Al G Smith

Q. Why are corporations less natural and organic in all forms of its process?
There are methods to make foods more nutritious and delicious without all the deadly and cancerous methods that create a hazard. Aspartame, Benzine, and genetic modification of franken foods. Not to mention pesticides and all the other good stuff that comes with over process and over produce foods.

(Note: The question is repeated as it was written by the ‘asker’ with no editing)

A.  Yes. People supposedly ‘demand cheap’ stuff. Synthetic chemicals allow manufacturers to make ‘cheap stuff’. There are weak, or inadequate Laws to ensure that such chemicals are safe… and there is little incentive to do much about it as the Cosmetics and Personal Care industry are worth a mint and they have strong ‘lobbyists’ and too many ill-informed/under-informed or blatantly corrupt ‘politicians’ and officials that make sure that nothing much is done with any speed.

As mentioned there is also a ‘nice equation’ that may apply where we are all subjects of a self-perpetuating-profiteering system –

• We are fed food full of synthetic-chemicals (from both the agro-chemical residues of herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers AND from additives used in processing that makes food last longer, look’nicer’ and cost less to produce!!) , and

• We spread skin-care and cosmetics full of synthetic-chemicals on our bodies daily (known to be laced with numerous toxic synthetic chemicals prroven to cause all sorts of potential health problems in animals even if the human studies have not be done), and

• We also live in homes full of synthetic-chemicals (in our furniture, carpets, textiles, cleaning products, room freshners, vaporisers, paint. varnishes, etc etc etc)…

We are ’sold’ all this stuff with great efficiency via billions of dollars spent on cleverly crafted marketing campaigns, without any mention of the risks to our health BECAUSE no one element by itself can be held up as absolutely ‘causative’ of ill-health — so the system progresses ‘happily’… until for the individual their steadily impugned health ‘collapses’ and they develop this, that or the other life-limiting or life-shortening disease.

These days its is ‘best case scenario’ for the ‘other chemistry’ purveyors — the pharmaceutical giants — to look to treat ‘chronic long term illness’ with a ‘life time’ of treatment. This ensures future profits. Take note of how many people you know who end up on long-term medication. The aim is to ‘mitigate symptoms’ for a while, but NOT to cure… Curing people is bad for business as it curtails the profit potential.

The darker side of this coin is the one that (some sources) also suggests that this whole process is actually a part of a much more ’sinister’ long-term plan to reduce popoulation numbers. This may be a ’step too far’ for some people — but the longer that the current situation of persistent toxic exposure endures, without legislation and efforts to change it, the longer this ‘conspiratorial’ theory deserves some attention.

Just imagine, for example, how ‘useful’ it is that because no one thing can clearly be blamed for causing any specific illness event, yet the numbers of sufferers of serious illness increase year on year, and ever more complex and chronic diseases are emerging with only the comment from ’scientists’ that ‘we don’t fully understand why’ this is the case (you increasingly hear medical researchers and ‘doctors’ stating ‘we don’t know why’ — just listen to interviews) — This situation leads to either profit opportunity for pharmaceutical companies, as described above, OR leads to early death for many people, which ‘certain people’ suggest is a vital necessity to help address the issue of a burgeoning world population.

Unless you choose to ’step outside’ of the typical type of situation most ‘consumers’ are in, by refusing to buy anything but the most realiable sources of clean (i.e. organic) food, reduce your domestic exposure to toxic chemicals, use only guaranteed safe and natural body care… and reduce your levels of psychological stress as well as addressing these physical stresses — you can surely plan to become one of the long-term unwell in due course. For example: Stats show that in the US and UK you already have between 1-in-2 and 1-in-3 chance of suffering one or other type of cancer in youe lifetime…

Once you become ‘aware’ that our ‘created’ world is typically toxic — you only have yourself to blame if yoyu don’t do something about it… forget about hoping that Corporations will do anything, each individual is responsible for their own long-term health and wellbeing! Good luck!

Useful resources:
A nice summary: http://storyofstuff.org/cosmetics/
Really safe products for example: http://www.saferalternative.com
Directory of toxic chemicals in skin and body care: http://www.gonando.com/organic-beauty-products.html#Directory

Q. Can anyone taste the difference between organic and regular produce?

I can’t and where I live organic is like twice as much.

