It's been a long time since we had a guest post on Inside Zebster. Hopefully this nice piece by LadyA will be the first of more to come. She points out in the piece below something that we don't as American consumers want to think about...we just want it cheap. How long has it been since the standard of living for the middle class and below in this country even came close to keeping pace with the cost of living?
Please welcome Lady A and leave any comments you'd like.
"For those currently engaged in debate over the “illegal alien” issue, I offer this:
You forget your history. The entire original infrastructure of this country was built on slave/cheap imported labor. From the plantations in the south to the rail lines in the west, land/company owners have never paid decent wages if they weren't required to. As long as American consumers want the lowest prices, regardless of the wages paid to the producers of said products; and American stock holders want the highest returns on their investments, regardless of the working conditions and benefits offered to the employees of said companies; American employers will have to look for sources for the lowest wages. When American consumers are finally willing to pay the>true< full price of the goods and services they consume, there will no longer be a need for employers in this country to employ these illegals.
After I posted the above commentary on my Facebook the other day, I had a conversation with friends regarding compulsory education for our children between the ages of 8-16. I was again reminded that without laws to prevent it, our business owners will employ the most vulnerable members of the population without regard to ethical practices."
3 comments:
We subsidize corn in this country to the point where it's so cheap, it's in everything. I have a child who's allergic to gluton and, believe me, it's nearly impossible to find any foods that don't contain corn.
Very nicely written, LadyA
Corn is so cheap that a gallon of water may cost three times as much as a two-liter bottle of soda at the supermarket. How can something with additives be so much cheaper?
High fructose corn syrup is in just about anything we buy at the supermarket. And people wonder why we have obesity/weight-related health problems in this country.
As for labor, in the past ten years I've seen every company that I or my friends have worked for take money and/or benefits away to the point where no one is happy with their jobs. And if it weren't for labor laws and unions things would be much worse if corporations could get away with it.
Oh, and "partially hydrogenated soy and/or cotton seed oil," that's in everything too. If you are trying to avoid soy, it's almost impossible. You do get to miss out on almost all of the prepared and "convenience" items in the grocery store, which might not be a bad thing.
The issue of genetically modified foods deserves some "air" time too. Most of the countries in the European union have outright banned them, yet we seem to have no problem with having them in our food chain... I wonder about our obesity issue, and how much of it is due to genetically modified foods our systems just aren't able to digest. Of course, sedentary lifestyles don't help, but...
(Lady A here)
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