Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Karma's a bitch


1. Zoiks! Tough news day yesterday for the Cheney Administration. First, the shit hitting the proverbial fan (or perhaps it should be "the proverbial shit hitting the fan") over the canned US attorneys. Then, more news tumbled out about the abysmal conditions at Walter Reed. Then there was our daily dose of reality from Baghdad. And, of course, the Scooter Libby decision. Then I learn that the US is now more hated around the world than North Korea. Quite an accomplishment. Finally, to top it all off, Jenna Bush is writing a book.

2. It was also a tough day for the food crowd. In its infinite wisdom, the US government has apparently decided that the naturally occuring transfats in butter and beef are as bad as man-made transfats. Remind me not to buy croissants at Starbucks--the paper bag it comes in tastes better. In unrelated news, McDonalds is testing out a one-third-pounder. WTF! Oh, wait. It's made from Angus beef. Never mind. I guess it's OK then.

This reminds me that Michael Pollan--of "Omnivore's Dilemma" fame--had a very interesting essay in the Times magazine a few weeks ago about the rise of "nutritionism" and its consequences. He notes that the rise of nutrition science began roughly at the beginning of the obesity epidemic. Surely a coincidence. The long and short of it is: eat whole foods; avoid processed foods; eat plants; eat meat in moderation. Q.E.D. He says in there somewhere that a pretty good rule of thumb is that if food comes in a box and the box has health claims on it, do not eat it. It is not good for you.

3. Shannon reports in from Chicago--the city of the big shoulders--that the Boring Store is very cool, and apparently not boring. She and Tom bought a "nerd-a-tron usb led," though (as with many things Shannon says) I have no idea what that means.

4. Finally, in case you were wondering, Buzzy is still cute.

Posted by jwb at 4:35 PM   

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