A. Bear in mind that most of us have lost much of our finer tasting ability thanks to diets so high in sugar, salt and often laced with ’so-called flavour-enhancing chemicals (like MSG) . Also if you smoke, and/or drink alcohol, and or eat highly spiced food on a regular basis your taste buds may well be less ’sensitive’ than they might be…

Also. no matter if truly organically farmed, or otherwise the ‘flavour’ of vegetables and fruits is more particularly determined by whether or not they have been allowed to ripen properly and naturally. Most supermarket vegetables and fruits are picked ‘early’ and usually well before ripe, they are then often stored for some time, maybe in modified-gas atmospheres to avoid deterioration. But without ’sunshine’ — the key ‘ingredient’ to good ripe, natural flavour, then you won’t have food that tastes as it should.

Much of the supermarket foods are early-picked, the force-ripened in special warehousing. They just don’t see the sun enough to develop good flavour. This is why veggies and fruits bought from local markets and roadside farm stalls, when travelling on the sunnier parts of the continent in Europe often have a world of different real flavour than what you’ll buy in your weekly shopping in the UK.

But really although in some cases there may be quite evident taste differences for some types of food when comparing ‘organic’ and ‘modern farmed’ foods (strawberries and tomatoes already mention might be reasonable examples) it is NOT the taste difference that really matters.

Organic foods should be produced using no synthetic (i.e. unnatural) chemicals in any part of the agricultural process (be they vegetable or meat products). That means no synthetic chemicals should be used in fertilizers, feeds, herbicides, fungicides, pesticides, and no unnecessary use of antibiotics, and NO growth-promoters or chemical treatments applied to livestock.

The fact is that whilst washing foods ‘might’ have a minor impact in removing surface dirt and ’some’ chemical contamination, that the MAJORITY of chemicals used in ‘modern farming’ used to spray crops, for example NOT ONLY are made to adhere such that hard rain cannot simply wash them off (so a pathetic swill under a tap will do VERY little!) BUT they ALSO actually ‘contaminate’ foods at a cellular level (meaning the chemicals adulterate the whole food as it grows, not just the skins!)… So simply washing the surface DOES NOT make food safe and clean!

Only by buying good reputable organically grown produce can you truly reduce your steady oral intake of toxic synthetic chemicals.

Sadly a combination of supermarket ‘profiteering’ from the ‘organic trend’, and a consumer expectation/acceptance that it will ‘cost more’, leads to the higher prices along with the fact that the quantity of organic produce is still relatively small compared with the massive ‘traditional chemical-based farming’… and as we all know that cost is driven down with quantity produced.

The economic Law of demand Supply and Demand, so far, also leads to organic food coming at a premium because supply is still small relative to increasing demand — Supermarket profiteering makes sure to ‘top this off’ and boosts their bottom line by taking more out of ‘conscious organic eaters’ pockets, too!

It is a catch-22 because until we ALL demand that ALL our food is organic and refuse to buy non-organic, making it ‘un-commercial’ for farmer to keep using chemistry-based farming practices, we can expect to have to pay a premium to eat more naturally, more healthily and more safely… And remember that ORGANIC farming also reduces the negative toxic impact on the earth and countryside that ‘traditional modern farming’ tends to create…(in reality ‘organic’ foods should be subsidised so ALL consumers — especially the less well off — can afford to eat healthier food, and other forms of growing should be fiscally ‘penalized’ for the ‘toll’ they take on earth and body! But there is little hope of that happening any day soon!)

In a nutshell — buying Organic food goes far beyond taste… and unless you give up all those habits that ‘numb’ and ‘overwhelm’ your taste buds, its unlikely that taste will be the deciding factor in buying organic. (The counterpoint to this is that IF you DO give up all pre-prepared and processed foods, and hence avoid food with added salt, sugars and flavour-enhancers — such as MSG Monosodiumglutamate — you will eventually, most likely, start to ‘taste’ your food for REAL again! Then you may more easily discern the difference in flavour between some organic and non-organic fare)…

But overall: Buying organic is a conscious, ethical, moral and philosophical choice that is about protecting your long-term health and well-being, and that of the terrain from which our food comes, too. The benefits of this choice far outweigh any small flavour advantage any day!

