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A Mary T. Hoffman Commentary from All-Creatures.org

 

"Joyful Curmudgeon" An oxymoron?
No! I see all the beauty of God's creation and I'm joyful.  At the same time, I see all the suffering and corruption going on in the world, and feel called to help expose and end it so that we may have true peace and compassion.

 

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Natural Ingredients? – 23 July 2006
By Mary T. Hoffman

Have you noticed how the word “natural” is used in ads and on labels to sell a variety of products? I wonder how many people stop to think what is meant by the word “natural.” They probably believe that the product thus labeled is “safe” or “free from chemicals” or “good for you” or whatever.

The truth is that it is meaningless. The word “natural” on a label makes me feel as though the manufacturer is assuming that the potential buyer can be fooled into looking no further and buying the product on faith. And I don’t like that.

I don’t like that because, for example, many of the animal-derived ingredients used in the manufacture of these items are by-products (waste) of the cheese manufacturing industry. These qualify for the label of “natural.” “Whey,” a by-product of the huge cheese industry, is found in a variety of products ranging from dish detergents to baked goods to canned drinks, etc.

Another example is the ubiquitous “gelatin” (animal-derived – the most common form) that I wrote about in another Blog. As I pointed out, the potential for harm from this “natural” ingredient is enormous.

Just remember that “poop” is also “natural”(:-))!  

Go on to: Albert Schweitzer – 24 July 2206
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