Monday
Feb112013
by 
Josh
Josh Climate change fast & loose food - Josh 203
Feb 11, 2013 Climate: RP Jnr Josh 
Roger Pielke Jr has a must read post on the link between the UK's horsemeat in burgers scandal and Climate change, which is both timely and clever. And it inspired this cartoon.
Many thanks Roger!
Reader Comments (26)
Nice one!
'In teaser adverts promoting its "Whopper Virgins" challenge, the fast food chain describes how it sought out farmers in rural Romania, ...'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3546969/Burger-King-under-fire-for-Whopper-Virgins-taste-test-challenge.html
Where is the cheesy filler, the heavily salted data?
Actually, the key problem is not the horsemeat in the beef per se. That is a scandal, true. Probably a criminal fraud. But, hey, criminal frauds happen. We know that human systems fail, and humans commit crimes.
The real problem here is far deeper. The UK used to have a comprehensive food checking system at all stages of production and consumption, like the US, which would have picked this fraud up long before it had become endemic. But, under EU rules, this checking system was closed down.
Instead, the EU Single Market rules are now applied. This means that food is checked at production, then certified with a CE label. So long as it has this label, it can be sold anywhere in the EU, and cannot be rejected by any country. No further testing needs to be done, or, indeed, is allowed to be done. This is intended to suppress individual countries favouring their own produce.
Of course what happens is that the CE labels can now be awarded in countries where the checking is, perhaps, a little lax. Think Italian Mafia, or Eastern Bloc crime gangs. There the meat can be designated as anything - prime Scotch Beef, if you pay the right figure, and shipped to the part of Europe paying the most for that commodity. The EU system actively encourages fraud. And there is nothing that the UK, or another largely law-abiding country can do about it. Because they no longer have the freedom to police their own trade between EU countries.
But, hey, when the UK signed up for the EU a few people complained that this union involved a lack of freedom. And they were ignored. Now the rest of us can see what was meant. But, alas, too late...
The Geezer has it.
Was there not something else with a similar origin? Exploding breast implants or some such?
Well, this catastrophic social mania is from an exploding wallet implant.
====================
Yes, it's Gummer's redux.
Seems a reasonable moment to tell one of the silliest jokes I've heard on the crisis:
Man behind counter: And what would you like on the burger, sir?
Customer: Five pounds each way.
Roger Pielke's piece is brilliant. Lying is wrong. Useful to know.
We're OK, my wife insists on free-reinged.
for best horsemeat coverage, see Richard North
My favourite is still the customer who asked a young Tesco assistant for some Red Rum. He went off to ask his supervisor...
Too late- they're off!
What do a Green and a burger have in common?
Nag, nag, nag.
Nothing to worry about. I don't suppose the Camerons will be cooking up Tesco value spaghetti bolognese with Romanian horse meat any time soon, only peasants. Same with the millions of other cheap Romanian products coming this way next year.
Under the one nation Tories like MacMillan (and *Wilson) we had full employment and a vibrant society that gave rise to The Who and the mini skirt . That was before our colonial cousins destroyed it.
Why did De Gaul refuse British entry into the EU ? Because it would be a Trojan horse for ....the Americans Who pushed for EU enlargement for their Eastern rendition friendly satellites ... the Americans . Who is pushing Cameron to stay in the EU - the Americans.
Who is ultimately responsible for the horse meat in Findus lasagne ?
Didn't we use to hang traitors ?
*A 2006 BBC documentary (the plot against Harold Wilson) claimed MI5 pushed Wilson out of office with false information from you know who.
josh and ssat, the seeds and the "nag,nag,nag" really made this evening. Bravo.
and thanks.
The scandal has spread to B and Q, who are concerned about a particular flooring product: it might have laminate. ('Lamb in it'........tumbleweed...)
My doctor told me I should watch what I eat. so I bought tickets for the Grand National.
There was I thinking that AGW was 100% bull.
Pharos: Yes, it's Gummer's redux.. Almost -- an action shot of Deben force feeding it to a teenager would complete the picture.
As Richard IIIrds skeleton was revealed in the Leicester car park, it was heard to say 'A burger, A burger, my Kingdom for a Burger'...
According to the Chief Medical Officer, it's all perfectly safe, even though she's not entirely sure what 'it' comprises. I hear today that donkey may be involved... (poor Eeyore)
I think it is great news that the mystery of Shergar's fate has finally been solved.
I love those Tesco burgers. But they give me the trots.
The funny thing is, it's probably British horse-meat. We have exported horses to the Continent for human consumption for many a year.
The thing which has made me chuckle has been this: the French would always sniffily have us believe that they always buy their ingredients from local markets; insist on the highest quality; etc, etc - but lo and behold their supermarket freezers are stuffed with this rubbish the same as ours..!
Quel surpris...
A Josh Work arrives, for me and for you.
So multi-coloured, and out of the blue
As sharp as a knife, and gentle like dew
Some insights familiar, but almost all new
Just marks with a crayon...
. . . . . . yet how brilliant and true!
John, that's a keeper, and very kind, thank you ;-)