Fast Food Bastards

I don't eat a whole lot of fast food. I don't much care for it, but I'll eat it when I need to. But that's my CHOICE, and that's the theme here. Choice.

America, generally speaking, is the wealthiest nation in the world. Free-market capitalism has made us powerful. It has made our people strong, it has given them the ability to pursue their dreams. We have created more of what makes life simpler, made it cheaper, more efficient, and saved more lives and made more lives easier across the world. One of our biggest accomplishments in America is food. The free-market has generated massive surpluses of foods, it has fed our country and has helped to feed the world. We make food dirt cheap (a ton of corn costs roughly 167 dollars. That's 2000 pounds of corn for about the price of a good microwave). Food is so cheap, and we make so much of it, that we no longer have to worry about starvation. We eat good.

Some of us eat too good. The free-market has given us so much food that people can eat whenever and wherever, and they do. Obesity is, according to the US Department of Health and Human Services, the second largest cause of preventable death (although, most government studies are bullshit anyways, so take it with a grain of salt. haha, get it? Salt?).

So, here's the point. People are getting fatter. They are developing more and more illnesses, like diabetes and heart disease. There is a serious problem. Naturally, who is the first to be blamed?

Of course, its the fast food companies. They've warped our taste buds, drawn in our children, and made us all fat! It's all their fault!

You see it's a lot easier to blame everyone else for our problems. Is it their fault? Really?

Well, some of it is. It really isn't good for you and you shouldn't over eat it, but that is beyond the point. People are not forced to go into McDonalds and buy a hamburger. It is their CHOICE. They CHOOSE to go in and eat, and eat, and eat, and eat, and so on and so forth.

So, the blame is not entirely on the fast food companies; it's our lifestyles. Ultimately, it is up to us, the people, to alter the course of this problem. By demanding healthier foods, the market will change and producers will be forced to adapt or lose business and die. No intervention from the government required.

But wait . . . haven't the fast food companies wired us to want their foods above all others? Don't they modify their foods to make them more attractive? Isn't it true that fast food companies have changed us? Sure, but they sure as hell didn't do it with magic or some fancy science.

Animals, are naturally wired to "crave" three things. Fats, sugars, and salts. This is an evolutionary adaptation that was developed over millions of years. Foods that have these flavors usually contain the necessary nutrients that are needed for survival, so organisms that were naturally attracted to those flavors would have a greater chance of survival and reproduction.

Fast food companies have not "changed" anything about us. They are playing on our evolutionary habits. If they didn't, food wouldn't sell. That's basic economics.

The fast food industry makes unhealthy food. This is true, but ultimately it is up to us to change this. We need to get rid of this bullshit government intervention and let the free-market go. If we as people change, the markets will change. If the markets change, then the producers will change. If the producers change, our country will change. Can you imagine all of this, coming as a result of CHOICES we made? Just as simple as that, a CHOICE. A CHOICE is powerful. It can change people. It can change societies. It can change the world.

We are the solution. We must get rid of the federal monopoly on schools and their education regulations that get in the way of a good health education. We must empower each other with knowledge. We must get the government out of our way. We don't need to sue, we don't need to regulate, and we sure as hell do not need to destroy the industry. We simply need to make good CHOICES. Just stop buying their shit.

Oh, but don't go organic. That's bullshit too.