Do you ever play Pit? Then you've experienced this scenario: You go back and forth between a couple of different commodities until you make a lucky trade and one particular commodity gains prominence. In this scenario, let's say your hand tips toward soybeans. After fast and furious trading, you now need only one more soybean to complete your commodity stock. You proffer your solo coffee card facedown on the table: "One! One! One! One!" A willing broker appears amidst the trading frenzy, flashing a single card at you in return. You make the trade, sucking in air to provide wind for the inevitable forthcoming announcement, "Corner on Soybeans!" Only it's not a soybean. It's the bear. Simultaneously, someone slams their hand down on the bell. The market is closed. The sly trader gloats as he fans out his completed commodity collection. Coffee. And you've got that dang bear. Economic ruin.
I might get shot for writing this, since I live in Oregon, but I'm starting to think organic food is like Pit. Seriously. Commodity=organic=bear card=poorhouse. I've dabbled with different organic produce and products because the idea and image of organic is so wholesome. I've left it at dabbling because the price of organics scare me as well as the unconvincing health claims. I have never purchased organic meat or milk. To make the leap into dairy would spell sure-fire economic disaster. Like getting the bear card.
Lemme explain. Because I guess this isn't like Pit at all. Last night I attended a discussion group about organic food and walked away convinced that organic milk was the way to go. Even if your family burns through milk like an SUV through gas. Even if organic milk costs over five dollars a gallon. I mean, can you put a price on your family's health? Knowing organic would be a tough sell to the main bread-winner of this household, I went online and read some more stuff. After reading this article my stance on organic milk did a complete 360 so the conversation didn't even need to take place.
You should know, by the way, that my organic opinions are like my political ones: they depend on who I last talked to. I am like unto a ship without a rudder, tossed to and fro. Or like a terribly confused consumer. I am curious what your stance on "organic" is. Please use references. You do not have to write in cursive. Nor do you have to try to make a parallel to Pit.
9 comments:
That was a great article! Yeah I have never been real big on organic products. I think it is all a big marketing ploy to screw over the American public. If a product I like happens to be organic then I buy it but I don't seek out organic foods. The the way I see it is we are all going to die of something and whether it is cancer from the sun, cancer from drinking water out of plastic bottles, or cancer from my cell phone it is going to be something. The moment we are born we start dieing(Isn't that a song lyric?) It is too stressful to worry about each new threat. All we can do is try and live our lives the best we can with what we have and if that means letting my kids drink Walmart brand milk (Gasp!) and not worrying about the water I drank that sat in a plastic bottle in the car then so be it.
I think with organic that some things matter and some don't. I didn't have time to read the article but I've been over this a lot. If I could do all of my shopping at whole foods and trader joe's I would but it is just too costly. We have non-plastic sippy cups and water bottles and we don't micro plastics or anything. Since I'm in charge of my kids, I really try not to give them things that are healthy and to err on the side of caution whenever possible.
By the way there is no scientific evidence to back up the claim that carcinogens are leaking into our food products via plastic containers. If that were the case then nothing would be shipped in plastic, sitting in hot semi trucks.
I know a lot more about Pit than I know about organics! I've never felt an urge to buy them (I've purchased a stray organic tomato or bunch of celery on a rare occasion, probably because other options were very limited). I guess I've felt the price was prohibitive and was never convinced that non-organics were that bad. Laur sends this link from the Mayo clinic: www.mayoclinic.com/health/organic-food/NU00255 which basically says there is no conclusive evidence showing that organic food is more nutritious than is conventionally grown food and the USDA says even though it certifies organic food, it doesn't claim that these products are safer or more nutritious. By the way, the best Pit move ever was the time Autumn kept one card of each commodity (and probably the bull) effectively making it a real challenge to get a corner on anything!
Organic food is a bit like Scattergories...
Organic, Shmorganic...Bring on the synthetics!! I'll get excited when there's organic Doritos and Diet Coke.
The only thing I insist on buying organic is peanut butter. And that is purely because I LOVE its taste and texture. I also like to buy organic produce though I usually don't. People who are into "everything organic" are also eco-friendly, and animal friendly, etc, etc. That is great, but some people are WAY to extreme. I know someone who is into natural parenting. She read an article about the negative pscychological effects of pushing children in strollers and therefore refuses to do so. WHAT!?! All I can say is moderation in all things.
I must say, I am quite a fan of the idea of organic, but not a fan of the organic label put on most of the produce in the chain grocery stores. I have been into a Trader Joe's and Seattle has a wide variety of organic focus stores. A lot of people with extra income for that 100% organic Acai juice that is guaranteed to rid you of oxidants you haven't even developed yet.
I guess what I am saying is that I love things that I find that are organic (like the blueberries that a co-worker brings to work with them from their bush at home). My wife will travel to central Washington to go to the orchards and buy fresh fruit in larger bulk, then we can it up. I love farmers markets, as the fresh produce is local, organic, lasts twice as long as the food normally does, and tastes good. My favorite organic food is stuff that neighbors grew in their yard, and we all share the wealth with each other (who can keep up with an apricot tree that dumps all of its fruit in about 5 days).
I guess what it boils down to is, we eat a fair amount of organic. It is my wife, myself, and a 16 month old daughter. Our monthly budget for groceries is $320.00. And we frequenly have money left over to save for those major food purchases. To that I thank my wife, who regularly can claim, "Corner on good deals!"
Wow, that was an intense post! I've gotta take a nap after that one.
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