In this editorial on the controversy over US beef imports and the recent related MBC program, the editorial staff at the Chosun put the danger of contracting vCJD into perspective:
미국 쇠고기 반대운동을 벌이는 세력들의 거짓과 논리적 모순과 위선(僞善)은 한두 가지가 아니다. 우리 국민 1000만 명 가까이가 매년 광우병이 위험하다는 미국과 유럽 일본 지역에 태연히 관광 여행을 다녀오고 있다. 광우병 부풀리기를 한 사람들과 그 부풀리기에 올라탄 사람들도 그 대열에 끼어 맛있게 햄버거와 스테이크를 먹고 왔다. 지금 쇠고기 재협상 주장을 펴고 있는 민주당 등 야당의원들도 국정 감사차 뉴욕에 가선 유엔 한국 대사관저에서 미국산 쇠고기를 원료로 마련한 갈비와 육개장을 맛있게 들었다. 이 많은 미국 쇠고기 수입 반대론자 가운데 미국이나 유럽에 유학 가 있는 자녀들에게 ‘쇠고기를 먹지 말라’고 신신당부했다는 사람이 있었다는 소식은 여태 한번도 없다. 자기 자식들에겐 광우병 위험이 있는 쇠고기를 먹이면서도 다른 국민들에게만은 먹이지 않겠다면서 쇠고기 수입반대운동에 팔을 걷어붙인 대한민국 위선자들을 어떻게 받아들여야 할 것인가.
The hypocrisy, logical inconsistencies, and false appeals to authority that have launched the opposition movement against the import of US beef have no value. Every year up to 10 million Koreans head overseas to the US, Europe, Japan, and other regions where the dangers of Mad Cow lurk. Not one person savoring a hamburger or a steak has contracted the disease. The same MDP and opposition party members who dined on galbi and yukkaejang made from US beef at the Korean UN mission now stand together with Korean beef producers. We have not heard of any of these US beef import opposition activists warning their children heading overseas to study in the US or Europe to avoid eating beef. How can we accept that while their own kids risk eating beef which may harbor Mad Cow, these hypocrites march around in demonstrations to keep other citizens from eating US beef?
In the comment thread, some posters have chided the Chosun Ilbo for flipflopping on the issue, citing links to recent stories on the dangers of Mad Cow.
102 Comments
Okay so I am going to look like a big ignorant babo but I don’t have a television and the first I hear of this beef business is from my cousin’s wife telling me not to eat beef after the 13th of May and I’m not so great at understanding Korean news reports. Is this meat actually suspected of being tainted or is it simply US meat?
wow lol chosun is now the cool head of all this and msm are the ones stoking the fires of fear.
Kudos to the Chosun for attempting to be a voice of reason in a hurricane of ignorance and stupidity.
Unfortunately for them, most of the Korean public are easily manipulated lemmings, predisposed to believing any plate of horseshit served up to them as long as its sprinkled with accusations of American arrogance, duplicity, or insults to Korean pride.
That predisposition is carefully shaped and formed by the media and culture, which bombards the sheep with anti-American stories and images on a daily basis, both overt and subtle, all reinforced by the education system, internet swamp, and often times the government itself (depending on the motivations of the party in office).
US beef framed as toxic brew and Korean Killer! has already passed into the conventional wisdom phase, and there’s no turning back. The damage has been done, and no amount of facts, scientific evidence, countervailing news programs, or televised beef consumption by government officials will change the false reality created by the assholes responsible.
Ask any random Korean on the street what the American reaction to the VA Tech massacre was, and most will tell you about the innocent Korean blood that flowed in the streets and the poor Korean students that were beaten and harrassed day and night. None of it ever happened, but the perception was created through scaremongering. It conformed to the portrait of Americans as violent racists out to stick it to Koreans, and thus became the reality.
The same applies here. Perceptions created through fear tend to stick, and you’ve now got an entire generation that will recoil with horror at the mere mention of US beef.
That reaction will be par for the course, just as it is for a Korean to piss their pants and scream when you turn on a fucking fan.
Your pissing and moaning about a reputation you created yourself. Much of the world is already anti-American.
Uh oh, an angry Frenchman has arrived. Leave it to the French to have an opinion on world affairs. Since when was anything a Frenchman said relevant and carried weight? LOL.
IHBB, that’s a wide brush you’re painting everyone with. For every person at the rally, there will be a thousand who will eat several Whoppers in the months after Burger King starts serving up American beef again.
The other problem is that, as overblown as the concerns are about BSE, American beef really isn’t that safe: it’s full of hormones and antibiotics and is often contaminated with E. Coli. Even people who support free trade should be concerned.
I’ve been looking online a bit, and it seems that Korean beef was grass-fed before the market was opened to American beef. If that’s true, then it’s an example of free trade allowing low-quality goods to flood out high-quality goods.
Factory farming in the US comes with some serious hazards. This links talks about the cattle industry getting approval to use one of our few “last-resort antibiotics”, against the advice of medical experts because it makes it much more likely for resistance to be developed. So the factory farming of corn-fed beef is taking away some of our last lines of defense in infectious disease in humans.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/.....01311.html
And even the regular animal antibiotics are ending up in the water supply:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6299642/
McDonald’s seems to have gotten the message about antibiotics:
http://www.mcdonalds.com/corp/.....olicy.html
By the way, here’s an interesting AgExporter article from 1991 about how to crack open the Korean beef market.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-10852301.html
#3. Explain how most of the world is already anti-American? Bush is on his way out, perhaps you meant anti-Bush. Well tough shit if you don’t. By the way the rest of the world if you are referring to Asia/Korea would still be under the so-called brutal control of Japanese colonial rule if it were not for America. No Samsung, No Hyundai, and no Hangul. Im pretty by this time if the U.S. had not stuck its nose in (as some say), the whole of Asia would be under one red sun flag.
There are skeptics about McDonald’s antibiotics plans.
http://www.organicconsumers.or.....iotics.cfm
He does a good job of describing what Sonagi has pointed out is the problem with grain-fed beef. This is important to read because this is what the US beef lobby is using Washington to impose on Korea, Japan, Europe, and other places.
Why does a corn diet require antibiotics?
Corn is a very different, much starchier ration than cows have evolved to digest. The marvelous things about ruminants, which is what cows are, is that they can digest grass, which we can’t do. They can because they have this complicated digestive system. Specifically, they have a rumen, which is a fermentation tank in which bacteria go to work breaking down cellulose and turning it into protein that they then digest. This is their boon to the food chain. It’s a very nice system where the sun feeds the grass and the grass feeds the cows and the cows feed us. It’s solar, sustainable, and in its way, elegant.
