Chapters Four (TSIS), 12 and 13 (OD)

Chapter four in They Say, I Say tells you how to reply to someone’s research. There are three different techniques which are to agree, disagree or both agree and disagree while still getting across your point. The authors also showed that interpretive responses aren’t the bluntest to about agreeing or disagreeing but it is a good way for you to take a side. I liked how it gave me ideas about how to agree with my response, a novel idea, or to strengthen how I disagree with an author in future papers. Overall I learned a lot from this chapter for my upcoming essays.
In the Omnivore’s Dilemma, chapters 12 and 13, Pollan talked about the ‘small organic’ business. He revealed that it is quite a bit better than ‘big organic’ companies but still not perfect. He talks about CO-OP’s and how they aren’t exactly local, such as the yack meat in Moscow Idaho. Then he talks about the USDA and this chapter I kind of felt he was questing the importance and effectiveness. Overall I thought that these chapters were fairly dry, as much of the book, and a struggle to get through. He makes some good points but tends to beat a dead horse with repetition.

Chapter 9 Reading

The reading this week of The Omnivore’s Dilemma was very thought provoking. I have never really thought much about organic foods in terms of where they come from or how they are handled. I, under false pretences, assumed that the “free range” chicken spent the majority of the time outdoors not in practically the same conditions as non-organic chicken. I also had the same picture of organic produce of coming from family farms that sold to large corporations, not a massive farm that employed migrant workers. To say the least this was a very eye opening reading and, quite frankly, made me distrust the organic industry.
However, I do see all the good that has come because of the organic industry. Down the road the soil will still be fertile and able to grow healthy crops. When eating organic foods, even though they cut corners, I am not ingesting pesticides but instead vitamin rich foods.
Still, this does not affect me for the most part. I do not get to choose where my food comes from since I live in the dorms and have virtually every meal at the cafeterias. Therefore I do not get to pick if I eat processed, organic, or beyond organic foods it is just given to me.

January 25th Reading

I choose to write only on The Omnivore's Dilemma reading. More specifically just chapter two of the book. This is because this was a very intriguing chapter with a lot of detail and interesting information. The author, Michael Pollan, talks dives into the corns takeover of the farm due to multiple variables. Pollan lifts the veil topics that many Americans know nothing or very little about.

Pollan discusses how farms used to be with multiple crops and supporting just the farmers family and twelve others, now one farmer supports 129 with their crop. He also discusses the many other vast changes in the make-up of Indiana farms as well as farms nationwide. This is due largely in part because of a man named Fritz Haber who figured out how to use nitrogen for fertilizer. Because of this invention corn can be grown more efficiently and in tighter places than ever before.

Another major reason why corn has taken over farms everywhere is because of the government subsidies which has lead to farmers being forced to grow corn over other vegetables because the government will pay for someone to lose a lot of money growing corn rather than a bit on a different product. There are many other interesting facts in this chapter but those were just the main ones.