Since I switched over to my local progressive radio station rather than NPR, I've really enjoyed the change, with one or two exceptions. I could do without the vaccine fearmongering from Ring of Fire, or the many gold-selling ads (especially after the Glenn Beck revelations about them). And I have a hard time listening to Hollywood Clout, with Richard Greene, for two reasons. He pushes quack ideas a lot and has quacks on his show, which I think could be harmful to anyone looking for medical advice who doesn't have access to a doctor. And he sometimes takes an "I'm better than you because I don't eat meat" attitude. It's hard enough having food allergies without having some media figure criticizing your morals ... for being sick.
But what he suggested last night was incredibly frightening. Mr. Greene suggested that meat should all sell at $90/lb., and said the suggestion came from a famous media doctor, Dr. Oz. Now, I couldn't find any evidence that Dr. Oz actually said this, but the very idea of my only major protein going up to $90/lb. made my blood run cold.
My allergies, unfortunately, have expanded to most non-meat proteins. Not only can I not eat eggs or any milk products, but I can't have nuts, seeds, or peanuts. (The main problem with nuts is that they're all processed together...I know I'm allergic to pistachios, but that's enough to bar me from eating any other kind of nut as well.) While I can eat wheat, to my knowledge that's not enough protein to sustain me. Nor is the soy in the products I like. I honestly and truly hate tofu in just about all its manifestations that aren't desserts, and you can't make all your meals into desserts...and the only things I hate more than tofu are peas and beans.
I've also found that meat is one of the most likely foods to be safe for me. Baked goods? Nope. Cake mixes? Ha. The only meat I'm allergic to is pork, and most other meats don't appear to be processed with it...and if they are, they're labelled as such. When cross-contamination is a real issue, safe foods are comforting.
I'll also admit I like eating meat. I've already had to give up a lot of foods I enjoy and have had since childhood, from yogurt and cheeses to sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. I don't know if I could handle, psychologically, having to give up even more foods I like. As it is, I've spent days without eating because I had developed a new allergy and was afraid that it would take another food I like away from me. I can't imagine giving up foods at this point that I don't have to.
Don't get me wrong. I am opposed to factory farming and cruel treatment of animals. I don't believe in destroying the planet, either. But I don't believe in destroying me. And I think there's a real possibility that if I couldn't get my protein from meat, I wouldn't get enough protein.
I'm sure there aren't many people with my problems, either. Most people with involuntary food differences, like people with celiac disease, could easily find other things to eat. But if meat ever were to get to $90/lb. ... well, let's hope Dr. Oz (or Mr. Greene) has some compassion and is willing to subsidize it for people like me who might well die without it.
Oh, tidings of comfort and joy.