But it’s slow, by the standards of contemporary agriculture, and it takes a lot of space. So if you want to speed up the process, you give them richer food. The cheapest, richest food around is corn. The price of corn is artificially lower than the cost of producing it, because of government subsidies and the fact that there’s an oversupply. But if you want to feed them on corn, which makes them grow a lot faster and gives them fattier marbled beef, which tastes good, you have to accustom them to this diet slowly. As typically happens, you start putting them on antibiotics coccidiostats, which some people would argue are not antibiotics, but they kill bacteria, so I’m prepared to call them antibiotics. That’s the first antibiotics they go on, and then they go on the other antibiotics once they move to the feedlot.
The reason they need antibiotics is that corn acidifies their gut. The cow’s stomach is not accustomed to this acid the way our digestive system is we’re designed to have this very acidic system that kill everything and breaks things down through acids. They’re not. As it acidifies, it eats away at the lining of the stomach walls, and lets some of the bacteria get into the bloodstream, where it lodges in the liver and causes abscesses. So farmers use antibiotics to control that infection process.
Correction, didn’t pay attention to the flag stacked, if you from France then I can understand your ill temper towards America. France seems to love those who sodomize them like Germany, but hate people who come to there requsted aid while being butt raped.
And Korean beef isn’t? I recall reading on a related thread that Korean farmers use some muscle-building chemical banned in the US to create more even marbling in the meat.
Well, don’t hog all those informative links to yourself. Korean beef used to be pastured. 100 years ago when only the rich could eat it and grain was not imported. On my trips into the countryside, I only ever saw cows eating from troughs in barns. I never saw cattle grazing in fields like I do all around the area where I live now in the US. This makes sense because Korea is a mountainous country whose limited arable land is used for housing and crops. Korea’s densely populated land cannot support a large grass-fed cattle industry. If Koreans really want to practice the philosophy of 신토불이, they would do well to eat chicken and pork instead as those animals better tolerate a mixed diet and do not require grazing land.
“And Korean beef isn’t? I recall reading on a related thread that Korean farmers use some muscle-building chemical banned in the US to create more even marbling in the meat.”
I didn’t say Korean beef was safe. Some Korean beef practices need to change, but the competition with cheaper American beef probably won’t help make that happen.
The criticism of American beef is relevant in the context of market openings even if Korean beef’s problems aren’t addressed: Korean beef may have been healthier before the wide opening to American beef, and Korea isn’t trying to force open beef markets around the world either.
“Well, don’t hog all those informative links to yourself.”
The 1991 AgExporter link says this:
Korea represents a major potential market for beef, perhaps the third largest in the world. With trade liberalization and a favorable economic climate, Korean beef imports in the year 2000 could range from 340,000 to 700,000 tons. This would be equivalent to up to one-third of present levels of the entire Pacific beef trade. The potential for large U.S. beef exports to the Korean market under free trade is based on the premise that Korean consumers will shift toward higher levels of grain-fed beef if given the opportunity. The United States produces primarily grain-fed beef, while Australia and New Zealand are the major producers and exporters of grass-fed beef in the region. Korean cattle are largely confined and fed a diet of both forage and mixed feed, giving the meat characteristics of both grain-fed and grass-fed beef. U.S. exporters should be well equipped to take advantage of this tremendous growth opportunity.
That’s not exactly the information I’m looking for, but for now that’s what I have.
Iheartblueballs has a larger point. If the media in this country felt like it, they would need only about 3 weeks to make the public want to tear every foreigner limb from limb. In that sense we are all at the Korean media’s mercy.
user81 wrote:
You’re citing an article that’s 17 years old. Don’t waste any more time googling. It’s easy to tell what the animal ate the last four months of its life just by looking at the meat. Meat from pastured animals is lean. Meat from grain-fed animals is fatty. Koreans prefer fatty meats, and the high fat content and even marbling (achieved apparently by the use of a chemical) are considered a selling point of Korean beef.
To the contrary, cheaper US beef will encourage Korean farmers to distinguish their product and market it to consumers willing to pay more. In fact, the spiraling cause-effect of rising prices and worsening shortage of grain should encourage meat producers to rely more on forage and less on imported soy and corn. Korean farmers can compete by educating Korean consumers to change their preference for fatty grain-fed meats.
Moreover, as I pointed out in a previous comment, Korea’s land isn’t well suited to cattle raising, so rather than trying to compete with US producers, Korean farmers should focus on animals that can be raised sustainably and Korean consumers, as locavores, should save beef for special occasions.
You haven’t proven that Korean beef is any healthier than American beef, and as for “forcing” open Korea’s market, well, the economies of northeastern Ohio and Pennsylvania were a lot healthier before the US steel market was forced to compete with Posco. Korea can no longer expect to export to the world while protecting sensitive home markets.
Alejandro Marivosa wrote:
Well, it’s a good thing the Korean media is so merciful.
user-81, you are correct that tradeoffs exist - fewer government-imposed health and import restrictions mean more beef on the market, and some/all of this beef will be grain-fed and, by some standards, subpar. However, this also causes the price of beef to go down, meaning that everyone who enjoys beef will essentially be wealthier (either by having more money to buy other stuff with, or - especially important for poorer people - by being able to actually afford some beef, even if it may be “terrible” American stuff).
Still, this beef is eaten every day by hundreds of millions around the world (including the U.S.) and implying that it’s “dangerous” per se seems counterintuitive. Sure, some meta-studies have linked it to colon cancer - but guess what? Fatty and processed foods have also been linked to cancer. I wouldn’t argue that the government has the duty, or even the right, to ban potato chips. Furthermore, in lab studies high-protein diets have actually reduced cancer incidence in lab rats.
However, there is nothing to stop any supermarket or restaurant from marketing grass-fed beef. There is no ban on grass-fed beef. I repeat: there is no ban on grass-fed beef. As long as genuine consumer demand exists for grass-fed beef, it will be fulfilled. Of course, this is ignoring supply-side arguments (Korean beef producers) which IMO are the true force behind the entire “controversy.”
“You’re citing an article that’s 17 years old. Don’t waste any more time googling.”
Really? It’s 17 years old? Even though I wrote twice that it was from 1991, I didn’t realize that!
I first linked the article because it was an interesting viewpoint from the American beef industry before the doors were flung open. I later cited it not as an example of what Korea’s industry is today, but what it once was.
“Meat from grain-fed animals is fatty. Koreans prefer fatty meats, and the high fat content and even marbling (achieved apparently by the use of a chemical) are considered a selling point of Korean beef.”
I have read that marbling comes from the cows being corn-fed, which is both Korean and American.
