November 20, 2004

• this just doesn't make sense, if the us and the interim government are
  trying to wind the hearts and minds (a vietnam phrase, i think) of the
  sunni muslims, it seems ridiculous to be raiding mosques.  no
  wonder the insurgency is growing.

  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A62155-2004Nov19.html?referrer=email

  my hanai (adoptive) mother gave baby another name, kapuaokamaileali'i,
  which means daughter of the chiefly maile (a scented vine).  ka
  maile ali'i was the affectionate name for lili'uokalani, the last
  queen.  the name was given on the commemoration of the passing of
  lili'u.  pictures to come.

  fast food is usually junk food, no matter what the commercials say . .
  .  i do see the fast food franchises as enemies, because although
  people do have agency in making decisions about food, the tremendous
  volume of marketing money behind rubbish food.

  Subway: Junk Food, Junk Economy By Russell Mokhiber and Robert Weissman

  What's the largest fast junk food chain in the country?

  Wrong.

  It's not McDonald's.

  It's Subway.

  Subway overtook McDonald's last year in the United States and now has
  15,874 locations in the U.S. compared to 11,533 for McDonald's.

  Worldwide, Subway has 21,528 restaurants in 75 countries.

  McDonald's has more than 30,000 restaurants in 119 countries.

  Subway founder Fred DeLuca says he wants 30,000 outlets worldwide by
  2010.

  Of course, Subway would not want you to think that it is not a fast junk food chain.

  In fact, the privately held firm has overtaken McDonald's by riding a
  wave of publicity featuring Jared Fogle, who says he lost 245 pounds on
  the following diet =96 coffee for breakfast, Subway sandwich for lunch,
  and Subway sandwich for dinner.

  Soon, the word was out =96 you could lose weight eating Subway sandwiches.

  And tomorrow, on the National Mall, Subway founder and CEO DeLuca will
  join with Fogle, the American Heart Association, members of Congress
  (including the corporate liberal Rose DeLauro, D-Connecticut, whose
  district contains Subway's corporate headquarters), and various
  "nutritional experts" to "galvanize support for fighting childhood
  obesity."

  We went and visited our local Subway and found that in fact, there was
  health and diet information displayed, including a nutritional and
  dietary guide with the American Heart Association's stamp of approval.

  But as at most fast junk food outlets, Coke machines, the rows of bags
  of chips, and the rubbery chicken and unappetizing beef were screaming
  unhealthy, stay away.

  You could order a salad, or a vegetarian sandwich. The chain markets seven subs with six grams of fat or less.

  But for the most part, the staple of this franchise is processed meats and cheeses, soft drinks and chips.

  Subway sandwiches include such classics as Steak and Cheese, Subway
  Melt (a first class blend of turkey breast, ham, crispy bacon, and
  melted cheese) Italian BMT (pepperoni, genoa salami, and ham) and the
  Cold Cut Trio (turkey based ham, salami, and bologna) not your typical
  heart healthy sandwiches.

  Should members of Congress and the American Heart Association be promoting this multinational junk food company?

  Of course they shouldn't.

  The American Heart Association has sullied its reputation by getting in
  bed with whatever corporation comes around with its checkbook open.

  According to a report from the Center for Science in the Public
  Interest, the American Heart Association has taken big corporate cash
  from a long list of drug companies, junk food companies, and even from
  the National Livestock and Meat Board, which gave $189,000 to sponsor a
  HeartRide cycling series "to help ensure that people don't think that
  AHA recommends abstaining from meat."

  In return for endorsing only Bayer aspirin, AHA gets $500,000 a year from Bayer. Nice deal, if you can cut it.

  And how much money has Subway kicked in?

  According to the AHA, Subway has given $4 million to the American Heart
  Association (AHA) since 2002, and will gave an additional $6 million
  through 2007. That's a total of $10 million.

  In exchange, Subway gets to put the AHA "fighting heart disease and
  stroke" logo on its materials throughout its chain of stores, according
  to an AHA spokesperson.

  In a written statement, the AHA said it will only accept sponsorships
  from "those restaurants that have a public/market positioning
  associated with healthy foods or have heart-healthy and non-fried food
  alternatives on the menu."

  "Subway actively promotes low-saturated fat meal options and exercise
  in their advertising messages," the AHA said in the statement. "Their
  messaging reinforces that a well-balanced diet and exercise are
  important tools in maintaining a healthy weight."

  We agree with Commercial Alert's Gary Ruskin that it's "not the proper
  role of the federal government or public health groups to hawk Subway
  or any other form of fast or junk food."

  "This is part of the broader story of the corruption of the American
  public health movement," Ruskin said. "AHA ought to drop its support
  for Subway. They have been converted into an auxiliary marketeer for
  Subway. They are apparently for sale."

  "The fast food companies are running in a panic over the obesity
  epidemic," Ruskin said. "They are striving to do something to make it
  seem that they are not responsible for it or part of it. This is just
  one more way that companies like Subway try to hide their tracks and
  boost their public relation images."

  The government and independent public health organizations should be
  helping the American people fight off the hyperbreeding of fast food
  outlets cannibalizing the country =96 not promoting it.

  In addition to promoting his beloved Subway and making millions a year
  doing so, DeLuca wants to bring an Indian gambling casino to
  Bridgeport, Connecticut.

  Call it the junk food/junk economy connection.

  According to Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, DeLuca
  invested $10 million in the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation's successful
  effort to gain federal recognition so they could build a casino in
  Connecticut. Blumenthal is challenging that recognition.

  And the House Government Reform Committee is in the middle of an
  investigation of how the Schaghticoke Tribe and the Eastern Pequots
  gained such recognition from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

  Earlier this year, the Hartford Courant reported that a rival band of
  Indians charged that the federal recognition of the Schaghticoke Tribal
  Nation "was hijacked by outside investors and high-priced lobbyists
  intent on winning a lucrative gambling franchise for their own
  benefit."

  Whether or not the investors and lobbyists hijacked the process we'll leave to federal investigators.

  But what is clear is that Subway and DeLuca have hijacked the American
  Heart Association, Congresswoman DeLauro, and various federal agencies
  to promote their own brand of fast junk food.

  • 1:07 pm
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