Despite calls to the contrary by the corporate arm of the Republican Party, self-policing does not work. If the human animal was as pure and selfless as they like to profess, the need for the war on drugs is also not needed. If the markets are self-correcting, so to would the human race self-correct on the use of drugs.Federal officials have released a tidal wave of fresh recalls in the past 24 hours as they connect the dots in the supply chain of tainted peanut-related products.
The latest recalls by 25 companies listing dozens of items include Walgreen's chocolate candy with peanuts, Best Brands peanut butter cookie dough and Hain Celestial's frozen pad Thai dinners, including one made for Trader Joe's.
On Saturday, Harry and David of Medford joined the recall, pulling Olympia Delight Trail Mix products, and Berkeley, Ca.-based Clif Bar and Co. pulled eight more of its protein bars.
The recall has reached a fever pitch since it was expanded to include all products - from roasted peanuts to peanut butter -- from Peanut Corporation of America's plant at Blakely, Ga., where Food and Drug Administration investigators found two strains of salmonella and evidence that on 12 occasions in 2007 and 2008 the company sold food even after it had tested positive for salmonella.
In a startling revelation on Saturday, the Atlanta Journal Constitution said the president of Peanut Corp., Stewart Parnell, serves on an industry advisory board that helps the U.S. Department of Agriculture set quality standards for peanuts.
What we have here is the usual bigotry and class warfare of the aristocratic rich. They believe they are above petty human flaws and failings. Yet, as always, the truth wins out. We are in an economic crisis of monumental proportions approaching the levels of the Great Depression. And make no mistake about it; the mind set that has caused this lax in self-policing and the sale of poisoned food (and not in China, but in our own country, no less) is the same mind set that has resulted in our current crisis.
This is not because of the influx of illegal aliens (because if it is, damn, talk about poor insight and planning by our economic geniuses on Wall Street), or fraud on the part of lower income class people to buy above their ability. This is about the greed and selfishness of the aristocratic rich. In their rush to accumulate wealth, they poisoned the very pond they live in. Unfortunately, we live there as well.
Right now, I am not in the mood to be forgiving. However, I am also aware that these same people are still clamoring to be able to fix what they wrought. Seems it's somewhat along the lines of letting a murderer counsel the family of their victim. Oh, okay, might be a bit of a stretch. Still, I would rather let someone else at the table than the idiots that held the reins of economic power at Wall Street.
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