Maybe Korean beef also gets this chemical, but since you’re repeating it now as if it’s probably true, you should look into it a little more.
“To the contrary, cheaper US beef will encourage Korean farmers to distinguish their product by appealing to consumers willing to pay more for a superior product.”
That’s one way it could work, but I’ll bet you a Beta tape player it won’t turn out that way. The beef industry in Korea will go the way of the wheat industry.
“The US food industry has gotten into organic big time because of the larger profit margins.”
Maybe, but most people are still eating antibiotic-fed beef with a high incidence of E. Coli.
“Moreover, as I pointed out in a previous comment, Korea’s land isn’t well suited to cattle raising, so rather than trying to compete with US producers, Korean farmers should focus on animals that can be raised sustainably and Korean consumers, as locavores, should save beef for special occasions.”
I agree with that. And maybe American farmers should stop feeding corn to the cattle altogether and try to give the public a healthy product.
“You haven’t proven that Korean beef is any healthier than American beef,”
I’m not trying to prove it’s safer. I know the American beef is largely unsafe, and I suspect something similar is true for Korean beef. But this is not a Korea-v-US problem: the rest of the industrialized world thinks American beef is unsafe.
“and as for “forcing” open Korea’s market, well, the economies of northeastern Ohio and Pennsylvania were a lot healthier before the US steel market was forced to compete with Posco.”
There are winners and losers in free trade, but the theory is that mostly there are winners. I have a problem when low-quality goods flood better goods out of the market, and American beef is low quality. McDonald’s in Korea states that they serve Australian beef, but how long will that last?
Was Korea dumping inferior steel onto the US market (serious question)? These things happen with free trade, just like the with Korea’s wheat farmers. But it was also the Brazilians and the Japanese that helped kill the steel industry, so maybe the problem also stems from the American side.
“Korea can no longer expect to export to the world while protecting sensitive home markets.”
You’re right. Maybe Korea should get on board with an FTA.
Sonagi, I think you’re reading an agenda into my comments, but there isn’t one. I don’t like Big Beef pushing their unhealthy product and standards on Korea and other countries, but I also don’t like nonsense information to counter it. I like free trade but I also recognize that bad reactions to competition leads to fewer good choices for consumers.
“Ask any random Korean on the street what the American reaction to the VA Tech massacre was, and most will tell you about the innocent Korean blood that flowed in the streets and the poor Korean students that were beaten and harrassed day and night.”
most? i think this characterization is completely false. i was in korea when this happened and i never met any korean who felt or thought this way. maybe koreans think this way now but i highly doubt it. if you said something about koreans trying to shift the blame away from a lone korean individual to the gun culture in america, i could see that. but then again, there were people in the states who blamed it on the gun culture, too.
and people, stop generalizing koreans. whenever there’s anti-american sentiment flowing in the streets of korea, it’s usually fueled by your traditional left-wing nuts. i mean, what about rallies that are held for pro-america? why are those people marginalized. everytime a pro-america rally occurs, comments by expats make excuses like they are old or christians. well, if we limit them to certain group of people, then let’s limit the anti-america groups to the lefty loon.
whether the world is anti-bush or anti-america, i don’t think korea is any more different from the rest of the world. it only appears stronger in korea because korea is on microscope to the general readers here. as for bush, i would argue that there are more people supportive of bush in korea than majority of other countries.
user-81, can you please educate me about “low-quality products flooding out high-quality products”? Yes, “high-quality” products which are not preferred by the majority, and therefore displaced, may become more expensive (due to economies of scale) but they rarely disappear entirely. Here in the U.S., I can go to the local Whole Foods Market and pick up some grass-fed beef. Clothing made in China seems to fall apart faster than most U.S.-made clothing - however, I can still buy clothing made in the U.S. at Adriano Goldschmied, though not at Target - which did carry American-made clothing only 15-20 years ago.
I understand that you prefer to eat grass-fed beef. It is more expensive than corn-fed beef, which makes sense: grass-fed cows need a lot of space and time to grow large enough to be slaughtered. So complaining that you won’t be able to find grass-fed burgers at McDonald’s (a low-end fast-food chain whose business model relies on generating store traffic through low prices) doesn’t find a lot of sympathy here.
Based on what definitive evidence and by what standard of “safe?”
A bit ironic that you just admonished me for brushing with a broad brush and then made the statement above, using the broadest brush possible.
Guess what else is full of hormones, at far higher levels than US beef? Milk, potatoes, peas, ice cream, wheat germ, and soybean oil, among others. The amount of hormones present in beef is statistically insignificant compared with what the human body produces naturally, and what is present in many other foods naturally. Unless you’re eating 10,000 lbs of beef per day or you’re ignorant of the actual level of hormones present in beef, you have nothing to worry about.
Additionally, there is no valid scientific evidence that using antibiotics on cattle causes illnesses in humans from antibiotic-resistant bacteria. None.
Often? Compared to what?
Last I remember, every summer one of the Korean networks had a Food Poisoning Index running on the bottom of the screen along with the weather, and it didn’t disappear when US beef was banned.
Actually, people who support facts and reason over hysterical paranoia should be concerned.
I have to cross post this bit I posted in the candle-light section because it talks of the reluctance of the American meat industry to adopt WHO recommendations regarding ruminant feed and having no meat-byproducts therein. Say what you will of the Korean media’s bias, the American meat industry and their politics are worse since they have ultimately co-opted legitimate concerns regarding public health and safety:
The madcow blog has an interesting observation on this whole issue:
OMBwatch.org also comments:
The link for the OMB quote is here
It’s called clenbuterol . And there are some good reasons why even beef and dairy industry hoes the USDA doesn’t let it into the food chain.
Korean beef isn’t better quality.
A McDonald’s hamburger made with Australian beef is still crap loaded with sodium, saturated fats and even trans-fats.
No, I am not reading anything extra into your comments. I am debating you on the issue of opening the Korean market to US beef. I think factory farm US beef is crap. Korean beef is more expensive crap. If Korean consumers want to eat unhealthy fatty beef from grain-fed cows given hormones and antibiotics, at least they ought not to spend so much money.
#4,
Go choke on some freedom fries (ie, next time the French tell you you’re making a mistake, listen to them).
PS. You’re no David Letterman, that’s for sure.
#10
Moot point. They already import Australian beef, which is cheap. This is not just about getting cheaper beef, it’s about allowing people who are connected with the current government to gain market share.
“Based on what definitive evidence and by what standard of “safe?””
I earlier linked an article on CDC figures of 73,000 cases of E. Coli food poisoning per year, mostly from beef, with 62 attributable deaths.
