Offsides at Penn State Dariy Barn

If only Penn State's football team had a running
back who could feint as well as Professor Terry
Etherton! If only the team had a rushing linebacker
who could blitz as well as Dr. Etherton has blitzed
his dairy students with lies. If only the Nittany
Lions had a quarterback who could handoff and pass
the ball as well as Etherton has passed off on the
truth and fumbled facts.

Penn State University is the number-three party school
in America according to Princeton Review's July, 2008
survey of 120,000 students. Penn State is also known as
"Linebacker-U" for the skilled defensive players its
football mill produces every year. Penn State is also
home to an enormous dairy herd which helps to feed the
Happy Valley campus and has an ice-cream program which
includes Ben Cohen (of quadruple bypass fame) and Jerry
whatshisname as graduates. The director of Penn State's
dairy program is Terry Etherton.

To call Terry Etherton a worm is to insult worms.

Dr. Etherton recently wrote this on his biotechnology blog:

http://tinyurl.com/5tr5ae

"A new scientific study by Vicini et al. published in the July
issue of the prestigious Journal of the American Dietetic
Association (JADA) reports the results of the first in-depth
survey study comparing retail milk for quality, nutritional
value and levels of different milk hormones, including bovine
somatotropin (bST). The study that we published found that
there were 'no meaningful differences' in the composition of
milk with the three different label claims."

What Etherton does not reveal is that he was the second
listed author of this so-called deceitful study.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

What a suck-up kiss-ass phony this man is!
Writing that "A new scientific study...by Vicini et. al...
published in the prestigious journal..." without revealing
that it was actually HIS study.

The so-called study was anything but scientific. It twisted
facts. It was a biased presentation of lies which ignored
the conclusions of every major scientific body which studied
the controversial rbGH (rbST) issues, concluding that milk
from treated cows always included increased amounts of
IGF-I. Always!

Here is an example of how scientists like Etherton commit
academic fraud. If "something" has a normal range of between
one and ten whatevers, it falls between the "normal range."

If that "something" is then tested and is measured at 43,
it is waaaay out of the normal range.

Scientists then change the range to incude measures between
one and one-hundred. They set parameters for a new range, so
that when "something" is tested at a level of 43, it
"falls between the normal range."

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

When Etherton posts on his blog "A new scientific study by
Vicini et. al, one must ask:

Is Etherton's nickname Et al? An even more important
question is:

IS THERE SCIENTIFIC SUPPORT THAT MILK FROM COWS
TREATED WITH RBST (RBGH) IS DIFFERENT THAN MILK
FROM UNTREATED COWS?

Fourteen years ago, the greatest controversy in FDA
history began with a lie when the Clinton White House
(Executive Branch Report on rbGH, February 9, 1994)
concluded:

"BGH-treated milk is safe because it is
indistinguishable from normal milk."

The drug manufacturer (Monsanto) hired ex-Surgeon General,
C. Everett Koop to compound the lie. Koop's press release,
dated February 6, 1994:

"Milk from cows given supplemental bovine somatotropin
is the same as any other milk...Unfortunately, a few
fringe groups are using misleading statements and blatant
falsehoods as part of a long-running campaign to
scare consumers about a perfectly safe food."

Did the National Institutes of Health agree? Here is what
they concluded in 1990, four years before approval:

"Recombinant rbGH treatment produces an increase in the
the concentration of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I)
in cow's milk...Levels of IGF increase in milk after cows
are treated with rbGH."

(National Institutes of Health Assessment of Bovine
Somatotropin, December, 1990)

What are the consequences of Terry Etherton's continued lie?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"A strong positive association was observed between
IGF-I levels and prostate cancer risk."

Science, vol. 279. January 23, 1998

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Insulin-like growth factor is thought to
have a role in breast cancer."

The Lancet, vol. 351. May 9, 1998

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"High plasma levels of IGF-I were associated with an
increased risk of lung cancer. Plasma levels of IGF-I
are higher...in patients with lung cancer than in
control subjects."

