Cynical Me...

Yesterday, I posted a brief entry illustrating how my weight loss bodyfat reconfiguration program is going. In it, I quoted a brief exerpt from an editorial posted in the Journal of the American Medical Association about "nutritionalism," and followed up with a pithy summary of the (long) editorial: "Eat food, mostly plants, not too much."

As most people who read this blog know, that's from Michael Pollan. He's posted it in several places, it's quoted all over the Internet, and it's in all of his books.

This morning, I get an anonymous comment that says,

"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants"
In Defense of Food.
Michael Pollen
Great book!

Is it just me, or does the brevity, precision, and content of the message scream robot!? It's as if Pollan (or his publisher) has a program out there that, every time someone quotes him without attribution, makes sure that the comment thread somewhere contains source information.

I'm half-tempted to delete the comment and mark it as spam. Only the misspelling of Pollan's name stops me. (And maybe that's what they want you to think.)

In case you want more of that editorial...

A much larger excerpt from Dietary Guidelines in the 21st Century - a Time for Food.

More of the fundamental wisdom of Dr. Mozaffarin and Dr. Ludwig:

Based primarily on consideration of a few nutrients, a national obesity prevention program categorizes whole-milk yogurt and cheese with donuts and french fries as foods to eat occasionally; sauteed vegetables and tuna canned in vegetable oil with processed cheese spread and pretzels as foods to eat sometimes; and fresh fruits and vegetables with trimmed beef and fat-free mayonnaise as foods to eat almost anytime. Taking the nutrient approach to self serving extremes, the food industry "fortifies" highly processed foods, like refined cereals and sugar-sweetened beverages, with selected micronutrients and recharacterizes them as nutritious.

Best conclusion actually in the paper? "Nutrient targets in dietary guidelines issued by governments and organizations should largely be replaced by food-based targets."

How to look for "a job," or at least pretend that you're looking for one

New post at the pro blog: How to look for "a job," or at least pretend that you're looking for one.

You’re a geek in need of a job. In the meantime, you need to convince unemployment insurance that you’re looking for a job. Here's how you go about finding the job openings needed to meet both requirements.