Wanna Get RICH? Smoke Cigarettes
November 20, 2009
This morning on the news blips it was announced that a Florida woman was awarded 300 MILLION by a jury in Miami.
TRUE: Philip Morris intentionally hid the dangers of smoking from the American public. This was inherently wrong and deceitful. They should be punished for these actions.
However, I have one problem with this: smoking is an individual choice. People choose to continue smoking after their first cigarette…., dizziness and puking aside. Even though their body is trying to tell them that what they are doing IS poison, they do it anyway.
Some people have an easier time quitting than others. I was lucky; I stopped and never picked up another one. Of course, I had some help too – I couldn’t breathe and was suffering from what the doctor termed as ‘reactive asthma’. I had to make a choice between smoking or breathing. I chose the latter.
Ms. Naugle unfortunately was not like me. Despite several attempts, she finally quit after over 25 years. Sadly, today she is crippled by emphysema, unable to walk but a few steps before getting out of breath. Her plight is a testament to the millions of ex-smokers, myself included, who have suffered permanent damage from smoking.
Yes, I firmly believe that Ms. Naugle should be compensated, but $300 million – which I am sure she will not get after legal fees and other encumbrances to the amount - is a bit out of line. True – she suffers daily and probably will have a much shorter life had she not smoked for so many years. As Richard Daynard, professor of law at Northwestern University said, “Large verdicts encourage other large verdicts.”
This goes back to another rant that I posted on lawsuits. “Stupidity Clause in Lawsuits” and the page on “Why The Responsibility Rant?”
It breaks my heart that there are millions like Ms. Naugle, but it also goes back to responsibility; I do not negate her condition, and Philip Morris needs to be punished.
Now someone needs to take on the food companies because they are equally responsible for poisoning the American public!
Nuff said!
Let’s Take Back OUR FOOD!
July 30, 2009
If you think that environmental issues don’t concern you or there’s nothing you can do about them, you’re wrong! It is YOU, the AMERICAN CONSUMER who MUST SPEAK OUT, ACT UP and TAKE CONTROL. The government, big corporations and agribusinesses are NOT acting in your best interests! It’s their wallet that is the main concern, not yours! So, get off your lazy, complacent butts and DO SOMETHING!
There are numerous sites detailing environmental disregard -and- total disregard for human life on this planet BY food companies and agricultural chemical companies. You and I and this planet are being POISONED by thousands of chemicals a day because the likes of Monsanto and Bayer… those kindly aspirin people.
We do not know the long-term results of eating GMO (genetically modified organisms). Nobody does! GMO food have been made resistant to herbicides and GM food is so prevalent in today’s food. This is frightening! LEARN MORE!
DO THE RESEARCH. Do it for your kids, your friends, your family, your friends and if you care enough – our planet.
GET INVOLVED!
This government is supposed to be FOR the PEOPLE and BY THE PEOPLE.
It isn’t.
It’s FOR CORPORATE AMERICA by CORPORATE AMERICA!
You CAN DO something….. only if you want to. If you’re the l e a s t bit concerned about our food supply, if you care at all about what you’re kids are eating from ‘supposedly’ natural sources (much of it lies…) === then DO SOMETHING!
What the food companies and the government are telling you isn’t always the truth! We, the American people, have to stand up for our rights and make the FDA listen to us, not the corporate lobbyists!
HR2749 – call your congressmen/women and other legislators and TELL THEM TO VOTE NO on this bill.
It will hurt YOU, anybody who owns a few chickens, one cow, some goats and every small farmer in this country. It will force many of them out of business, JUST what the big agri-businesses want!
NAIS is NOT NICE
Food Safety: YOUR Responsibility, too!
April 17, 2009
An article appeared on Reuters news announcing new food safety standards are needed and the responsibility falls on state and local governments. Meanwhile, in the latest issue of “Organic Bytes”, Organic Consumers online newsletter, states that the Obama administration is considering former MONSANTO lawyer, Michael Taylor, has a long history of lobbying for Monsanto and fast tracking Monsanto’s controversial rBGH while at the FDA. Taylor is a case study of the “revolving door,” having worked within the USDA and FDA, as well as Monsanto. The long and short of this means that the AMERICAN PUBLIC needs to get involved in being proactive about food regulations. To learn more about current issues, go to the Organic Consumers website.
Stay informed, don’t stay DUMB!
We, the American people, have to take steps to TAKE BACK OUR FOOD. For too long the government has had their hands in the food supply, making decisions that were in the best interests of big business’ bottom line – NOT- for the health and safety of the public! Washington has been bought and bribed by agri-business for decades!
The results are now showing up in people worldwide: increased cancer rates, birth defects, illnesses, allergies.
The government and big business would rather you -
“Don’t just DO SOMETHING….. SIT THERE!”
Green Cars: It Takes The Little Guys To Do It
April 11, 2009
The ‘Big 3′ in Detroit are crumbling. After years of dragging their feet, buying off Washington and sleeping with the oil lobbyists, the empire is coming down.
