BCT Editorial – 3/22/09

This page was last updated on March 28, 2009.

Health and safety; Editorial; Beaver County Times; March 22, 2009.

The editorial subtitle is “Congress must heed the call to beef up regulation of food chain.”

The editorial asserts, “These calls for change did not come out of nowhere. The recent peanut-related salmonella outbreak was just the latest in a long series of widespread food-poisoning incidents. If the past has taught us anything, it is that the food and drug industry cannot and will not regulate itself and that laissez-faire public safety doesn’t work. This isn’t about added government regulations. It’s about public health and safety, which, in the long run, benefits consumers and responsible companies alike.”

When was the last time we had “laissez-faire public safety?”

Ever notice how “added government regulations” are never “about added government regulations?” It’s always “about public health and safety,” children, the elderly, et cetera.

Do we need improvements in our food inspection programs? I don’t know because I don’t have access to all the data. You’ll note the editorial steered clear of statistical data to support its position. I do know one thing; no inspection program will be 100% effective. Could we improve the process? If so, do we want to pay the price?

Finally, did you notice the editorial didn’t call for “added government regulations” regarding the media? Consider this. When was the last time you could trust what you read/heard in the media was complete, correct, and in context? And doesn’t that tainted info sicken us?