Scuttlebutt Pipeline

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This is just an absolute low for commercial products and capitalism:

Chinese authorities have told the FDA that the wheat gluten was an industrial product not meant for pet food, Sundlof said. Still, melamine can skew test results to make a product appear more protein-rich than it really is, he added. That raises the possibility the contamination was deliberate. (source)

FDA officials won’t know for sure until their visas to China are approved and they begin the inspection of the facilities, but the fact remains, there is a high probability that the food was deliberately contaminated just so the food would pass muster. Pathetic.

To top it off some of the melamine may have gotten placed into pig feed as well. The agent was found in pig urine at a pig farm and that farm has been quarantined. FDA officials are now looking into the possibility that the meat sold from that farm was contaminated.

Well there you have it folks, cell phones are bad for your health. No I’m talking about crazy drivers that drive around with a phone stuck to their ear, mouths running a mile a minute, and their common sense sitting on a table at home.

Although let’s be honest, they’re a real pain too.

Cell phone antennas use high frequency electromagnetic waves to communicate with base stations. The radiation emitted at these frequencies can’t break chemical bonds in your body’s cells, but there could be other biological effects. Some researchers are concerned because cell phone antennas concentrate their energy in a very small region against the head. If this is indeed a problem, children are at highest risk because they have thinner skulls than adults—and these days often have phones of their own.One study in the Annals of Neurology found that cell phones affect the brain’s electrical activity. Fifteen young men were exposed to cell phones that were turned either on or off. When the phones were on, neurons on the near side of their brain were slightly more active. The effect lasted for at least an hour. (source)

I’ve never much cared for my cellphone as I’m not keen on the lack of privacy, but this makes me even more leery about it. Ah well, I listen to music and play games on it more than anything else so I don’t feel too threatened.

But shesh, once word of this hits the general populace there will be even more texting going on then ever before! People don’t seem to realize that just because you’re not gabbing your jaws it’s still rude to be texting in the middle of activites. Classes, funerals, conversations - please have manners damnit!

Dear Science Fiction Writers,

I’m sorry to inform you that one of your most favored “ideas” to use as a plot device is no longer available to you as it is now being manipulated by the scientists who dictate reality. Although you are certainly welcome to continue utilizing it you must be aware that continued usage of this device will move your fantastic tales of fiction to the realm of non-fiction. I am of course talking about that infamous monkey wrench you love to toss into the gears of your protagonists, the manipulation of his memories.Hence forth, should you decide that your hero (or one of the supporting cast members) is to be captured by the evil vilian and their memory should be augmented, either by chemical or mechanical means, this scenario is no longer available as oh wow imagine if they really could concept, it is now fact.

Script and storyline writers for Days of Our Lives, Dark Angel, Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon (Sailor Moon), Kidou Senshi Gundam Seed Destiny (Gundam Seed Destiny) and so forth should also take note. I’m afraid your ever predictable and re-occurring vilianous erasing of memories is no longer “far out”. Though let’s be honest, it was becoming a bit too cliche and predictable anyway. Reality fans can now rejoice! That annoying plot device has now been moved to your realm of perception.

I understand that this message may be alarming, however, there is nothing wrong with your computer screen. Do not attempt to adjust your computer screen’s settings We now control the horizontal and the vertical. We can deluge you with a thousand painful memories or expand one single memory to crystal clarity - and beyond. We can shape your vision to anything our imagination can conceive or we can erase it. From now on we will control all that you see, hear, and remember. You are about to experience the awe and mystery which reaches from the deepest inner mind to… Reality.

To understand read this article . This raises an alarming amount of ethical questions. What right do we have, as human beings, to arbitrarily remove the memories of others? How can we be certain that this new methodology will not be used against us? Hence forth, how will anyone be 100% sure that the memories they hold are true?

If this isn’t enough to get your goat I don’t know what is. Apparently several stores nationwide are still peddling the tainted pet food to unsuspecting consumers. So if you thought it was safe to pick up what was on the shelves, because surely by now the tainted food is off the shelves, you were dead wrong.

WASHINGTON - Contaminated pet food is still being sold at some stores, U.S. health officials warned on Thursday after checking hundreds of retail outlets.The Food and Drug Administration said it had inspected about 400 stores nationwide and still found some dog and cat food products affected by last month’s recall by Canada-based pet food maker Menu Foods Income Fund and other manufacturers.

“FDA believes most companies have removed the recalled product; however, some have not,” the agency said in a statement. (source)

It just disgusts me to think that corporate America is so gung ho about making an extra buck that retailers are out there still peddling the contaminated food with no thought or care to innocent lives they’ll be destroying!

If you are a pet owner please be aware of the dangers of the food currently on the shelves. Visit the FDA’s official list of recalled pet products. Are you perhaps curious about making your own pet food? If you are thinking about it I recommend reading this post first.

With the massive recall of wet (and some dry) cat and dog food many pet owners are fearing for their pet’s health, and with good reason. So what is a concerned pet owner to do when they never know which pet food might be next on the list of contaminated foods? Why cook their own special goodies of course!

It’s a trend that is gaining momentum. Grinding up one’s own meat and mixing it with a variety of healthy supplements to give pets a well balanced and contaminate-free meal is easier than most think, the only key is to remember what is necessary in pet’s food and what things should be left out to avoid bacterial contamination. Arden More and Anne Davis’ book Real Food for Dogs: 50 Vet-Approved Recipees to Please the Canine Gastronome has jumped in rankings on Amazon.com and is the most widely sought after book for canine food recipes.

Vets recommend that you contact your veterinarian for assistance or turn to other valid sources before trying to whip up your own pet food. It is also recommended that you use this a temporary fix until the scare is passed.

View: AP article on home cooked meals for pets and recipes
View: Official FDA list of recalled pet foods