I used earlier in the week a reference to the fear of peanut butter sandwiches in today's society, and since then, although being an off the cuff comparison, I have spent time thinking about the "thinking" in today's society.
Peanut butter, and its users, have actually become the victim of a society that no longer has an ability to think things clearly.
I am not here to dispute that there is an infinitesimally small percentage of the population that have true diagnosed allergies to nuts. What I am questioning is why does the rest of society have to be governed, instead of the tiny percentage of sufferers use common sense to stay away from nuts? Does society as a whole assume that the allergy sufferers are morons and don't realize that nuts, nut oil and the like are a key ingredient in today's world? Could it be that it is considered cool to be a "member" of an elite club, and it is easier to simply announce that one has an allergy and watch the world dance around you?
When I went to school, not only did everybody eat the dreaded food, there was more than one occasion the sandwich was thrown at somebody in the cafeteria leaving crumbs and peanut butter spread on the innocent by-standers. My school had about 800 students a year for the 5 years I went, and everybody made it through every year without even a hint of the allergy or it's side effects.
What has changed?
I can tell you. We are officially idiots.
Another example of an inconsistency in today's world is the fact there are no mosquitos in Toronto due to the smog. Last week-end I was staying in downtown Toronto and took a stroll on the waterfront at about 10:30 at night. My wife and I sat on a bench near the Island ferry for about 30 minutes and watched people. One lone tiny mosquito tried a go at me, but he to did not die in his sleep. Where I come from there are 3 million mosquitos for every person not 1 mosquito for 3 million people.
When I asked about this curious fact, nobody seemed to perplexed that the reason for this was the smog, neither was anybody worried about the creatures on the bottom of the food chain!
Where does smog come from? Society
Who can make a difference? Society
Who has thought through the survival of the bottom of the food chain to the top? Not Society, no way.
Maybe I could blame the inability to think about the peanut butter problem on a society that can't see things clearly due to the smog!!!
I have ranted and I am finished.
Now who did Tearfree say she was helping betray their wife?
8 comments:
I wish I could get my readership to spike like the rise in peanut allergies.
I have to admit I too am a little bit sceptical about this sudden rise.
Very glad about dearth of mosquitoes in urban areas however. I believe I once made it through an entire Montreal summer with no mosquito bites. And also heard a radio documentary once that said that mosquitos were totally useless and birds have lots of other good stuff to eat.
Still lots of mosquitos here at the logging camp although one of the guys can't eat peanut butter.
Hellloooo, can you say KIDs? They need help avoiding peanuts. They can't just do it themselves. Otherwise they die. How would you like that?
40 and no boat, there in fact actually has been a dramatic rise in nut allergies and in fact in allergies of all kind, but particularly the deadly ones (not simply hay fever). the actual reason is that we are too clean as a society and our bodies are no longer exposed to enough dirt and toxins to help our immune system build up resistances. we should have ignored our mothers when they made us wash our hands before and after every meal, apparently. this is why i don't buy anti-bacterial soap and neither should any of you -- doctors really are against them because there is such a thing as bacterial benefits.
as for peanut allergies, yes, it bugs me that i can't pack my kids peanut butter sandwiches. but given that the most minuscule trace of peanut butter could kill someone else's child, that's a hardship i am willing to live with. i used to work with a man whose kid dropped dead in a restaurant after ordering a buttered bagel. the guy who buttered it had used a knife that had peanut butter on it previously, and even though he thought he'd wiped it clean, he had not.
as for mosquitoes in toronto, you're kidding me, right? have lived here all my life and there are mosquitoes in toronto, my friend, particularly in the heavily treed neighbourhoods like the beach, riverdale and the annex. i am scratching a bite on my wrist as i type this.
How about teaching your kids that have never been properly diagnosed to stay away from things that may harm them!
You know, it is called being a parent.
Better idea, get them properly diagnosed instead of just buying the needle. ( needle ownership is like the "gold membership card" to this particular club )
I did not know that about mosquitos, I guess we will just have to wait until something higher up on the food chain disappears (POSSIBLY MORE LATHARGIC KIDS WITH BREATHING DISORDERS) due to smog. Until then turn up the A/C in your house and keep driving the SUV to the peanut butter protest so you can smoke your cigarettes.
hte fear of peanuts is a result of a postmodernist phenomenon - overmediated configuration of reality. bleh.
sure would suck as a kid not to be able to eat peanut butter cups. talk about dark and dismal youth sans pbcs.
Peanut allergies are something that I hadn't heard about when I was a kid and I too wonder about the rise.
The truly severe reactions can send a child into shock and inability to breathe; much like a reaction to a bee sting or penicillin. It's not just runny eyes and sneezing. It can be fast, deadly, and can involve an exposure even to the oil.
The parents of these kids are very, very, careful. They have reason to be. Their kids are trained early and they try to work with the schools. A little cooperation from the other parents isn't undue hardship.
I agree with Kimberly.
Very pomo, AnonymASS. I hope you will join our Ulysses book blogging club/ It looks like it could be right up your alley and ninegrambrain is in.
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