Ed and Ryan Mitchell and a Pure Labor of Love
Ed and Ryan Mitchell and a Pure Labor of Love
Plus: Figuring out weight gain once and for all, veal of the sea, and John Wick 4
Since I work with one of my beloved daughters, Kate, one might say that for me, every day is Father’s Day. (Awwwww….) But when she and I got a pitch about Ed Mitchell’s Barbeque, written with his son Ryan, we knew we wanted to do an official Father’s Day episode, with all four of us.
Both Ed and Ryan have had rich journeys, with many stops along the way — journeys that led them to where they are today, working alongside each other. They remind me a lot of me and Kate, except perhaps a bit more organized. They work really well together, and I think you’ll be touched by our interview with them.
Also: we’ve got a recipe for you, the “I Don’t Eat Everybody’s Potato Salad!” from Ed Mitchell’s Barbeque. Find that here, and Marksisms below.
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This Week’s Marksisms
The Weight Wars, Redux
Forget obesity for a minute. Suppose we were all convinced that going out to work, or exercise, or shop, or do the laundry, or go to the movies, was just too much effort – we were convinced by the people who delivered food and entertainment and etc. to our doorstep – and we never left our bedrooms, because why bother — kind of like WALL-E. Suppose all your muscles just shriveled up and you couldn’t really walk anymore. Do you know what would happen? “Medical science” would figure out a drug that would give you your muscles back! They’d make money and you’d think you’d solved your problem, which didn’t have to happen in the first place. (Listen to last week’s Food with Mark Bittman episode with me and Kate and Dr. David Katz for more on that, and more from David here.)
Of course that new drug would have problems, as no doubt will Ozempic, the miracle drug that helps cause significant weight loss among people who have tried and failed to shed pounds over the years. (The Washington Post is pushing this supposedly compelling and supposedly touching piece about their heroic journalist who lost 40 pounds on Ozempic, without ever mentioning that it’s junk food that is the problem, not Ms. Marcus’s lack of will.) Put aside that many of these “overweight” people aren’t at all unhealthy; they just want to “look better,” as do I. (About that chin tuck … )
My point is this: We have to figure out ways for people to eat that avoid unhealthy weight gain in the first place. We know exactly how to do it; we have the tools and the resources. What we don’t have is the democracy, and what we need is a system that gets good food to everyone who needs it at prices they can afford, and makes junk food something you have on your birthday and at Christmas or Halloween, sort of like candy canes and candy corn.
There are things we can do to make it far easier for people to avoid unwanted weight gain in the first place. These things will take decades but they will improve the health of every person living in the United States, plus save our land. It’s called growing real food using sustainable (or regenerative) agriculture, and it’s not that complicated – IF you can get government support in favor of it, and out of guaranteeing profits for industrial farming.
“Veal,” But Not the Polarizing Kind
