Hot Dog Eating Contest?

Did you see it –4th of July Hot Dog eating contest in New York, on the news?

If you are outside the US:
-HOT DOG: made of ground up pig's snout, tail, ears, unmentionable parts, added to parts of cows most sober people also wouldn't eat, added to some sort of cereal, other things, sugar, shoved into casing of pig's intestine

-CONEY ISLAND: long-time amusement resort, beach, off the coast of New York, long-used to escape intense summer heat, humidity

-EATING CONTEST: thought up by a maker of hot dogs, decades ago, as a way to promote his brand; sell more hot dogs; object: publicity –for most consumed in fastest time

Which part of this contest amusing? Gluttony attractive? American gluttony somehow special? We don't have enough of a bad image around the world –we need to show off how much we can speed eat? It is stunning Americans can experience September 11 yet still be insensitive to what the world thinks of us. The people who put on, publicized, entered, replayed that ‘contest’ somehow haven't heard of Darfur? Even if none of them can point to it on a map, they don't know millions of people are frantically searching for food –all over the world? --Some risking rape in the search? If you’re thinking of comedian David Letterman: he is also dead wrong for photographing food thrown off studio rooftop to show it hitting pavement.

Even if what goes into producing hot dogs is ignored—believe it: labels don't/ don't have to state all the ingredients—why shovel in massive quantities of un-needed food? How pathetic a life –to help a manufacturer brand a product. No director of any TV station –realized it was too disgusting to run –wasn’t news?

Can one person make a difference? At least one: should have had brains/ ethics/sensitivity/decency enough to call the contest producers on what they were doing –protested; not thrown it up on TV –certainly not as “news.” Oval Office occupant apparently not the only one who engenders shame for stupidity.


Tag: hot dog, hot dog animal bi-products, pig, cow, wasteful eating, 4th of July, hunger, food excess, obesity, speed eating, food contest