And I said it’s not THAT safe. I think it’s not as safe as people would like to believe.
“Guess what else is full of hormones, at far higher levels than US beef? Milk, potatoes, peas, ice cream, wheat germ, and soybean oil, among others.”
You may be right. Since you’re making these assertions about “statistically insignificant” hormone levels, do you have a link?
“Additionally, there is no valid scientific evidence that using antibiotics on cattle causes illnesses in humans from antibiotic-resistant bacteria. None.”
The AMA and the FDA’s advisory board do not share your optimism.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/.....01311.html
Pro-America rallies? Yes, I’ve seen a few of these. They are attended by about forty or so, generally speaking, Korean war veterans and their families. Certainly won’t fill the area around the spiraling purple dung-heap.
User 81, I think you’re fighting a losing battle. If you’d have made this argument in the 70’s it would have fallen into the realm of the possible, but still not probable. Have you seen the price of beef here? Do you believe that beef should be only for the elite? Australian beef is not as safe as you seem to think nor is Korean, hasn’t been for a long, long time.
I believe you are exagerrating the danger as are many others and ignoring the crap that is already shlepped into the mouths of children here. By the way you talk I would think that people in America are shoveling mouthfulls of glowing green goo into their pie-holes.
“Last I remember, every summer one of the Korean networks had a Food Poisoning Index running on the bottom of the screen along with the weather, and it didn’t disappear when US beef was banned.”
I don’t recall saying that Korea was free of unsafe food practices. This is one reason the government occasionally tries to get rid of the street vendors. Actually, I think I said that if Korean beef producers are following American factory farming practices, then I don’t imagine they’re much better.
I didn’t make this a Korea v America issue. I simply pointed out in several posts over the last couple days that American beef has some problems (hormones, antibiotics, contamination, which you say is not a problem), and that it’s not just the Koreans who are down on American factory farmed beef. It’s also the Japanese and the Europeans who have voiced concerns about the healthiness of American beef.
“France seems to love those who sodomize them like Germany, but hate people who come to there requsted aid while being butt raped.”
Two anal references in one sentence from a guy with a Greek user name. Nice.
Actually, the French probably like Americans more than Germans. Funny how the moronic attitude some Americans have towards France is no more rational or mature than the negative feelings many Koreans have when it comes to the United States or Japan.
I don’t know about Japanese beef, but European beef IS more strictly regulated than US beef, so Europeans aren’t being hypocrites by restricting the import of US beef and dairy. BGH is banned, and maximum allowable pesticide residues are lower. European cheese is a cleaner alternative to US-produced, and it’s competitive with US organic.
E-Coli is ameliorated by heat unlike mad-cow. Was that stat strictly from the US? Are you attributing that stat to American beef? I remember recently a big problem with a spinach farm in Mendocino. I also remember a huge problem with E-Coli tainted Mexican cheese. Cheese and vegetables are often consumed without cooking. Cook your meat before eating!
If the alarms are sounding on this issue I would expect you to be even handed. I watch countless kids here in Korea eating Ramien out of the bag and shaking those little packets of MSG into the bag before eating. Deep fried everything from that oh-so-clean pojan maja on the corner. Every kind of processed cheese log. How full of crap is that gift box of spam people get on Cheosok? Do you even know what’s in it? Let’s not even start with the chips aisle. I would say 80% of my students are snacking on this sort of thing. I don’t know, maybe it’s their lunch.
Do you know how bleached and processed white bread and rice are? Did you know it costs more to produce a less nutricious, white product and it costs you more? All I’m saying is be even handed.
Just imagine if the media here put as much time and effort into trying to eliminate restaurant and cafeteria food poisoning as they did on scaring people about diseases they - or anybody they know - will never get.
Marbling itself comes from feeding corn, but the even streaks of Korean beef owe to the use of clenbuterol, which is so unsafe even our beef and dairy industry hoes the USDA ban it.
Korean beef is not of higher quality than US beef. It is only more expensive. A McDonalds burger made from Australian beef is still crap loaded with sodium, saturated fat, and trans-fat, plus MSG or another free glutamate additive like autolyzed yeast protein. Anyone who thinks that using Australian beef instead of American beef in a fast food burger makes it a significantly healthier choice must be the same sort of fool who pays $4 for a box of organic cookies.
“E-Coli is ameliorated by heat unlike mad-cow. Was that stat strictly from the US? Are you attributing that stat to American beef??”
It’s just in the US, though it’s not all beef. I tried to post the link a couple days ago but my comment kept getting rejected. That link stated most of the E. Coli outbreaks were from beef, but the link below doesn’t say. It also says the number of cases is believed to be going down.
http://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/qa_ecoli_sickness.htm
“If the alarms are sounding on this issue I would expect you to be even handed. I watch countless kids here in Korea eating Ramien out of the bag and shaking those little packets of MSG into the bag before eating.”
Next time there’s a Marmot’s Hole post on kids eating uncooked packages of ramen or MSG, I’ll be there to say how stupid it is. But this post is about the safety of American beef.
“Marbling itself comes from feeding corn, but the even spider web-like streaks of some cuts of Korean beef owe to the use of clenbuterol, which is so unsafe even our beef and dairy industry hoes the USDA ban it.”
Do you have a link that clenbuterol is widely used? Judge Judy made that assertion, but I’d like harder evidence before I stop consuming Korean beef.
“Korean beef is not of higher quality than US beef. It is only more expensive.”
I was referring to the 1980s, when factory farmed American beef flooded the market and locally produced beef in Korea had to follow factory farming practices or go under. I’m not praising the current Korean beef industry, which I would like to see go back to sustainable practices and produce quality meats.
“A McDonalds burger made from Australian beef is still crap loaded with sodium, saturated fat, and trans-fat.”
Don’t worry I don’t eat a lot of them.
No, the article actually uses the word “hypocracy” which I’m attempting to reinforce. If Korea was a land of extremely health-conscious humans then this issue would be accepted as one rooted in sincerity. In actual fact this is not a case in which America is unloading toxins into a pristine environment.
I continue to believe that if you look at motivation this issue has the odor of protectionism for a small group to impose on Korea some of the highest prices for meat and produce in the world.
