Columns

Column #307     June 23, 2021

Quality, like art and beauty, is often in the eye of the beholder. When it comes to evaluating diets and food, there are many beholders. The quality of the food we eat is defined by its hedonic rewards and/or by its homeostatic satisfaction. Hedonic describes the pleasures produced and homeostatic refers to how well the chemistry matches physical needs.

It wasn’t until I was 55 years old (1999) that I started focusing on the homeostatic approach to human health. At that time I was starting to hit the wall in terms of health and my conversion to understanding the importance of food chemistry was inspired by “Omega-3 Fatty Acids in Health and Disease and Growth and Development” by Dr. Artemis Simopoulos. I quickly discovered I had a lot to learn and a lot of changing to do.^{1 2}

Column# 306         July 16, 2021

Big Tech’s greed and manipulations for milking the system know no boundaries. Because Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Twitter, Apple, and similar international businesses are major players in every country in the world, all of humanity is experiencing the greatest concentration of power ever to be in the hands of so few people. Unfortunately, as these powerful monopolies grow bigger and more powerful they destroy free markets and freedom. In the process their lust for more money, power, and control can never be satisfied. Therefore, just like politicians, the greater their power, the more corrupt they become. Seeking to avoid the money-power trap is the reason why Steve Wozniak, cofounder of Apple Inc., gave away most of his vast fortune.¹

The greed and cold-hearted manipulation that grip the world’s monied oligarchs have gone too far. It’s so extreme these days they’ve even earned numerous enemies on both sides of the political aisle in many countries, which in itself is an unusual feat. As a result, there’s plenty of commentary being bandied about these days complaining about evil oligarchs who are blinded by hubris and greed.²

Column #305      July 9, 2021

A lot of folks, from both sides of the aisle, think they know the history of slavery. But what they know is mostly what’s in the MSM and what they remember from grade school. Very few people really know its history. In other words, what they don’t know would fill most of the history books ever written. So, let’s do a quick overview of slavery’s history and highlight some interesting points.

To begin with, slavery rarely occurred among hunter-gatherer populations. Mass slavery requires economic surpluses, upper and middle class members of society, and high population-density to be viable. That’s why it was only after the invention of agriculture during the Neolithic Revolution, about 11,000 years ago, that it became viable.¹

Column #304      July 2, 2021

There are natural balances in the solar system, the atmosphere, the ocean, the land, between animal and plant kingdoms, between nation states, world trade, finances at all levels, human relationships, personal health, and more. When natural balances are conflicted, chaos reigns. This also applies to diet.

Humans require a very finite balance of nutrients. In many instances their bodies can regulate certain nutrients such as salt, saturated fats, acidity, and more. But in certain cases bodies can’t synthesize essential requirements and they must eat them to have them. Without a proper balance of nutrients human bodies fail over time and those failures are called chronic diseases.

Column #303      June 25, 2021

People believe humans are intelligent beings, but history indicates that making sophisticated tools and toys is not the best measure for separating humans from animals. That’s because, unlike most animals in their natural state, humans can fall prey to some really crazy, self-destructive ideas.

Nearly every American goes to school for at least 12 years. In nearly all cases they are taught their State’s history, American history, and world history. Unfortunately, most students do not understand the purpose of history lessons nor the context of the history they’re taught. Worst of all, they can’t remember most of what they were taught. Every day we’re exposed to examples of historical ignorance and the consequences of that ignorance. Yet we do nothing about it even though most of us understand what that means. As Edmund Burke (1729-1797) said long ago: "Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it."

Column #302     June 18, 2021

Our minds are programable. If we do not program our minds on a daily basis, then someone else will program them for us and it might not be in our best interests. This column deals with mind control on a couple of levels—freedom and health.¹

There are influencers and influencing factors during our lives that have programed our minds and set the stage for how we program our minds going forward. Here’s a typical list:●    Parents, siblings, and other relatives.●    Church and religious beliefs.●    Friends and neighbors.●    Schools, summer camps, and teachers.●    Sports, coaches, and leisure time activities.●    Hobbies●    Our communities.●    Negative events.●    Positive events.●    Our attentiveness to current events and world history.●    The jobs we have done.

Column #301    June 11, 2021

The controversial Alzheimer's treatment called Aduhelm (aducanumab) won FDA approval last Monday via the accelerated approval pathway. By using this pathway, the agency approves a drug for a serious or life-threatening illness that may provide meaningful therapeutic benefit over existing treatments while there remains some uncertainty about the drug's clinical benefit. It’s similar to the approval process for the new COVID-19 vaccines.¹

Is this treatment for a chronic disease a huge breakthrough for its developer, Biogen, and a feather in the cap for the entire pharmaceutical industry? Or is it another big-time, moneymaking scam that will pay huge dividends to the pharmaceutical industry and cost patients and taxpayers alike? Well, it might not be a scam in that it is labeled as experimental and the side effects are well known. Yet, if it doesn’t actually work, then it’s a scam.

Column #300     June 4, 2021

I overheard an interesting comment recently. It was referring to the joy of being free of self-imposed restrictions on what to eat. The point was made in regards to no longer eating like a caveman with its many disadvantages. The diet of man labels you as weird, too many good things to eat must be avoided, social connections with friends are gravely compromised, and one needs to focus too much attention on food chemistry. All of those points can certainly be valid complaints.

But what is freedom? Does it imply no restrictions on your behavior whatsoever? The caveman was completely free—yet he wasn’t by a long shot. How could anyone survive in the wilds being totally free of self restraint? They can’t of course which is why there are jokes about Darwin’s law improving the species by thinning out the people who do foolish things.

Column #299     May 28, 2021

In today’s Wonderland world, people may be more disconnected from reality than ever before. One of the major disconnects is in the understanding of money. Ask 100 people to explain the classical attributes of money and I’d be surprised if even one person knew more than two or three. Simply saying money is gold, or silver, or greenbacks, or franks, or crypto does not explain even one attribute of money. And, how many people understand that money must fulfill every attribute, not just some of them?

What’s tricky about money is that unless you know what it is, what it isn’t, and what’s going on in the marketplace, you’re living in a Wonderland where you can be left up a creek without a paddle. The reason it’s so important to understand our Wonderland is that most people live in cites and do not have sustainable lifestyles. By that I mean they don’t even raise their own food or keep reserves of any kind on hand for emergencies. They are totally dependent on being able to purchase 100% of their day-to-day needs with cash flow or savings in order to survive. That’s why, as a business that relies on its customers, we want everyone to be sustainable which is why we’re addressing this topic.

Column #298     May 21, 2021

When we go to bed at night, we faithfully expect to wake up in the morning and go about our business. That’s why we make plans in advance. We have faith in the electricity working so we can perk the coffee. Obviously, there are many things we unconsciously have faith in without even thinking about it.

Once in awhile there’s a glitch. The other day, at a stop many miles from home, our car’s battery failed to hold a charge and the engine wouldn’t start. A quick jump from a good Samaritan and a stop at Autozone on our way home restored our faith in mankind, Autozone, the woman who installed the new battery, and the car with its new battery.