Bookmarks:
The wonder drug • Phylicia Barnes update • The heckler’s veto again

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2015-03-04.

I’ve wanted to pose that question for a long time (no pun intended).  It was made current by a TV commercial last night:  General Mills was broadcasting that none of its cereals contains HFCS.

HFCS — high fructose corn syrup — came into widespread use in American foods and drinks several decades ago, as Americans were reacting against the high portions of sugar in their foods.  Part of that reaction was based in the rumor that sugar makes you “hyper” and specifically aggravates ADHD.  Sugar was generally still used, but in much smaller quantities so that it appeared farther down in the list of ingredients.

Now HFCS has fallen out of favor in the public mind, for reasons wholly unknown to me; and foods producers are reversing their actions of, actually, not that long ago, taking the HCFS out and putting sugar back in.

This strikes me as very similar to the current popular avoidance of gluten.  I see “gluten-free” labels on ketchup and oatmeal.  (Duh?)  What I had not seen until now was that these fads are not promoted so much through news reports or reports from, say, the FDA or USDA; but rather are principally picked up on by, and promoted by, the advertisers themselves.

Is HFCS an aphrodisiac?  I have no clue.  But maybe I can resurrect its fortunes myself.  Please note the propaganda effect of even asking the question.

Related: As seen on TV: The new, improved hubris

Update, 2015-03-13:

Mom Says Bananas Were Infested With Spiders That Can Cause Hours-Long Erections

I anticipate a flood of spam advising how I can obtain these spiders.  None, of course, would be complete without an endorsement from Dr. Oz.

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2015-03-13: Michael Johnson indictment dismissed, Mosby plans appeal
This is taking on more and more the appearance of a personal conflict between Marilyn Mosby and Judge John Addison Howard. Does “justice for Phylicia Barnes” hinge on a criminal conviction for this man?

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Does wearing American flag incite violence? Supreme Court lets stand ruling

I first mentioned this case in Franklin Graham, Charlie Hebdo and the “heckler’s veto.” Until now, I had not known about the background with Tinker.

Originally posted 2015-04-13.