Flooded in the 1980s? The 1991 article you linked to says otherwise:
“In the 1970s, these domestic agricultural policy considerations drove Korea’s import policy. Beef imports were allowed only to fulfill domestic shortfalls. When imports for general consumption did occur, they came from Australia and New Zealand. A small but stable trade in grain-fed beef for tourist hotels was filled by U.S. exporters. In the 1980s, Korea was an important but variable market for U.S. beef, with trade still dependent on the policies of the Korean government. In 1985, Korea was the fifth largest U.S. beef market with exports valued at $6.1 million, despite the market being virtually closed by an import ban at mid-year. In 1988, Korea reappeared as the fifth largest U.S. beef market at $25.6 million, even though the market was open only from August through December. In 1990, the United States exported 32,660 metric tons valued at $116 million, about 30 percent of Korean imports. Korea has changed greatly since the 1970s and early 1980s. These changes include a worsening of Korea’s domestic beef supply situation, a growing demand for beef and shifting views about import protection for agriculture. Together, these events have generally increased the cost to Korea of maintaining trade barriers to beef. As a result, in 1990 Korea agreed to liberalize its beef trade in three stages. The first stage, which expires at the end of 1992, sets minimum import quota levels. In 1992, expanded interim trade levels will be negotiated for the 1993-96 period. In 1997, Korea must completely liberalize or otherwise bring its policy into conformance with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). “
Rather than trying to protect the domestic Korean beef industry by refusing to uphold bilateral trade agreements, it would be more responsible to promote locavorism and encourage Korean consumers to eat sustainably farmed foods. If Koreans choose to eat US beef because it’s cheaper, who are you to deny them that choice? You can’t say Koreans haven’t been warned about the dangers of American beef.
Of course there’s protectionism involved. The Korean beef industry wants to protect their own from competition. Most of the anti-FTA talk in both the U.S. and Korea is due to protectionism.
But such reductionism is not all there is to it. There are people who don’t eat MSG-laden foods or ramen out of the package or gallon after gallon Diet Coke who read up on the issue and have real concerns. People all around the world have real concerns about the factory farming practices that the U.S. is bringing to bear on them.
If some guy is smoking a cigarette and holding up a “No mad cow beef from America!” sign, he’s a hypocrite. But that’s not everybody.
I meant the 1990s. I was recalling the dates from memory.
But you know what, you all win this war of attrition. I have too many things to do today so I don’t have time to look anything up. Since it’s three or four against one, I must be wrong anyway. So we can all conclude:
Korean beef is low-quality crap that is full of chemicals.
Factory farmed American beef is a benefit to everyone.
Antibiotics in American beef (or any beef) pose no health risks.
Hormones in American beef (or any beef) pose no health risks.
Koreans are hypocrites for being concerned about the safety of American beef.
One more before I go…
“If Koreans choose to eat US beef because it’s cheaper, who are you to deny them that choice?”
What the hell? I’m not trying to deny anybody the choice. Did you not see that I generally support free trade.
All I was saying is that American beef (which is the thing at issue, not Hyundais, steel, Korean beef) has some problems that shouldn’t be ignored. Well, I now admit it has no problems at all, but that’s what I thought before #34.
look at the end of the day these morons can still go by thier beloved over-priced korean beef
although they would be completely ignorant and a little on the stupid ass side if they do but hey we are talking about nationalistic loons so why is anyone surprised?
In conclusion…
EAT PORK!
@35
Cars and steel are not at issue if the motives of the people are sincere - which many people believe is not the case.
If they protesters are sincere in their motivation, do you seriously think that the quality and standards of Korean beef and/or Australian beef should not be brought into the discussion?
To me, it is just a case of the pinkos trying to salvage something and opportunism using the usual theme and scapegoat.
User-81, you’re exagerrating my argument. I’m sure you’re keenly aware that I said none of that.
Ok, I’ll play that game. The ones carrying the signs weren’t all smoking cigarettes, the others were using brownish powder to fool their tastebuds into thinking what they were pouring it onto was more than just bleached, processed flour with no flavor whatsoever. Doesn’t really matter whether it’s in hot water or not, does it?
Don’t be so flippant about the protectionist aspect of this either. They have been coming across as soooo concerned about their fellow Korean when it is absolute bunk. It’s all about self-interest. If not, ask them why they aren’t concerned about all the other issues I’ve mentioned? They’re busy telling people not to build their houses on the edge of the crumbling hillside but neglecting to tell them to pull the loaded handgun away from their temple.
You wonder why we throw the nationalism card on these issues? Why don’t you give people a full education on food and nutrition? Why is the alarm seemingly always sounded on the foreign products? When childhood obesity came up about a year ago why did it target KFC, Burger King and McDonalds? I agree they suck, but aren’t you neglecting a few things? Lying by ommission is still a lie, and it tells me all I need to know about these heroic demonstrators.
“look at the end of the day these morons can still go by thier beloved over-priced korean beef”
i guess we all know who the spelling moron is.
people in Europe have died from eating European beef, of Mad Cow disease.
Let’s remember that.
Not in America,
Yes in Europe.
The core of the issue is that 2MB’s Presidency has not been a smashing success.
His best of the best, turned out to be an ugly revelation of South Korea’s corrupt elite. Probably though, very well qualified to do the job.
Nam Dae Moon burned down when he started his job. He opened it to the public. Bad premonitions.
He still won majority in Gook Hwae. This was a rebuff to the expat’s charges that South Korea is commie country. Look to China and Vietnam for charges qualifying for that. This was a vote of confidence by people who valued the economy. But, so far, little change in life quality for the avg Korean.
2MB keeps pushing the canal idea, without a good explanation. A root of distrust in his goodness.
The beef deal went thru by 2MB, with several points that raise suspicions for the avg Korean.
the rumor is that,
Koreans won’t be eating the same beef the Americans eat. For whatever ridiculous reasons, they believe it won’t be USDA approved meat, but meat that is unsuitable to be sold in the US market. 2MB failed to convince Koreans that this is not the case.
Koreans won’t have a say in inspecting the beef that comes in. They’ll simply be having faith in the US. 2MB failed to explain why the deal went thru the way it went thru.
Although, I have 100% confidence that 2MB is right, just, correct, and the best President South Korean can have.
Chosun ilbo caters to Kyongsang and the elitest of South Korea. This is not about cool heads, from them, per say. It’s a propaganda journal on its own merit. But, I agree with what they say on this beef issue.
I finally realized that 2MB is a derisive monicker for the President, but I find it cute, so I’ll keep using it.
2MB is simply misunderstood. He is not evil.
#38: “If they protesters are sincere in their motivation, do you seriously think that the quality and standards of Korean beef and/or Australian beef should not be brought into the discussion?”
I don’t mind talking about Korean beef and Australian beef. It seems that in a comparison of Australian or New Zealand beef against North American beef, the beef down under would come out on top. Korean beef is something I would like to see more data on, starting with how common that clenbuterol is, how much the Korean cattle are corn-fed compared with their North American counterparts, and how much antibiotics and hormones are used.
#39: “User-81, you’re exagerrating my argument. I’m sure you’re keenly aware that I said none of that.”
