I was invited to do a presentation on Clean Food
for a Ulster County Arts Council Conference entitled Pampering Your Inner
Artist. And then president Bush launched his invasion of Iraq. After I puked a
few times, I threw out my essay entitled Cerebral Energy Foods and wrote this
rant instead.
Why We Need Clean Food
By Ric Orlando
New World Home Cooking Co.
Ric TV
Inc.
Saugertstock Publishing
3/20/2003
I have been thinking about the concept of pampering the inner
artist, how it relates to food and what I can contribute to this conference. I
worked hard and prepared a presentation on the physical and psychological
benefits of eating clean food, and how it helps provide energy and clarity-and
then yesterday came now it all seems somewhat absurd.
I am supposed to talk about to you about pampering yourself
and then our Country embarks on a brutal invasion of a third world country,
using billions of dollars worth of military might.
How does that make you feel? If you feel rage, angst, fury, or
frustration it is safe to say that you are not alone.
Every day, without thinking, we support this war machine and
these insidious people whose mission it is to control the world's resources.
Today it is oil, tomorrow it will be food.
But remember, you are the artists-and this is your time. You
are the ones to be the first to make a statement at this obvious injustice
Think of Guernica, think of the poetry and music of the '60s,
think of the dark, underground art of the Reagan '80s. This is your time to
make a statement.
And that part-making a statement-brings me to what I was
invited to speak about. Let's talk about how to use food to make a statement!
And if making a statement pampers your inner artist, hey-we are on the right
page
Sometimes, simply easing your mind is a form of pampering
yourself.
When you know you are doing the right thing, you have less
anxiety and stress and in a way that is a form of pampering your inner
artist.
So, what can you do?
Every day you eat, I hope! Every day, you drink beverages,
coffees, teas, juices. Do you ever consider the impact of your choices? Are you
contributing the wholesale rape and pillage of the world's resources or are you
standing up for those who are the world's stewards? This is a question that we
all must ask ourselves. It is our IMPACT which makes us survive. It is our
IMPACT that makes a difference.
To have impact beyond what you can imagine I suggest that you
EAT CLEAN FOOD!
These products, what I call CLEAN food, include, local,
artisan and organic foods. They include heirloom varieties of food that
preserve traditional methods and cultural diversity. They include sustainable
seafood choices, small farm-pastured meats that have been produced by humane
methods and organic dairy that sustains our green lands. They include products
from farms that compost, sell back their methane and take other steps to
preserve our environment. EATING CLEAN FOOD IS A STATEMENT FOR THE HEALTH OF
THE ARTIST AND THE HEALTH OF THE WORLD.
When you consider what to keep in your cupboards or which
café to eat in think about which companies are profiting from the money
you spend. And think about where those profits are being spent.
So : Who is supporting the dismantling of the world?
There is a very complex web of companies who are-and many of
us know who they are. ADM, Dow, Monsanto, Philip Morris, Cargill, and Dupont
are the main guys that we all know from listening to Bill Moyers but there are
many more.
So, how do you, a watercolor artist from Kingston, NY make a
difference? How do you avoid giving them your money?
YOU make the commitment to buy clean food! MAKE A STATEMENT
with your spending. Buy local and organic products to eat. At this stage, many
of the small farmers are still the stewards of a sane future. YOUR HEALTH as an
artist depends upon our global health.
Every penny you spend on CLEAN FOOD helps send a message to
the BIG BOYS that we are still out there.
Organic food from regional sources is the only way to go.
Cafés that commit to buying from local and organic sources are in there
with you. Independent grocers and health food stores are your allies.
Understand that CONVENIENCE sets off a chain of repercussions
that, when you actually think about them, can make you sick. The price of
convenience is cheap food that exploits the world's environment, its resources
and its people. Convenience also contributes greatly to pollution.
Think about it. Spread the word. Many small businesses don't
really think this through. Enlighten them. Ask for fair trade coffee, ask for
local produce, ask for sustainable seafood. Ask them to stop using styrofoam
containers. Ask for you cream in a pitcher instead of a plastic creamer! Every
little step you take pampers your inner artist because you know that you are
helping to create a sustainable world. We need a sustainable world. No World,
No art!
