As the whole world knows by now, they've found a case of mad cow disease in the USA. Reported, but under-stated, is the fact that the meat processers tested the animal that arrived half-parylized, but had no hesitation in sending it right into the slaugherhouse and into our food supply. And indeed the law requires nothing else.
I spent several years living in a country — England — which woke up gradually to the fact that it had a serioius Mad Cow disease problem. [Best newspaper cartoon. One cow says to the other, “So, what do you think about this Mad Cow disease?” Second cow replies, “Doesn't bother us ducks.”] When I got back to the US I found tha the Red Cross wouldn't take my blood in blood drives, because I'd lived (oddly the rule didn't apply to mere tourists) in a country where there were reported cases of Mad Cow disease. I presume that this rule will now be relaxed for domestic blood donations at least?
If we continue the path of recapitulating the not-very-admirable British experience (denial that there's a big problem, no change in regulations, followed by a growth in the problem), expect a bunch of jokes about which of our politicians are infected. Probably Karl Rove is working them up already….
Meat is safe? Thats a good joke! Meat promotes health? Thats an advertisement from industry. If you think meat is 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 (BSE)
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!