Those ‘conclusions’ were not directed at you. Sorry.
“Don’t be so flippant about the protectionist aspect of this either. They have been coming across as soooo concerned about their fellow Korean when it is absolute bunk.”
I’m not being flippant. Protectionism brings out the worst nationalism sometimes. I’d like to see the Korus FTA passed and more Korean FTAs produced. Put an end to these protectionist side shows. But can’t I express concern about a questionable and unsustainable product that my government is trying to push onto the rest of the world (not just Korea)?
“Why is the alarm seemingly always sounded on the foreign products?”
Because you have a lot less control over foreign products, especially if there is something like an FTA. You’re not in the U.S. now, so you may not have heard all the complaining and griping about unsafe Chinese products flooding the U.S., where similar issues are prominent in the media.
“When childhood obesity came up about a year ago why did it target KFC, Burger King and McDonalds? I agree they suck, but aren’t you neglecting a few things?”
Because KFC, Burger King, and McDonald’s are the overwhelming majority of fastfood sales in Korea? They are cited in America for the same reason.
#41: “people in Europe have died from eating European beef, of Mad Cow disease.”
If you take British beef out of the equation, how many have died from eating European beef?
The beef issue is nothing but prevalent anti-americanism in Korean Society. It’s a disease that Korean just can’t cure. If US starts boycotting Hyndai and Samsung products, it will get Korean’s attention.
Per my comment in #19 and “WJK” in #43, apparently LMB *has* done a good job. It is simply astounding he got the FDA to do what Americans could not get done in revising feed content standards. Because of such, it is Americans that should be protesting and not Koreans.
Despite the misgivings with the American meat industry, LMB has done a good here deserves some recognition for it.
re #46
Given the fact that there have been exactly zero deaths attributable to BSE from US beef, what kind of improvement are you expecting with these new magical feed standards? Kinda hard to improve on zero, innit?
Richard Raymond, Undersecretary of Food Safety for the Dept of Agriculture, hit it dead on when asked about Koreans “increased risk” for vCJD:
“We’ve never had a person in the U.S. be diagnosed with vCJD for eating American beef. So if it’s zero, and chances are double, double zero is still zero.”
Bang! Double Zero Hwighting!
“iheart”, there are proposed international standards for cattle feed which the U.S. has avoided — until now, which would make the supply of beef safer than before now. Though the quality of the meat is debatable and the willingness of the American meat industry to unduly peddle influence where it should not, American beef is still safer than what MBC would have one believe.
Follow some of those lawyer links I listed and read their site and follow their links as well. Just because one does not find a certain thing does not always mean that it does not exist, especially when looking for it is actively discouraged.
#36 (and several other numbers) –
“Antibiotics in American beef (or any beef) pose no health risks.
Hormones in American beef (or any beef) pose no health risks.
Koreans are hypocrites for being concerned about the safety of American beef.”
Most people seem to have no concern when they leave their doctor’s offices and clinics about taking those antibiotics and hormones then, yet more people will continue to die from “real” problems like overdosing and side-effects from prescribed medicines than will ever die from Mad Cow tainted beef. While medicines do kill many every year, they are saving and extending the lives of millions more. Life expectancy continues its upward climb in all but a few places on this rock where medications and medical treatment are not easily obtained.
Compare the numbers killed by Vioxx, prozac, Fen-Phen and others to the miniscule amount killed by Mad Cow. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6192603/
And, what about free will? It seems that many here are severely lacking this wonderful trait. Instead, it has been replaced by the gullibility trait. In many societies, we are free to choose what we eat and buy, but scare tactics are a great way to influence an easily influenced populace. It seems that the media here, and the devious minds influencing/controlling them, are taking advantage of their gullible minds because, even if American beef hits the South Korean market, no one is forcing them to buy, or ingest, it. You would think this is an epidemic of pandemic proportions the way the media has gone after this relative non issue. Where are the muckrakers when we need them to investigate their own kind?
Luckily, most people in the U.S aren’t holding candlelight vigils for Eight Belles’ jockey to be saddled, whipped, and ridden around Churchill Downs for a mile and a quarter like some at PETA are (well, as some of their ardent supporters are in the comments section) after her breakdown on Saturday. However, it’s not so great to see that the commenters are pretty much the same the world over.
http://msn.foxsports.com/horse.....;GT1=39002
Life is great at times while cruel and unjust at others. Then there are the times when it just doesn’t make much sense. I believe this is one of those times.
#36 (and several other numbers) –
“Antibiotics in American beef (or any beef) pose no health risks.
Hormones in American beef (or any beef) pose no health risks.
Koreans are hypocrites for being concerned about the safety of American beef.”
Most people seem to have no concern when they leave their doctor’s offices and clinics about taking those antibiotics and hormones then, yet more people will continue to die from “real” problems like overdosing and side-effects from prescribed medicines than will ever die from Mad Cow tainted beef. While medicines do kill many every year (compare the numbers killed by Vioxx, prozac, Fen-Phen and others to the miniscule amount killed by Mad Cow.), they are saving and extending the lives of millions more. Life expectancy continues its upward climb in all but a few places on this rock where medications and medical treatment are not easily obtained.
And, what about free will? It seems that many here are severely lacking this wonderful trait. Instead, it has been replaced by the gullibility trait. In many societies, we are free to choose what we eat and buy, but scare tactics are a great way to influence an easily influenced populace. It seems that the media here, and the devious minds influencing/controlling them, are taking advantage of their gullible minds because, even if American beef hits the South Korean market, no one is forcing them to buy, or ingest, it. You would think this is an epidemic of pandemic proportions the way the media has gone after this relative non issue. Where are the muckrakers when we need them to investigate their own kind?
Luckily, most people in the U.S aren’t holding candlelight vigils for Eight Belles’ jockey to be saddled, whipped, and ridden around Churchill Downs for a mile and a quarter like some at PETA are (well, as some of their ardent supporters are in the comments section) after her breakdown on Saturday. However, it’s not so great to see that the commenters are pretty much the same the world over.
Life is great at times while cruel and unjust at others. Then there are the times when it just doesn’t make much sense. I believe this is one of those times.
user: But it is certainly interesting that whenever the Korean media go on one of their anti-fast food crusades, you never see a Lotteria in the film montages.
I’ve done some quick readings on the Mad Cow disease and I’ve concluded that it’s too premature to say that there is no human infections in the United States. The first case of infected cattle was reported in 2003. Due to long incubation period of the disease, we won’t know for sure for at least few more years if there are any human infections, and what the scale of those infections are if any.
