out where just yet.

vii     In order to return some of the nourishment which the processing has removed from the food, and in order to add something for advertising value, there may be added vitamins, or something else that happens to be in vogue, proclaimed on the package, along with disclaimers of allergins and gluten – especially in products that never contain gluten – and fat where it would not ordinarily be anyway.

viii    Including poly-unsaturated fats, oils, and transfats.

ix      Wax coatings are often of value here.

x       I like “man-sized” portions. I know that sounds sexist, but when I get up from the table I like to loosen my belt.

Vitamin $

 

A friend told me yesterday that she buys fruits and vegetables from a local food co-op. In fact she volunteers to work there. Unfortunately, the quantities that one has to purchase tend to be large amounts and it's sometimes necessary to eat a lot of a particular variety, whether you want it or not. But I guess that's better than throwing it out – although that, too, may sometimes be necessary.

I inquired about the reason for buying from the co-op, and was informed that the produce comes from a local source. But, of course, my supermarket is a local source. And I can get whatever quantity I want, of a wide variety of foodstuffs. No. I apparently misunderstood. The food, itself, is local. It's fresher.ⁱ That means, as everyone knows, that it's more nutritious. Food loses nutritional value with time. If it comes to your table a few hours later it has lost some of its vitamins.ⁱⁱ At least that's the teaching.

In all honesty I'm not convinced that there is any significant loss in food value.ⁱⁱⁱ Nor is it likely that any marginal increase or decrease in vitamin content – if there is any – will affect your health. Most Americans are well nourished and not in need of additional vitamins beyond what they'll get in a reasonably balanced diet. They're paying for a dream^iv rather than a reality, but that's the way it is with a lot of what we do. And the local farmers and the nutritionists have to eat, too.

In recent years, though, we have become addicted to pronouncements of those who claim they can improve our health. They build on vague ideas from folklore and on hope, transmitted by others with the same goals. Huge industries have come from these dreams – exercise machines, folk remedies, personal trainers, training shoes and other clothing, “organic”^v and “natural”^vi foods, books, nutritionists and health gurus, and the lobbyists who protect these trades.

Claims abound concerning the scientific backing of whatever panacea is being promoted. In fact all that exists may only be a single unverified result in a reasonable scientific publication, but that's enough. Unfortunately the “scientific evidence” is more likely that found in a newspaper – but much too often if there is any published material on the subject it can be found in an advocacy periodical that would not stand up to independent review of any kind. Too frequently the only reference by supporters of these fads to valid scientific studies^vii is to dismiss them as being inaccurate and contrivances of the “establishment” whose main interest is to keep the average citizen from enjoying the benefits of whatever they favor. “They^viii don't want you to know” about the product being promoted.

Our goal is to live forever. It's not possible, of course, but that won't stop us from trying.

Jon Carroll writes:^ix AFTER THE DEATH of Linda McCartney, I heard someone on television say, with anger, that her death was tragic because “she had done everything right.”

I gathered from context that the speaker meant that Linda McCartney had eaten food free from additives or hormones, that she had not used tobacco or drunk alcohol to excess, that she had exercised regularly and seen her doctor once a year and that, when the first signs of the disease were detected, she had taken all necessary and appropriate steps. And I thought of something I had heard a week earlier, a quote whose source I did not remember: “Americans think death is optional.” … People who do everything right die, and people who do everything wrong die.

Nothing guarantees eternal life, though some measures improve you chances to live longer. That doesn't mean that whatever is promoted as being healthful is, in fact, advantageous. But that's what the seller hopes you'll think as you pay an inflated price. And, as with so many marketing devices, they may even (invent/discover and) alert you to a disease for which they have just the right thing. Rather than high-fructose corn syrup they will sell you sugar. And not just any sugar but demerara. As for salt, you shouldn't get the plain ordinary variety – it's better to use sea-salt. Actually there's no advantage either to the demerara sugar or the sea salt, but the profits are higher and the feeling of virtue is greater. And it doesn't matter that scientific studies of anti-oxidants haven't shown them to be of value, everyone knows that you'll benefit from them – so there are plenty of people who will sell them.

The stores are filled with nostrums and panaceas. And there are numerous buyers. They believe that the Holy Grail, the Fountain of Youth,^x can be reached by the use of the cure-alls and folk remedies they buy. And they believe that what is promoted as proper nutrition will lead to an increased life-span during which they'll feel better. In fact it's better for everyone. But those who most need nutrition boosts can least afford it. Like most fads and styles (fashions), “nutrition” is most popular among the middle and upper classes. Those who are already well nourished are the ones who can afford extra nutrition boosts and what they believe are aids for their immune systems. And diets should be designed to help you avoid whatever you're allergic to – wheat and gluten, dairy products, bananas, peanuts, potatoes, whatever. Everyone has “allergies” nowadays. Many of them (though certainly not all) are imagined, but they serve as a convenient explanation for whatever makes you unhappy about yourself. And that's what keeps nutritionists working. They hawk placebos.^xi Placebos – which they may actually think have real value – are the answer. If you believe it will work, it will work. Belief is the answer.^xii

Nutrition ought to be a science, not a religion. And health care should be based on scientifically tested methods rather than the folk remedies of a multicultural world, and anecdotes of success of unproven foods and techniques. But that's so twentieth century.

Next episode: Miñana – No, it's not Mañana.  That's the way I wanted to spell it.

i     At least that's what the vendor says. It's also covered with dirt for which you pay when it's weighed.

ii    Of course the same is likely to be true if it sits in your refrigerator for many days before you can use it up. But that doesn't count. It was (allegedly) fresher when you got it. Even if you got to the co-op late. After work. And it's a drag to have to eat the same thing day after day because of the large quantity you bought, but it's virtuous to do so.

iii    I know there's a gain in self-esteem, but the cost is high. And when this fad is past she'll be left wondering why she wasted her money. But human nature and virtue sometimes cloud the thinking.

iv    Like with cosmetics. In fact most of the nutrition business is cosmetic.

v    Personally I prefer inorganic. Of course the standards for both are a little hazy. But put “organic” on the label (don't worry – no one will check) and you can jack up the price. In any event, I'd prefer not to be sickened or die from infections that safe (but not “organic”) pesticides could have prevented.

vi    In view of the fact that arsenic, uranium, and poison ivy are natural, I tend to be a little cautious when I see that term. Of course it has no clear definition, so you'll see it on a lot of products.

vii     If you doubt what I'm saying, read the following article and decide whether those who view fats as toxic to health and appearance have altered their views since the article appeared in 2006.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9505E2DC143EF93BA35751C0A9609C8B63&pagewanted=1

viii    Whoever “they” are.

ix     http://www.sfgate.com/, April 27, 1998.

x     It probably yields bottled water. That's what people pay large amounts of money for, even though New York City tap water costs only about a cent per gallon (which I suspect is the approximate cost everywhere) and often the bottled water is simply some other municipality's tap water. There's no good evidence that bottled water is any better for you than tap water – in fact it often contains toxic chemicals – bu,t since the bottles are plastic, they are costly to manufacture, utilize petroleum for their production, and are frequently not recycled, making a significant impact on the environment.

xi    Placebos in terms of techniques, foods, herbs, and the like. It's the emperor's new craze.

xii     And among the remedies are enemas and intestinal purges. If you believe in them you can explore for yourself how they compare to organic okra and a vegan life style.