In an interesting article on the hottest cars at the 2009 New York Auto Show, it’s the green start up companies who are coming out on top! The Big 3 are outnumbered by innovative small companies; dozens of them with guts enough to take the dream off the drafting board and make it into a car. As a result, this country will have more choices for cars not seen since about 1910!
Innovation is born of hard times. Some of these tiny companies feel, as I do, that the government mandated 35 mpg for cars is ridiculously low. One would think that since the gas crisis of the 1970′s (which I remember vividly) would have spurred the industry to new heights. Nope – the government, the automakers and the oil industry and God knows who else, continued business as usual and now the oil producing nations have got us by the short ones!
WHY has it taken the ‘little guys’ to be the ones to bring this to the forefront? Why NOT Detroit? WHY? Because the OIL INDUSTRY does not have them in their pocket. They aren’t buddy-buddy with the lobbyists! They have the balls to do what should have been done 35 years ago!
Environmentally, we are one step from disaster. With climate change wracking every part of the Earth, pollution, waste and degradation of the planet rampant, things MUST change.
The auto industry needs to get out of its own way: get serious instead of shoving out ‘quasi-green vehicles’! There is SO MUCH MORE that can be done and should be done NOW…. not in 10 or 20 years!
So, let’s say HOORAY to these brave LITTLE GUYS for stepping up and being a hell of a lot greener than Detroit.
L-O-V-E Those ARTIFICIAL SWEETNERS? Things You Should Know!
March 28, 2009
What does DDT, FORMALDEHYDE, CHLORINE and a host of other chemicals have in common with artificial sweeteners?
Plenty!
How about the fact that Splenda more closely resembles the DDT molecule and that CHLORINE molecules are added to make the sweetener. The folks who make it will tell you that it’s made from sugar. Well, it IS, initially, but the chemical changes that make it into SUCRALOSE – which is a chemical formation and NOT real sugar is NOT FOUND IN NATURE! Don’t be fooled by the name. Additionally, your body does not have the ability to metabolize this chemical because it is artificial! It is a CHLOROCARBON, which causes shrinkage in the thymus, calcification in the kidneys. If you get kidney pain after using this product, STOP using it at once. Nice, huh? It is also a fat soluble substance and remains in the body for a long time.
Did you know that scientists were creating an INSECTICIDE when Splenda was ‘discovered?’
People gobble Splenda ridden products and think nothing of it. THIS IS NOT FOOD YOU ARE EATING - it is ARTIFICIAL INGREDIENTS something your body CANNOT PROCESS.
For more history of artificial sweeteners read this.
Personal note:
I ran the gamut of artificial sweetener use. Grandma was into healthy eating and – we didn’t know any better then – she used saccarine. I used that till the 70′s. Then I used Sweet-N-Low… but… when I started getting severe pain in my kidneys after using it, I started to wonder. A friend who was an editor, and was currently on the health editing desk – alerted me to the dangers of S&L waaaay back then. I stopped using ALL artificial sweeteners and have not had any pain since then.
Moms-to-be: Please, PLEASE do NOT eat foods with artificial sweeteners. Do not think you are doing your baby a favor by trying to ‘diet’ while you are pregnant. EAT REAL FOOD – not ‘plastic, poison, artificial’ food!
For God’s sake (your BABY’S sake – really) don’t drink soda, either. That is one of the MOST poisonious things you can ingest and your baby is getting it, too.
Find out what IN your food, folks – because it probably is making you sick!
WHY We’re So Messed Up = CHEMICALS
March 22, 2009
Thank you MONSANTO! Thank you ORTHO! Thank you to ALL those wonderful scientists who thought they were helping this world when some of this stuff was invented.
OK…, OK…, I know about the miracle of plastics and synthetic compounds and how they have revolutionized life on this planet.
Let’s also remember that as we are finding out, ‘fake’ isn’t better. Synthetic isn’t necessarily better. Why? Because it’s killing us.
Modern science is gathering evidence that artificial ingredients are making us sick. Decades have passed since this stuff was first introduced into our food. Look at us now? We’re fat and sick… some of us are dying from cancer BECAUSE of the stuff.
Our bodies cannot metabolize those fake ingredients. They cause all sorts of havoc in our bodies as they try to deal with them. The result: cancer, hormonal disruptions, illness, allergies and mysterious diseases.
Pesticides are endocrine disruptors, carcinogenic and weaken the immune system. They are also NEUROTOXINS. How do you think they kill bugs? The chemical makes their systems shut down – BANG ! Little by little, with enough exposure, humans suffer a different reaction. These insidious compounds lodge in fat cells and organs and sit there for decades. By then – there may be other factors, coupled with the weakened immune system and the whole body goes nuts and says “I GIVE UP!” Result: cancer.
I heard a story of a woman who worked at a company where she was in contact chemicals on a regular basis. I don’t know what the extent OF the exposure was; direct, indirect, exposure to fumes, or what chemical. I do know that her hair started falling out, she had terrible pain and many other symptoms. Doctor after doctor dismissed her as a hypochondriac because their standard blood & urine tests revealed nothing.