From wiki
“Although the BSE epizootic was eventually brought under control by culling all suspect cattle populations, people are still being diagnosed with vCJD each year (though the number of new cases currently has dropped to less than 5 per year). This is attributed to the long incubation period for prion diseases, which are typically measured in years or decades. As a result the full extent of the human vCJD outbreak is still not fully known.”
“The finding of a second strain of BSE prion raises the possibility that transmission of BSE to humans has been underestimated, because some of the individuals diagnosed with spontaneous or “sporadic” CJD may have actually contracted the disease from tainted beef. So far nothing is known about the relative transmissibility of the two disease strains of BSE prion.”
Canada is the only country that imports 30 month or older US beef. S.Korea, if they go ahead, will be the second.
What’s the US policy on 30 month or older cattle for meat? Are there any restrictions for Americans to consume 30 month or older cattle?
The point of the debate over US Beef is not at all about health and safety–any more than the protests over the two teens hit by the “tank” was.
Certain Koreans are just eager to protest against Americans…
Like the story of the cuckolded husband (American shoots adulterous couple, Englishman excuses himself and waits until they’re done, Korean protests outside US Embassy), the “useful idiots” in Korea are ever eager to take money and/or direction from Pyongyang and blame everything on Uncle Sam.
So many ill-informed people… so few with serious cognitive abilities intact…
When did they actually stop teaching logic and reasoning skills?
“What’s the US policy on 30 month or older cattle for meat? Are there any restrictions for Americans to consume 30 month or older cattle?”
I ask this question because the MBC News is reporting that even the US prohibits 30 month or older cattle for beef. What’s the truth here?
It’s not just Anti-Americanism although I’m sure that’s part of some peoples’ agendas. But there’s also a genuine fear of getting the disease to the point of national phobia. This a problem grown by the media, not giving out straight facts.
Actually, this whole episode could work for the conservative elements since so many middle and high school students were put up to coming out to protest, by their teachers, who must share the blame for their students gross ignorance of the science behind CJD and BSE. Clearly the education system has failed by producing large-scale ignorance of the science instead of knowledgeable students.
This ignorance and rumor-mongering — used for political purposes — could be used as a pretext for purging teachers wholesale from the educational system and I would really like to see something like that happen here, considering how so many teachers have engaged in politics at the expense of their country — both in terms of patriotism and the quality of education.
#55, I’m afraid we’re completely in agreement there… There needs to be a sharp response to the obvious political nature of the protest–especially since it is so obviously aimed at taking everyone’s mind off of the continuing intransigence of the Norks in the
sixfive-and-a-half party talks…If I was a betting man, I’d lay odds that even an auditor trained in Korea could find money coming from Pyongyang directly to the leaders of the protest organization…
Wow! So many comments on such a boring topic. People getting all excited about a piece of cow flesh. How about some titty pics, we hav’nt had any of those for ages. Don’t know about you guys, but it’s the type of flesh that gets me excited. Too many weirdos out there with cow fixations.
It looks like the candle light vigils are not working. Lee’s government is standing firm. You have to make a decision and it may not be the most popular one.
Seoul goes ahead with beef import plans
Brushing aside mounting calls to renegotiate the latest beef deal with Washington, Seoul said yesterday it will go ahead with resuming U.S. beef imports later this month.
The government earlier indicated that the latest deal is expected to take effect around May 15, enabling Seoul to restart quarantine inspections of U.S. beef and subsequently hand them over to importers for sale.
The Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries ruled out the possibility of delaying the regulatory process, despite opposition from politicians and the public.
“It is a matter of mutual trust. Which county will negotiate with Korea if we renege on an agreement overnight?” a ministry official told The Korea Herald.
On April 22, the government published for public comment the import health requirements for beef and beef products contained in the deal. Several days after the 20-day public comment period ends on May 13, the government plans to publish the full deal, which will serve as the final regulation, he said.
But Song Ki-ho, a lawyer specializing in trade issues, said, “I expect Washington to call for additional negotiations if Korea refuses to notify the public of the deal.”
Seoul’s decision in April to lift almost all limits on cattle age and permitted cuts has sparked public anxiety over the safety of U.S. meat. In 2003, Korea halted U.S. beef imports due to concerns over mad cow disease. In 2006, Seoul only allowed boneless beef from cattle under 30 months old.
Protesters and lawmakers have been increasing calls to nullify the latest deal and reopen beef talks with Washington.
The main opposition United Democratic Party yesterday discussed proposing a special law which calls for the nullification of the agreement and the immediate suspension of all beef imports from countries with confirmed cases of mad cow disease.
Feeling the heat, the ruling Grand National Party said on Sunday that it could call for a revision of the deal should Washington agree more favorable terms of beef trade with Taiwan and Japan in the future.
Washington declined to comment on whether the beef deal could be renegotiated.
“I am not here to discuss negotiations. I am not a negotiator,” Richard Raymond, undersecretary for food safety, was quoted by Yonhap News as saying at a news conference yesterday.
Public angst over the U.S. beef deal has been fast spreading.
Critics have accused the Lee Myung-bak administration of sacrificing public health and safety for better economic and political relations with Washington.
Seoul and Washington officials have said the beef dispute must be resolved if the U.S. Congress is to approve a separate free trade agreement. Although beef is not part of the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement, U.S. legislators threatened to boycott the FTA unless Korea opened its market to U.S. beef.
By Jin Hyun-joo
(hjjin@heraldm.com)
in the dong-a ilbo today
The U.S. Department of Agriculture held an emergency press conference for Korean correspondents in Washington on Sunday afternoon in an attempt to dispel the growing Korean public’s fear over the safety of U.S. beef.
At the conference, Under Secretary of the Department for Food Safety Richard Raymond explained U.S. safety standards regarding slaughtering and packaging of beef and its observance conditions. He also tried to ward off the suspicions that even American people consume Australian beef for fear of mad cow disease.
The U.S. government, who is fully aware of the growing backlash in Korea against the resumption of U.S. beef imports, has held a rare Sunday news briefing in order to allay the safety concerns, according to political watchers.
In a similar move, the Wall Street Journal carried a news article to voice its concern over the controversy, quoting U.S. government officials as saying, “Ninety-six percent of U.S. beef is consumed by American people and the remaining 4 percent is exported to foreign countries. We import beef from Australia and Canada, but it is to meet demand for minced beef used for hamburgers.”
The newspaper criticized the lax attitude of both governments, saying, “Some misleading arguments over the safety of U.S. beef are spreading through the media and the Internet, but the failure of both the U.S. and Korean governments to correct them have led things to spiral out of control.”
