Happy Food
There are many people whose view of reality is so estranged from common sense that they would (at least in their fantasy world) create a society where everyone is healthy, wealthy, and wise. They can only posit such a world if they ignore the fact that such a life is an attainment that is only, and can only, be available to an elite portion of the population. Even if energy could be produced cheaply enough that material wealth was available to everyone, there would be those who would make different choices than your elitist utopian tenured professor.Such a view has been espoused by University of California at Berkeley journalism professor Michael Pollan, who has argued in the New York Times Sunday Magazine (Note: Link will only work for elite readers, who pay tribute to The New York Times Online) that it would be anathema to the organic foods movement for such victuals to be affordable to the common man, i.e. available from Wal-Mart.
A hilarious sendup of Pollan's essay appears in today's TCS daily, and is available for the price of a click to anyone, us regular people as well as Pollan's beloved BoBos (otherwise known as Granola people with money). If you want a good laugh, and have the time, try the link to Pollan's article, as it will be free for a few more days (and thereafter might just be available through oversight) but for an even better laugh read Joyner's piece in TCS Daily. It's much funnier. Try this:
The perfect should not be allowed to become the enemy of the good. In an ideal world, local farmers would produce delicious foods grown without any harm to the environment at prices we could all afford while simultaneously making an excellent living. The livestock would all live happy lives, singing their little animal songs, dying a natural death and yet remaining tender and tasty. We would then get together and cook them over our campfires which produce no smoke, sing our little campsongs, and eat our meals in perfect harmony.At least Joyner is trying to be funny. Uncaring elitists like Pollan are not really funny. They are pathetic, and dangerous.
That world, unfortunately, does not exist.