Finally she went to a doctor who was inquisitive enough to run some different tests which evidenced that this poor woman was slowly being poisoned!
This is how insidious these things can be. If you or someone you know has been diagnosed as a hypochondriac, tell them to get a different doctor who will do some extensive tests for poisonings.
It could save their life!
Workplace Terms: The Gag Reflex
March 21, 2009
Certain terms have become commonplace in the workplace & they make me want to throw up! Why do we have to be a TEAM MEMBER? Why do we have to like to WORK UNDER PRESSURE? How come it is mandatory that we are ENERGETIC, or that we can HANDLE STRESS?
I guess ‘team member’ is supposed to connect us. What it really means is that, like a dog, you’re expected to be totally enthusiastic, slobbering all over to BE the BEST – suck up, that is. RAH, RAH, SISS BOOM BAH ! Where are the cheerleaders? Team members are to be blindly devoted completely to the company. Ask no questions and we’ll tell you no truths.
Yeah, I’m a ‘team member’ – to a point. I’ll do what my job requires me to do: show up every day, try to do my best, do it on time and to the specifications to the job. I draw the line, however, when it becomes obvious that I am being used or lied to or mistreated -OR- if I am expected TO lie and mislead.
WORK UNDER PRESSURE means, “How much can you take before you crack?” How much can we get OUT of you? How far will you go for this company? How much of yourself, your needs and life outside the company will you give up? How far can we push you?
ENERGETIC means: work like the Energizer Bunny. That’s GREAT if you’re 25 and just out of college wanting to prove yourself. When you get to your mid-50′s, forget it. The bunny needs a recharge! I’m past killing myself for a job. Been there, done that when I was in my early 20′s. Worked 50-70 hour weeks.
WHY ARE WE EXPECTED TO WORK THIS WAY? Aaaahhhh….. the old GREED factor. Workers are disposable (see previous post on this) and this has become the new American corporate way. Like paper towels, we are meant to be thrown away when we’ve been used up. There are a thousand others waiting in line if we aren’t a team member.
This is YOUR FOOD We’re Talking About
February 19, 2009
Corporate America is trying to take one more step to control food. Small farmers are being threatened yet again by the federal government. NAIS (National Animal Identification System) is supposed to provide protection against these food recalls by tracking ‘food’ (in this case, animals) for their life. Every time an animal is moved, mounds of paperwork have to be completed – for EACH animal. Moreoever – once again – this hurts the people who can least afford it – the SMALL FARMER.
Think it WON’T AFFECT YOU?
If your kids have pet rabbits, if you have a few chickens you keep for eggs or maybe you have a cow or two. Goats for milking? Those, too, will be required to be tagged and tracked.
No – what we do NOT need is NAIS. We need BETTER conditions for these animals to begin with. Not crowded, disease promoting facilities which harbor dangerous bacteria with lax monitoring systems! The FDA and USDA cannot do it’s job, so they want to punish the small farmers and impose MORE TAXES on the American people.
Go to Organic Consumers to read more and tell your friends and contact your representatives! Don’t let AGRIBUSINESS buy the saftey of the American people again!
Take Action: Stop NAIS
February 18, 2009
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been working for over five years to force a National Animal Identification System (NAIS) onto American animal owners. NAIS is designed to identify and track each and every individual livestock and poultry animal owned by family farmers, hobby farmers, homesteaders, and pet owners across the country.
USDA claims that NAIS is a disease tracking program, but has refused to provide any support for its claims. In reality, NAIS will:
Create expensive and time-consuming tagging and reporting requirements for small farms. The requirements are particularly burdensome for those farmers raising sustainable livestock on pasture. Ultimately, this will reduce the availability of grass-fed meats, eggs, and milk.
Give factory confinement farms a loophole through the use of group identification, providing yet another unfair advantage for factory farms. Not provide any information to the consumer, and does not improve food safety, because the tracking ends with the animal’s death.
Replace states’ existing, well-functioning disease response and brand inspection programs with an unproven, expensive, and unreliable system;
Impose high costs and government surveillance on every farmer and animal owner for no significant benefits, and will likely force many small producers out of business.
NAIS does nothing to improve food safety for consumers or prevent animal diseases. This program is a one-size-fits-all program developed by and for big Agribusiness. NAIS will increase consolidation of our food supply in the hands of a few large companies and put the brakes on the growing movement toward local food systems.
The grassroots movement has already successfully stalled USDA’s plans for NAIS, which originally called for the entire program – premises registration, animal identification, and tracking – to be mandatory by January 2009. The proposed rule is an opportunity to get thousands of objections in the formal record, and have an even greater impact.
It is imperative that people speak up to protect our right to farm and our food supply!
Take action today! Go to: ORGANIC CONSUMERS to see the video and learn more.
The deadline to submit comments to the USDA is March 16th.
Remember: This is YOUR FOOD and America’s SMALL FARMERS we’re trying to save.
(Source: OCA Feb Newsletter)
