Not So Kosher

Almost anything anyone buys at stores carries one of the above symbols or a variation, yet very few consumers know what the symbols mean. According to the largest kosher company in the United States, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations, “over $150 billion of kosher certified products are consumed annually, and spending continues to rise dramatically” (Getting par. 1).
Why would companies go through the process of becoming Kosher? Here’s what the company thinks:
There is clear evidence that a kosher symbol boosts market share, that a kosher product can win more favorable shelf space, and that positioned next to a competing non-kosher brand, a kosher product will do better by 20%. This data has remained constant even in the smaller cities, far from heavier concentrations of kosher Jews. (Source: Integrated Marketing Communications.) …Most importantly, be sure that all your certified products, whether retail or industrial, feature the logo prominently on the label or packaging, as well as in your advertising. This will not only help your sales, but will also make your products easily identifiable as kosher by food industry personnel, kosher inspectors, and consumers throughout the world (Getting par. 3-5).
This may be true among Jews, but it seemed to both frighten and infuriate those who had never known about kosher symbols.
It is this knowledge that has and continues to fan the flame of conspiracy ideas. The Anti-Defamation League, a group that works to defend Israel and Jews, has a section on their website solely to what they call the “kosher tax myth.” They cite a 1975 study by New York Times that says that consumers pay less than 1% more money on kosher products than non-kosher products (ADL par. 6). The A.D.L. says that “the profit from these products goes, of course, to the companies that manufacture them and the stores that sell them, not to ‘the Jews’” (ADL par. 7). They then dedicate the majority of the page to saying that all information about a kosher tax scam is from Anti-Semites and therefore should be discarded.
When I googled “kosher tax,” I arrived at a website by a group called Aztlan that did seem to be Anti-Semitic. The author of the article described what seemed to be a common response to finding the symbols on everything:
On arriving at my residence, I immediately went to the pantry to verify that what I had just learned was actually true. Sure enough, most of the packaged and canned foods from major companies, like Proctor & Gamble and others, did have the (U), the (K) or other similar markings. The Arrowhead water bottle, the instant Folgers Coffee, the Kelloggs box, the Jiff Peanut Butter, the Pepper container, the Trader Joe's tea box and even the Glads plastic sandwich bags carton had the (U) or (K) mark on them (Cienfuegos par. 2).
Aztlan describes the “kosher tax scam” in detail:
I learned that major food companies throughout America actually pay a Jewish Tax amounting to hundreds of million of dollars per year in order to receive protection. This hidden tax gets passed, of course, to all non-Jewish consumers of the products. The scam is to coerce the companies to pay up or suffer the consequences of a Jewish boycott. … The amount of money that the non-Jewish consumer has paid the food companies to make up for the hidden Jewish Tax is unknown, but it is estimated to be in the billions since the scam first started. The Orthodox Jewish Councils as well as the food companies keep the amount of the fees very secret. The Jewish owned Wall Street Journal wrote about the problem many years ago, but they have stopped writing about it now (Cienfuegos pars. 4, 9).

Workshop Papers

Remember to grab a copy of Ian's and Jocelyn's papers on the Monday after Thanksgiving. They will be available outside my office in DCC 106.

Sports or a Future?

I think education institutions should not give scholarships to athletes. Sports should be encouraged, but not through money. Isn't getting in shape and enjoying exercise benefit enough? By giving athletes money, we are telling them "hey this is what you need to do to be successful." Way to lie them. Truth is, they aren't going to get shit.

Nobody is going to pro, so I don't understand why they try so hard. Maybe their trying to meet expectations from their parents or friends, but they aren't going to pro. That said, why just add to their misery by giving them the idea that they are "doing the right thing in life." An athlete can get a full scholarship with a 2.0 GPA--a 2.o. That's pitiful.

Society should reward those people wishing to take on the demands of society. Those wishing to be dentists, doctors, nurses, etc. I'll tell you what society doesn't need, another washed up athlete re-living glory days. Those come in a box for a nickel. Does the school think that these athletes are really going to help out society coming in at a 2.0? Maybe a couple. I'd rather give money ONLY to those that have proven their academic ability, not to those that are painfully watching their athletic hopes die.