The Korean-American Association in New York also echoed on Sunday the opinion of the newspaper by issuing a statement that says, “Some Korean media outlets are taking issue with the safety of American beef without providing convincing evidence, which distorts the sentiment of the Korean people.”
“The fact that we eat the same beef as the one Korea is going to import bears out the safety of U.S. beef,” said officials of the association. They added, “Korean-Americans residing here are being victimized by some Korean people who oppose U.S. beef imports on the ground of possible outbreak of mad cow disease, not by the consumption of cattle infected with the disease.”
“At a time when many ethnic Koreans here in the United States do their utmost to help ratify the KORUS FTA, this unproductive controversy will result in adverse effects on the approval of the deal by the Congress,” said the statement.
Notice that neither the government nor the GNP defended the policy by pointing out that the protesters are, for lack of a better term, full of shit.
That’s kind of disappointing. I had hoped that Lee, unlike Roh, would stop pretending that he only made a decision because big bad foreigners made him do it.
So it’s more of the same for Korea. Even since Kim Young-sam bawled on TV in apology for opening the rice market, no politician has ever defended his or her policy on the grounds that it would actually be good for the country.
That’s why I think comment #55, about using the episode to bash the teachers’ union, is a bit of wishful thinking. If the politicians won’t even stand up for their own free-trade policies, how can they expect the teachers?
Seems the Korean gov’t bought the “Koreans are more genetically prone to mad cow disease (or its human equivalent” line last year:
http://news.naver.com/main/rea.....0002073369
By the way, even after that tearful apology, how “open” is the Korean rice market these days? That’s why I’m skeptical of the beef “opening” — whatever the nominal position will be, the government will orchestrate behind-the-scenes nonsense to persuade the public to stay away from American beef. Just like Korean rice “tastes better” and is more suited to the unique Korean physiology.
AmCham FTA bedwetting notwithstanding, I favor a sustained press of Tom Clancy’s fair trade plan followed by sincere FTA negotiations.
they dont call it the hermit kingdom for nothing.
hey seoulmilk can you run my post thru your spell check?
just out of curiosity, does america have any trade barriers with regards to food? i’m getting the impression only korean folk do these kinds of things.
my bet is, america does the same thing. thus, until america quits, korea should continue to protect it’s farmers.
btw, is it lost on anyone that food seems to be getting harder to come by for so many of the poor throughout the world? does korea really want to rely on others to produce a staple of the korean diet ie rice? times are only going to get rougher for us humans because the earth cannot provide for 2 billion more westenders living on the eastern side of the world.
careful, korea.
you didn’t find it funny? no hard feelings, eh?
Okay, so don’t buy American beef. Who the fuck cares? American beef
companies? Who cares about them? Put them out of business..no one
cares about this. No one is buying beef. Beef? You may as well jump
off a cliff. Who’s investing in beef? Wow, Koreans might boycott
American beef. Oh boy, I’m fucking doomed.
The only significant trade barrier I know of are the tariffs that protect Florida and Puerto Rican sugar cane growers from foreign competition although I’m sure there are more. More than tariff protection, US agribusiness welfare queens rely on subsidies, $16 billion a year to be exact, given mostly to large farms that grow corn, wheat, and soy, mostly fed to cows, pigs, and chickens. That’s why I roll my eyes when people complain that it’s more expensive to eat healthy. No wonder when taxpayers subsidize most of the ingredients used to make a hamburger or pizza. Our government does not subsidize fresh produce, and only recently changed WIC regulations to allow coupon recipients to buy fresh produce. Most eligible WIC foods are dairy and grains, big ag favorites.
You bring up a valid point, Pawi, that food is critical to survival, and no country should rely on imports to provide most of its staple foods. A smart food policy balances domestic production to guarantee supplies and foreign imports to supplement and keep prices down.
In the news this week, it was announced that Korea would start importing large amounts of GMO corn from the US as China would no longer export and Europe bought out crop yields from South America.
And think of this, my fellow Americans: a significant percentage of workers employed in agriculture and meat processing are not authorized to work in the US. What do you think will happen if Koreans start buying lots of US beef? Either production will expand, using up more land and local water resources and providing more jobs to unauthorized workers or prices will rise as some of the domestic supply gets shipped overseas.
Opening the Korean market to US beef benefits Korean consumers and US beef producers. I’m not so sure it benefits Americans.
“just out of curiosity, does america have any trade barriers with regards to food?”
Does it matter? Korea and America are full of preachers. Go Fuck off!
No one cares about what you believe. If you think American beef is
dangerous than don’t eat it. No one wants to listen to your bullshit.
Get the fuck out of the road, we are trying to drive home. Fuck off to
the countryside and make your points. Go pray to Jesus or Allah, assholes!
It’s dumb! Put McDonalds out of business! No one cares about that shit!
You’re going to go out and eat! It’s your own fault! Stop blaming other people. Fuck, we’ll feed you purified soybean for 10 bucks a pop if that’s what you want! Just tell us what you want and we’ll feed it to you, or stay home and make your own meals and we’ll raise the grocery prices.
Go buy beans! Whatever, no one gives a shit! It’s all about money.
Stop using money and grow your own food you fucking retards!
Go out and pick some grass near the highway and make yourself a nice salad and then you can go to the Han river and catch a fish. Fuck it!
Fuck everything! You want to go to Gangnam and have a nice dinner with your wife with “just a nice Korean beef” or Australian beef, fine, go ahead! Who gives a flying fuck? “Korea beef is a good,and Korea rice is a good” Great! Good. Eat that shit! Eat it every day! Only eat food Grown in Korea by Koreans forever! You like some French wine? Great! Fuck American wine,American wine sucks! No one fucking cares!
If a biilion Chinese only want to use a Chinese computer, then I invest in that Chinese computer. What do I care about China? The Chinese government?
I don’t care! Fuck Tibet! I’m a political prisoner. I can’t do what I want! I can’t even walk outside naked. I’m a human being. Why do I have to wear clothes? Who made these laws? Pretty soon I won’t be allowed to eat and walk. Motherfuckers think that’s not nice. Everybody should eat at a table. Fuck me! Fuck beef!
hardyandtiny, you blew out my swear filter.
I actually tend to agree with R. Elgin about the desirability of changes to standards for feed to cattle raised for beef. The cow is the world’s leading marine predator, if you count the quantity of fish which are caught and ground up to get fed to cows as fish meal.
As God intended them. cows are not — and ought not to be made into by the hands of man — meat-eaters themselves. It’s gross. I don’t know if it’s unsafe for cows to eat fish meal, and pig/chicken offal. They probably ought not to be eating other cows’ brains, though. Does feeding cows corn cause disease? I don’t know — but the evidence seems to point to “No.”
B