And in the end, there are two significant truths here - First, the shift to a new agency or new structure will not, in an of itself, make food safe. And second, no matter what we do, it will be absolutely impossible to make food 100% safe and our risk averse natures, so strong these days, will never be satisfied with anything less.
Anyone in favor of the free market should want to internalize the cost of safety (which is good business for the industry), but I guess the food industry is not in favor of the free market when it is their ox being gored: Although a spokesperson for the Grocery Manufacturers Association broadly welcomed the news that the legislation had been put forward, he criticized the proposal that industry should pay for plant inspections. He told FoodNavigator-USA.com: "We believe that food safety is a right that all Americans have and that it should be paid for by Congress appropriating general funds." (Food Navigator) I wonder if they feel the same way about the right to join a union or to have adequate health care?
Anyone in favor of the free market should want to internalize the cost of safety (which is good business for the industry), but I guess the food industry is not in favor of the free market when it is their ox being gored:
Although a spokesperson for the Grocery Manufacturers Association broadly welcomed the news that the legislation had been put forward, he criticized the proposal that industry should pay for plant inspections. He told FoodNavigator-USA.com: "We believe that food safety is a right that all Americans have and that it should be paid for by Congress appropriating general funds." (Food Navigator)
I wonder if they feel the same way about the right to join a union or to have adequate health care?
My article aims to stall the panic associated with forecasts of another 1918 pandemic. By contrast to the Preparedness rhetoric, sensible preparation based on recognizable threats, as you point out [ed. that would be me], is good policy.
The author's web site, more in depth, is here. While we may disagree about some points, it's good to have this in the public dialog, as others recognize.
According to CQ Today, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and House Education and Labor Committee Chair George Miller (D-Calif.) "will have a primary hand in the health care overhaul" in the House. In a letter sent to President Obama on March 11, they promised to move to pass "similar" health care reform bills this year.
Some kids with peanut allergies are now packing peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch, thanks to an experimental treatment in which people with food allergies are fed miniscule amounts of the very food to which they're allergic.
Don't try this at home without a doctor. More on peanut allergies:
It accounts for the majority of severe food-related allergic reactions, it tends to present early in life, it does not usually resolve, and in highly sensitized people, trace quantities can induce an allergic reaction.
A new report by D.C. health officials says that at least 3 percent of residents in the nation's capital are living with HIV or AIDS and every mode of transmission is on the rise. The findings in the 2008 epidemiology report by the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration point to a severe epidemic that's impacting every race and sex across the population and neighborhoods.
A new report by D.C. health officials says that at least 3 percent of residents in the nation's capital are living with HIV or AIDS and every mode of transmission is on the rise.
The findings in the 2008 epidemiology report by the D.C. HIV/AIDS Administration point to a severe epidemic that's impacting every race and sex across the population and neighborhoods.
More from WaPo:
A report showing that 3 percent of D.C. residents are infected with HIV or AIDS is probably an undercount, and the prevalence of the disease is likely worse than is known, according to Shannon L. Hader, director of the city's HIV/AIDS Administration.