Ben Wiehl: The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture #1

At the beginning of chapter 7, the two quotes on the left hand caught my eye. The first was "But just stop for a minute and think about what it means to live in a land where 95 percent of the people can be freed from the drudgery of preparing their own food" and the other was "Find the shortest, simplst way between the earth, the hands and the mouth." I'm not sure if this was a reference to the fast food industry or the amount of Americans that actually grow their own vegetables for slaughter their own animals for meat. I will assume it means the latter because I would hate to think that 95% of Americans spend their time eating fast food meals as a majority of their diet. Unfortunately, I do believe that 95% of Americans are saved the trouble of growing their own crops or raising chickens and such. I can admit that I have been saved the trouble of this most of my life, although my Mom does have a garden at home - fresh veggies are the best. We have become so commercialized that it would be literally impossible for America to run any other way. I feel like most people would be disgusted by the idea of taking care of their own garden, or raising their own chickens. It is just easier for them to not have to worry about those types of things - they want the easy way out; just go to the grocery store and buy a pre-packaged deal and you're set. This makes me feel like most Americans living in this country fail to realize the value of what they take for granted 95% of then time. I bet that a good percentage of the 95% won't ever stop to think about where any of the pre-packaged items in the store come from, or the processes that it takes to get to the finalized product that they hold in their hand. Some say ignorance is bliss, but I beg to differ. Maybe what people need to do is relinquish some of the everyday commodities that they feel they need so much. If 95% of Americans could grow some of their own products in their backyard I feel that it would certainly have more then one beneficial factor on the lives of people. On another note - specifically the quote talked about the "drudgery" of preparing ones own food. I feel that in the places where the people do take the time to prepare their own food it would definetly not be considered "drudgery". By taking the time to prepare the food, it imbues the food with an attribute that you can't find anywhere else - making it an authentic experience. And what more is there to life then to seek out the authentic?