“As the dominant news story moves from Obama’s VP pick to the Democratic Convention in Denver, Ross Mackenzie offers this fun piece to read, reminding us there are other things going on in the world besides this election.” -George Allen

On Meal Diversity, Bias, etc.
By Ross Mackenzie
Times-Dispatch Columnist
Richmond Times-Dispatch
August 24, 2008

In case you missed them, some items of dubious import currently in the news . . . .

At the Olympics, Chinese authorities have restricted access not only to Web sites, protest areas, leading dissidents, and key regions of the country. They also have banned the sale of dog meat - this apparently so as not to distress on-site foreigners somehow insufficiently distressed by China’s screaming lack of individual liberty.

The Democrats were on to something similar. Until someone with sense called a halt, the Democratic Convention’s host committee was telling convention vendors not to serve fried food because - please sit down for this - frying affects the environment. Also contemplated: mandatory meal diversity, with (a) 50 percent of each meal consisting of veggies and fruits, and (b) every meal (excluding garnishes) displaying at least three of these five colors: green, yellow, red, blue/purple, and white.

The convention’s “director of greening” (a first in convention history) reportedly has set an 85 percent recycling goal and banished from the convention premises not only plastic water bottles but foam cups.

The University of Chicago, long deemed among the most sensible in the land in e.g. economics, law, and political philosophy, may have but one foot in the land of right reason. The business, law, and economics faculties have proposed naming a research institute after the late great Nobel economist Milton Friedman. But about 100 teachers throughout the school are objecting because, according to The New York Times, “the honor could be interpreted as a wholesale endorsement of Friedman’s free-market ideology.”

CLICK HERE to read the entire column.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 25th, 2008 at 12:27 pm and is filed under Virginia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.