Friday, October 01, 2010

8017: Food, Folks and No Fun.


Working towards the weekend with a MultiCultClassics Monologue…

• Contrary to the contentions of a Wall Street Journal report, Mickey D’s has no intention of dropping the limited health insurance coverage currently offered to its low-wage employees. But if the fast feeder were really concerned about employees’ health and well-being, they’d stop offering discounted food.

• A new report from the CDC indicates 9 percent of U.S. adults suffer from depression. Any tie to the +9 percent unemployment rate?

2 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:15 AM

    You know that simply eating McDonalds will not make you sick, right? You don't have to get a big mac, large fry, and bucket of soda when you go. Get a regular hamburger, small fries, and water. Also, get some exercise. Fast food restaurants don't force you to glut on their food and get sick, and most of them offer food that is no worse for you than the food you would cook at home. In fact, White Castle's probably serves higher quality beef than your local big chain supermarket even carries.

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  2. All true, Anonymous. But you leave out the other side of the equation. Your perspective is identical to Big Tobacco’s stance: i.e., you don’t have to smoke cigarettes every day, blah, blah, blah. Anonymous, you say people have a choice surrounding portions. Yet the fast feeders continue to increase the size of portions — in fact, Mickey D’s just announced they will be offering larger Snack Wraps® to customers. Taco Bell invented The Fourth Meal — encouraging customers to eat more of their shit, more times during the day. The fast feeders are not advertising their “healthier” options as heavily as the unhealthy menu items. And no fast feeder — besides maybe Subway — is hyping healthiness (and even Subway is heavily advertising the larger offerings) and reasonable portions. There are studies, too, that show the addictive qualities of these foods, particularly in regards to the salt content. Lawmakers are already moving toward labeling fast food like cigarettes — i.e., clearly stating the health risks on packaging. This type of legislation might not be passed in the end, but the fact that people are seeing the need for it tells the true tale. It’s all certainly a strong counterpoint to the covert efforts from professional PR types like you. Thanks for commenting.

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