What's In Your Wallet

In 2005, the antibiotic fluoroquinolone was banned by the FDA for use in poultry production. Yet today in 2012 you may still be eating chicken containing this very substance. Other substances you may be unwittingly ingesting include arsenic, acetaminophen, and even Prozac. What kind of world do we live in and how the heck can this happen while Federal watchdogs are supposedly protecting us? The UK's Guardian reports this weekend the latest in American agricultural foibles "Overuse of antibiotics in factory farming kills thousands every year, yet the industry is force-feeding chickens pharmaceuticals" here. One of the most important take-aways from this story is: "what can I do about it?" The answer is remarkably simple: Vote with your wallet. Once we become aware of the problems around us, we cannot become unaware again. To know a thing is wrong, means we seek out what is right, what is the solution. And since most of these violations are committed by uber-corporations in pursuit of more and more dollars, the best solution is also the easiest. Hit them where they hurt. Use your purchasing power to vote against the corporate food supply. Support humane farming, organics where they are true and sensible, small-scale farms and local food producers. Know the power of your vote. Know whats really in your wallet. "One cannot resist an idea whose time has come." -- Victor Hugo