poignant irony
Another typical tangent before I get to the point: I've been hesitant to use the word "irony" ever since Alanis Morissette made the term too popular to be used accurately. I'm going to brave it now.
In one of my many trips to the grocery store last week, I noticed that a stack of wine crates advertised their support of finding a cure for prostate cancer. I entertain zero thoughts of alcohol's health benefits, and several of its many detriments; it seems a stick in my side that alcohol funds good things, from the Olympics to finding a cure for cancer. Why can't healthy foods fund these things? Probably because America doesn't consume enough healthy foods to compete with the revenue from alcohol. The frustrating thing is that if America ate more healthy foods, the risk of many illnesses, including cancer, would decrease.
Another snapshot: I was waiting at a red light, and a man on the street was asking for donations. The car in front of me rolled down the window and gave him a cigarette. Ludicrously, I was touched that the driver gave the man anything at all, while at the same time becoming very cynical about the gift. A cigarette can't offer shelter, or nutrition, or a chance out of his situation. Great, I thought, to show humanity's compassion on guys off the street, we offer them carcinogens.
The sad thing? Technically I had the same chance to help that guy, to give him, at the least, a chance of a good meal. Technically, the cash registers at the grocery store ask if I would like to make a donation to prostate cancer. I didn't. So technically, I can't point any fingers.
In one of my many trips to the grocery store last week, I noticed that a stack of wine crates advertised their support of finding a cure for prostate cancer. I entertain zero thoughts of alcohol's health benefits, and several of its many detriments; it seems a stick in my side that alcohol funds good things, from the Olympics to finding a cure for cancer. Why can't healthy foods fund these things? Probably because America doesn't consume enough healthy foods to compete with the revenue from alcohol. The frustrating thing is that if America ate more healthy foods, the risk of many illnesses, including cancer, would decrease.
Another snapshot: I was waiting at a red light, and a man on the street was asking for donations. The car in front of me rolled down the window and gave him a cigarette. Ludicrously, I was touched that the driver gave the man anything at all, while at the same time becoming very cynical about the gift. A cigarette can't offer shelter, or nutrition, or a chance out of his situation. Great, I thought, to show humanity's compassion on guys off the street, we offer them carcinogens.
The sad thing? Technically I had the same chance to help that guy, to give him, at the least, a chance of a good meal. Technically, the cash registers at the grocery store ask if I would like to make a donation to prostate cancer. I didn't. So technically, I can't point any fingers.
I love your blog and its randomness. It always makes me smile. PS I am still waiting for a video from your talent show!
ReplyDeleteTamanna, I'm still waiting on the video too! I've tried to upload it several times, but so far no go
ReplyDelete