Just Buy Local – or Not
So many recalled foods and other consumables lately! And every time the subject comes up on social media, some people start yelling, “Just buy local!”. This post is about the problems surrounding recalls, and goes into the reasons that buying local is not an option for most people. The USDA, FDA, CDC and various other government organizations have a variety of departments and methods to keep our food safe and slow the spread of diseases that could potentially cause pandemics. Keep in mind there is a certain amount of overlap between food safety and disease spread. These agencies came about in the first place because of contaminated foods causing wide…
More Doctors Smoke Camels!
A Brief History of Tobacco Tobacco is native to the Americas. It was cultivated and used in pipes, as cigars, and as snuff by indigenous peoples for medicinal and ceremonial purposes as early as 6000 BC. In the 1500s, Spanish and Portuguese sailors carried it to Europe, where it became wildly popular. A French diplomat named Jean Nicot presented tobacco to the French court as a medicinal herb. It’s use became fashionable amongst the French nobility, and it was soon all the rage throughout Europe. (The word nicotine was derived from Jean Nicot’s name). As the European appetite for tobacco grew, American colonists began growing it to meet the demand.…
Introduction
Welcome to my personal blog! Some of you already know me, and some of you don’t. But either way, I urge you to read this (very long) introductory post before you read the regular blog posts. It will lay the groundwork for various topics I’ll be covering, and perhaps prevent some confusion. (Affiliate Disclaimer) I’ve had a chaotic life with a wider range of experiences than most people have. I’ll be posting about my own experiences, people I’ve known, my thoughts about things, many interesting observations I’ve had. Some of the things I’ll be posting about: Wherever I Go, There I Am I’ve been homeless, and I’ve lived up the…