Fritz Springmeier

Would Springmeier write countless books and speeches on conspiracy theories to attract women? For money? I think the larger question remains, has Fritz Springmeier always been mentally ill? Why would he write so many books pretending to know the truth? Why would he try and predict the future? Do his books and teachings have anything of value? Maybe he was a possible C.I.A. agent deliberately confusing people and making things up? Welcome to the wonderful world of conspiracy theories. I wanted to know what the author, John S. Torell, thought, so I interviewed him:
What was your first impression of Fritz?
“The man is very insecure, and therefore he is always looking to be in control. I met him at a conference, where both of us were speakers. He wanted to dominate the conference, and refused to stop speaking when histime was up. The result was that I was not able to speak.”
Do you think he was always mentally deranged?
“Because of his sinful living he has been given a reprobate mind. He is addicted to sexual perversion and is using his so called ‘skills’ to trap women having come out from mind control, to use them for his own sexual appetite.”
How do you think he became mentally ill?
“His problem is not mental illness, but he is demonized and not in control of his own life.”
Could he have been a possible C.I.A. agent?
“It is very possible that from the beginning he himself was abused and controlled by an organization like the C.I.A.”
Do you think he deliberately obscured his ideas?
“I do not know how much you know about evil spirits. My understanding is that the man is controlled by evil spirits, who are giving him the material to speak on and write about. Fritz is unable to live a healthy life and he has made many ‘stupid’ decisions in his life, but the intelligence we see in his writings and speaking is not him, but Satanic intelligence.”
Why would he do this?
“Satan wants to deceive and lead people astray. A person like Fritz is a great tool in Satan's arsenal.”
Are his books still worth reading, given that some of his ideas areapocryphal?
“There are so many lies and wrong information in his writings, and for that reason I would not use them for reference. Every fact has to be checked and I would rather use other sources which I know are not that polluted.
You mentioned a possible cover-up—has there been any recent developments with that idea?
“If Fritz has been an agent for some organization, it is obvious that he has outlived his usefulness and guiding him to get into a bank robbery that was doomed to fail from the beginning is a nice way to take a person out of ‘circulation’ without having to kill him.”

An Experience With Death

Every morning in 9th grade I had to walk (or sometimes skate) a mile of hills to get to school. Mornings were hell, reality in the morning came in shifts. Often I would microwave an empty plate or put handsoap on my toothbrush instead of toothpaste. I left my house, like I always do, feeling naucious from the mix of orange juice, the smell of toothpaste, and a sleep deprived headache.

The morning fog is strong this morning. My stomach acts up more than usual and my throat becomes weak and drained. My body convulses and I throw up two streets from my house. I shake it off and keep my pace.

I head down a hill and I see lights glaring through the fog. I want to figure out if it's a police car or an ambulance, anything to give me motivation to keep walking towards school. The fog fades around the ambulance and a smashed car appears. A chinese man is talking to a paramedic, filling out paperwork.

My imagination tries to fill-in a story of what could have happened. This clearly is after the fact, the car and dented garage doors are artifacts of a possible tragedy. As I walk by the car, I see a man inside with his face against the stearing wheel. His skin looks like the color of dried seeweed.

I look at the man a few more seconds then look away. I try and actively avoid seeing things that will traumatize me the rest of my life, but the image never left my head, except during school. I went through school that day, like any other day, forgetting what I saw that morning. When I walked by the spot of the accident on my way home, I thought to myself, "I saw a dead man this morning."

Online for Thursday

Online Describe some vivid physical or emotional experience you’ve had, something like riding on a rollercoaster or being in an accident.

Assignment Change

READ the Stunt Pilot p167
How does Dillard describe him in a way that reflects his skill and daring? Why does she choose these metaphors?
Do you get a clear picture of the metaphor?
What does Dillard learn about the nature of Art?
One incident is out of chronological order (the last); why does Dillard do this?

Marcus Taylor (Codename: Bama)

So what's your name?
"Marcus Taylor"

Where ya from?"
"Elba Alabama"

What's your major?
"History"

What do you want to do with History?
"I want to be a teacher."

What type of history do you like the best?
"World History."

What part of the world in particular?
"Europe?"

All Europe? English history? Spanish history?
"All Europe."

Good same here. What persons do you find interesting in European History?
"Winston Churchill, Hitler, Stalin."

If you could do a biography on anyone who would it be?
"Napoleon."

Good choice! Why Napoleon?
"He's interesting."

How is he interesting?
"Powerful, did a lot of intersting things."

You know he led an expidition to Egypt and ended up uncovering the Rosetta Stone that led to deciphering Egyptian hieroglyphics?
"Yeah I like interesting things like that. You can find war things anywhere, but stuff like that I like because it's different."