Also see:  Go Natural and Organic http://www.gonando.com

It’s been a while and by the looks of the blog its time for something a bit more upbeat!! Here’s and answer to this question:

[quote]
“How do you deal with your own negativity?
How do you get yourself to stop your own negativity?
How do you control or train your own mind?

The stupid “pop” psychology with affirmations is just useless c r a p! Makes no difference how many times i tell myself i am a happy, rich, successful, sexy beast…. i don’t believe a word of it because its NOT true!

Do you embrace your own negative mind or reject it and keep trying to push it away?”
[unquote]

You say: “The stupid “pop” psychology with affirmations is just useless c r a p! Makes no difference how many times i tell myself i am a happy, rich, successful, sexy beast…. i don’t believe a word of it because its NOT true!..”

I am sure many people who pick up a little about ‘positive thinking’ probably end up thinking and feeling the same way. It does seem hard, and unreal and indeed untrue to think or (supposedly better yet) say these hthings when they are patently not ‘yet’ the case…

And that’s the point — you are making a positive, present tense statement about something that is NOT yet the case — so yes you are correct it is not ‘yet’ true…

But the idea of using positive statements is one part of a complex set of personal strategies for adopting a mental framework that IMPROVES THE CHANCES that good things will happen and in time the statement you make WILL become true.

We all suffer negativity and negative periods of thought and feeling some times (even often!). When we are inured within our negative cocoon, it is almost certain that we are being too introspective to ’see opportunity’ or ‘appreciate small occasions of good fortune’ or make an impression that will ‘attract nice people’ (or make us appear ‘attractive’ to them)… This means we are shutting ourselves of from the possibility of accessing the ‘better’ route that our lives could be taking…

By trying to short-circuit the negativity — using positive affirmations and focusing on positive outcomes we are simply ‘opening up’ our awareness’ and increasing our chances of recognizing opportunity, devloping relations with nice people, making positive and better choices …and taking that ‘high road’ rather than the ‘low’ one!

So the answer to you final question must be — NO — you do not embrace your negativity. Of course recognize and accept that you have ‘moments’ or even ‘periods’ when negative thoughts may pervade your mind — don’t beat yourself up about this, its ‘normal’ (whatever that is? ;D) — but then push these thoughts and tendencies away using the techniques you are aware of, and focus on the positive and the good.

(Another simple thought is to remind yourself of these things: you may not consider that at the moment that you are “happy, rich, successful, sexy”… but at this moment in time — do you think that there may be others in his world who are less happy? less wealthy (however you define that)? less successful? less sexy? than you… If so then you are already better placed than some people and you need to ‘embrace a feeling of gratitude’ for that — On the other hand if you GENUINELY think you are the unhappiest, poorest, least succesful and least sexy person on the planet — then (besides the fact that this is probably a very vrong) you know that things can ‘only get better’ - and in that thought you should immediately become happier — and already you are in a better position than a moment before!!)

Attaining the things you desire — happiness, wealth, success, ’sexiness’ — is an ongoing process of opening yourself up to obtaining the best that life can offer, and positively taking opportunities that ‘reveal’ themselves to you every day… this is only going to happen if you keep on ‘persisting with’ a determined effort to ‘be positive’ no matter how hard the going gets…

Simply being positive every day — even if you reach the end of you life less weathy, successful or sexy than you once ‘dreamed’ of — makes you a happier person, and one who is ‘more likely’ to attarct positive things, positive people and have a positive aura (and THAT makes you sexy!!)… and one who will ultimately recognize that thay have indeed achieved ‘their postive happy life’ by the definition of the ‘new standards’ by which they they see the world. It’s a win-win situation!

Embracing negativity has only one outcome — a spiralling decline into disatisfaction, unhappiness and a feeling of a lack of fulfillment… that’s fairly obvious, I think.

Wishing you Love & Light!

You might also like to take a look at: http://keytothecode.com/