So anyone who cares about such things may have noticed that I’ve been absent these last couple months…no…? No one noticed? Ok, whatever.
So I decided, with the encouragement of my fellow AM writers, to talk about something other than politics, and, failing that, I decided to take a little break. I did, however, sit back, observe, and celebrate Obama’s victory. I did so with dismay, though, because this election was not a pretty one. It was not always fought cleanly and was one of the most disgusting displays of propaganda and dirty pool I’ve seen in some time.
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So apparently the Corn Refiners Association is being trounced by Big Sugar, and wants the world to know that there is another game in town. They are touting the benefits and similarities of sugar and their product, High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), and have begun a new ad campaign, including television spots that almost boggle the mind. (Since I’m still unable to successfully embed video, here is the link.) If you are to believe them, HFCS is just as good as sugar, tastes virtually the same, and has about the same health effects as its more natural, less chemically retooled brother from canetown.
I’m all for friendly competition, but it seems that the CRA might just be a little bit wrong on this point. The question should not be whether HFCS is as just as good as sugar; it should be a question of whether either of them is any good for us as consumers. I understand that this is not the CRA’s main concern, but is it the FDA’s concern? Evidently not, because HFCS, for all of its processing and chemical synthesis, is now listed by the FDA as a natural ingredient. The FDA’s letter to the CRA can be read here if you are interested. I’m sorry to disagree with the FDA, but I read how HFCS is made (as compared with how sugar is processed), and that, my friends, is not natural in the slightest, but since it fits within the scope of the FDA’s definition of natural, they seem to be getting away with it.
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I’m sorry, but this is getting ridiculous. Both McCain and Obama have been playing this game for about a week now, dangling the carrot just out of reach, creating speculation and buzz as to who they have picked as running mates. This is absurd; it simply detracts from the message that both of them are trying to get out there.
Just tell us already and we can get back to talking about stuff that really matters…like how Britney got thin so quickly!
Is it possible that we’ve been lulled into a false sense of security by the current administration yet again? A supposed early draft of new health regulations was released late last week which defined birth control pills as a form of abortion. According to Mike Leavitt, secretary of Health and Human Services, it was an unintentional redefinition.
In proposing a new HHS regulation last month, he said, he only meant to protect the “right of conscience” of federally funded healthcare providers whom he wants spared dismissal because of their objections to birth control or abortion. link
After the backlash of the new proposed regulations, Leavitt wrote on his blog,
An early draft of the regulations found its way into public circulation before it had reached my review. It contained words that lead some to conclude my intent is to deal with the subject of contraceptives, somehow defining them as abortion. Not true.
The Bush Administration has consistently supported the unborn. However, the issue I asked to be addressed in this regulation is not abortion or contraceptives, but the legal right medical practitioners have to practice according to their conscience and patients should be able to choose a doctor who has beliefs like his or hers.
The Department is still contemplating if it will issue a regulation or not. If it does, it will be directly focused on the protection of practitioner conscience. link
I fully understand that there is a choice of conscience that comes with offering abortions and, to some lesser degree, birth control, but defining birth control as abortion does not win any fight. It is simply another thing that will make healthcare in this country more expensive. This fight also leads down that complex road of religious belief which, frankly I don’t have the energy to explore right now.
Moveon.org has teamed up with Planned Parenthood to take on Leavitt to make sure that this crucial redefinition does not occur. If you would like to help, please feel free to add your to support to their petition here.
I have to apologize to Eric Hazard, my fellow AM contributor, for jumping down his throat in the comments section of his Nobama column. See I’m not used to having people who disagree with me politically actually having evidence to back up their difference of opinion. Eric, on the other hand, actually is well-read, and backs up his ideas and opinions with salient views and facts; I hate that, but I totally respect it more than some jackhole who simply regurgitates what he’s heard on Faux News, without even a second’s hesitation to possibly check the veracity of the garbage that they are spewing.
So I apologize for insulting you in my last comment, Eric, and hope that you won’t chalk it up to something like “liberal hysteria.” I’m simply very passionate about what I believe and which agendas are sending this country in the wrong direction. That, and I hate being beaten at my own game of trying to be one of the smartest guys in the room(where politics are concerned). And I’m going to let the “jump shot” comments go…
