IndexMetathesis and its development/evidenceCredibility and biases of the authorWhy should we trust what he says?Understanding and connectionsMetathesis and its development/evidenceThe overall thesis of the book is is to expand hidden information about the creation and planning of food in America. Schlosser argues that consumerism and corporate greed have turned America's personality into a dull vacancy in looking at the admissions of the food that makes this country. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Speaking with McDonald's executive and founder of the fast food industry, Carl N. Karcher, "My whole philosophy is: never give up...see that the pennies and dollars will take care of themselves... .Life is good…This is how I feel every day of my life.” When he said this quote, he was millions of dollars in debt, but he still thought life was wonderful. This was the beginning, when there wasn't 'was corporate greed. He included this quote because he wanted to show that big corporations and executives were not always corrupt. The beginning of corporate greed began with a businessman who made McDonald's the most successful franchise globally: Ray A. Kroc helped merge Disney Land (which was not well known at the time) with McDonald's to help both companies get more money. McDonalds became less popular; There were better and cheaper places to eat. To get more business they targeted children, thinking they were the easiest minds to fool. Thus began the exploitation of children by fast food managers. “These jobs are for the less wealthy, young adults and the elderly.” This excerpt from the book aids Schlosser's argument about the conditions and compensation of working under money-hungry executives. Given the conditions of these employees, managers can take advantage of them by lowering their pay and making them work overtime. The poor conditions have given rise to labor laws according to which “persons under the age of 18 cannot work more than 8 hours a day”. To get around these laws, managers would force their employees to clock in, then work two extra hours to help clean up. Working at a fast food restaurant used to be “high class,” but due to the amount of robberies, injuries, and hours teenagers had to work, it became “bottom of the pile.” Kids who worked in fast food restaurants began dropping out of school and seemed more depressed. Dave Feamster, the manager of Little Caesars, gave employees days off and took them to "success festivals" because he wanted his employees to see that there was more out there back then I just worked for a pizza place. Feamster started the trend of giving employees breaks and saying the workplace is fun. He presents a counterargument that not all managers/executives are greedy and ignore employees' needs. Technology began to develop and canned and frozen foods became more popular. When frozen frying was invented, it was sold to so many restaurants to reduce preparation time, so that companies could make more profits and reduce the time. “Today people eat on average about 49 pounds of potatoes each year.” another fact is that “90% of the money spent on food is processed food”. The reason why the author included these facts was to show how much people depended on processed foods and to make people more aware. WhenMcDonald's made its first French fries, which consisted of 7% cottonseed oil and 93% beef tallow. When the public found out they were disgusted and used vegetable oil and “natural flavors” instead. People didn't seem to mind not knowing what "natural flavors" were. Although most people believe that natural flavors are healthier than artificial flavors, they are actually very similar. “Natural flavors and artificial flavors sometimes contain exactly the same chemicals, produced through different methods.”“...Before putting the strips under my nose, I closed my eyes...Grainger's most notable creation me took me by surprise...Suddenly I smelled a grilled hamburger...When I opened my eyes, there was only a narrow strip of paper and a smiling flavorist. This narrative helps reveal that just because it says "peach yogurt" doesn't necessarily mean it contains peach. It shows us how volatile the American flavor industry can be. Schlosser helps the public understand what they eat when they purchase something like a hamburger. That what they smell is just a chemical aroma, rather than a natural one. “In America, independent ranchers have become an endangered species.” This quote refers to how large multinational corporations used unfair methods to drive down livestock prices: sharing information about livestock, conspiring to divide markets, secretly fixing prices. The Beef Trust is an alliance of four major companies: ConAgra, IBP, Excel and National Beef. These four corporations slaughter 84 percent of the nation's livestock. As these four corporations fight against all independent breeders, most go out of business. The suicide rate of ranchers and farmers in the United States is three times higher than the national average. A good example to demonstrate this fact is Hank. Schlosser mentions a rancher he met named Hank. When she first met him she described him thus: "...He was a prominent local rancher...Hank was forty-two years old and handsome enough to be a Hollywood cowboy...he was too intelligent to fit any stereotype. He had strong opinions, but he didn't take himself too seriously... He wasn't rich... in his opinion, good ranchers did much less damage to the land than city dwellers... And I thought, "This guy is one day I'll be governor"." A year later he died. He took his own life because of monopoly power in the meat processing industry. Due to the forces of bankrupting independent farmers. From tax laws that favor breeders. Rich corporate leaders are corrupt and drive away all good-hearted independent farmers. When the author begins his journey through the slaughterhouse, it looks similar to what you would see in a supermarket. But as he looks deeper into the house, he is surprised by the conditions: workers standing inches apart with long electric knives, slicing chunks of meat, standing in pools of blood – just inches deep. The conveyor belts (especially at the IBP plant) move so fast that workers slice about 400 cattle in an hour. Because the belt is so fast, workers are susceptible to more injuries. “Meatpacking will become the most dangerous job in the United States. Every year one in three meatpackers are injured, out of 43,000 workers.” This is due to the speed of the belt, the hours worked and the space between workers. All because these executives want to maximize their profits. “If a worker gets injured, the supervisor will make them a settlement. If workers agree not to report injuries, the supervisor,.