Poultry Industry Clucking Over Food INC
This past week has been astronomically enlightening to say the least. Food INC was finally shown to the public in my neck of the woods and has raised hoopla to red alert status.
Most strongly conveyed to me is that the movie is skewed against the poultry industry and it’s felt that my part in the movie is not really what happens on the farm and what is happening to contract growers across the country.
The film crew followed me around for two days while I did the daily work on the farm. What was captured on film was not anything different from the normal daily routine. I’m in no way shape or form an “actress”, did not play a “role or part” in the film, and I didn’t go to Hollywood to audition. I’m just an ordinary every day farmer who spoke out when many farmers couldn’t!
For the poultry segment of Food INC two of the largest companies in the poultry industry “DECLINED” to be interviewed. In my book that is not skewing the movie it’s producing something which was unable to include any view-point of what the poultry industry now whines about.
Opinions are like other things and everyone has one. The last I heard we are entitled to them. Differing thoughts are what evokes dialogue about issues and eventually middle ground can be reached which addresses “EVERYONES” concerns. I believe that is considered to be the democratic process in this country which our forefathers fought for. It’s civilized behavior.
What I found utterly amazing in my little part of the world was the almost entire news media blackout about the showing of the movie and the discussion forums which followed. Only one brave local television station, WMDT, showed their face at Salisbury University and their headline was “Controversial Film Showing in Salisbury” (MD). Most news is controversial!
I have to wonder why it took almost 3 years to show an Oscar nominated and Emmy Award winning film to the local public and why the local news media shied away from speaking about it. It’s also been said that pressure was put on the University to not host the event.
Food INC is a controversial documentary and it’s thought provoking. The movie and the issues about food that it addresses are much bigger than me, the poultry industry, or the company I contracted with. The poultry industry is only a cog in a huge wheel that produces our food. The movie provides people with information and arouses the thought process. From that people can make individual choices and decisions about their own life.
Since the local showing of the film I’ve had to be a big girl and had to suck it up over the personal disparagement that I’ve heard. Today I was told that I’m not as pristine as what I portray myself to be. Meaning what, I’m not sure. However I seriously thought about it and have to say that I agree with my accuser.
Pristine – According to Merriam Webster –
- belonging to the earliest period or state : original
- a: not spoiled, corrupted, or polluted (as by civilization) : pure
b: fresh and clean as or as if new
Good Googa Mooga! Folks I hate to burst your bubble if anyone thought that of me. Over the past 55 years I have been spoiled, polluted, and corrupted by many things. My girlhood visions of everything is beautiful and la la land does exist (my earliest period of state) disappeared a long time ago. Yes, my dreams have been spoiled, my brain has been corrupted, and my life has been polluted by many things that made me think one way only to find out that in reality – the way was entirely different. There is nothing left of my mind that was introduced into this world as fresh and clean. Cynical yes, pristine no!
Seriously, I’ve been called many things over the years from communist to socialist, animal rights activist to vegetarian, anti-farmer to running a concentration camp for chicken’s, and the really bad word environmentalist. The list goes on…. Running the gauntlet of name calling is one way of me achieving non-pristine-ness. It’s never fresh or clean. I’ve generally taken this in stride and operated under the saying of “you can call me anything you like just don’t call me late for dinner”. I’m thinking that this motto will have to be changed maybe I could add-on to the end of the saying “and please don’t call me pristine”.