Journal of the National Cancer Institute,
vol. 91, no. 2. January 20, 1999.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"The insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system is widely
involved in human carcinogenesis. A significant association
between high circulating IGF-I concentrations and an
increased risk of lung, colon, prostate and pre-
menopausal breast cancer has recently been reported."

International Journal of Cancer, 2000 Aug, 87:4, 601-5

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"...serum IGF-I levels increased significantly in the milk
drinking group, an increase of about 10% above baseline-but
was unchanged in the control group."

Journal of the American Dietetic Association,
vol. 99, no. 10. October 1999

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Counting Sperm For Science

Some people count their blessings.
Others count cards while playing blackjack.
One woman at my local produce store insists upon
counting the number of lemons in my plastic bag
each time I purchase 20 at four-for-the-dollar.
(The last time I intentionally soured her day by
filling the bag with 19 lemons while paying for
20. She never said a word but I could see that
she knew...)

There are discounts and miscounts, viscounts,
and the Count of Monte Cristo, and when it
comes to writing college papers, spelling counts.
Then there are those who count the number of sperm
in male ejaculations in the glorious name of science.

I've done my own Internet research and prefer to have
faith and blindly accept the work of previous scientists,
so I will not be checking for myself first hand the actual
number, but here is what seems to be universally accepted
by sperm-counters:

"A normal number of sperm per ejaculate is 40 million
sperm (20 million per milliliter times 2 milliliters)."

http://www.thenewjerseymaleinfertilitycenter.com/sperm_detection.php

That standard was established in 1950, more than one-half
century ago. I suppose that sperm counting techniques
have changed during the past 58 years as technology
has improved, but the 20 million sperm per ml standard
continues to be the baseline used in similar studies.

Which brings me to dumb study time. This past week,
some highly-publicized nonsense was distributed claiming
that the consumption of soy products lowered the number
of sperm in those males attending a Harvard fertility clinic
in the Boston area. Red Sox fans, I suppose. I anxiously
await a follow up study for the Bronx. There is good reason
New York Yankee fans are called the "Bronx Bombers" while
Red Sox fans continue to live under the curse of Babe
Ruth. You might recall that the Babe had two wives and
only one daughter, but I digress.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE SOY STUDY ABSTRACT

Soy food and isoflavone intake in relation to semen quality
parameters among men from an infertility clinic.
- Human Reproduction, July 23, 2008

Chavarro JE, Toth TL, Sadio SM, Hauser R.

Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health,
665 Huntington Ave., Boston, MA, USA.

METHODS The intake of 15 soy-based foods in the previous 3
months was assessed for 99 male partners of subfertile couples
who presented for semen analyses to the Massachusetts General
Hospital Fertility Center. Linear and quantile regression were
used to determine the association of soy foods and isoflavones
intake with semen quality parameters while adjusting for personal
characteristics.

RESULTS There was an inverse association between soy food intake
and sperm concentration that remained significant after accounting
for age, abstinence time, body mass index, caffeine and alcohol
intake and smoking. In the multivariate-adjusted analyses, men
in the highest category of soy food intake had 41 million sperm/ml
less than men who did not consume soy foods.

CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that higher intake of soy foods
and soy isoflavones is associated with lower sperm concentration.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Did you notice what I noticed? Researchers observed:

"Men in the highest category of soy food intake had 41
million sperm/ml less than men who did not consume soy foods."

How can men have 41 million less sperm per milliliter when
the standard for all men (established and unchanged since
1950) is 20 million per milliliter? Do soy eaters have
negative sperm counts...?

...Or, is somebody cheating?

I have asked to examine the raw data, minus the sperm by
leaving a phone message (617-432-4584) for Jorge E. Chavarro,
the head scientist. I've also emailed my request to Dr.
Chivarro at: jchavarr@...

I am disappointed that my phone call was not returned.
Nor did I get even a limp response to my email. The hours
go by while I wait for a response, but who's counting?
Perhaps my expectations are premature...

Bottom line:

Sperm counts of 5-10 million per ml are the defining line
for sterility problems. According to the above link
(male infertility center of New Jersey):

"Many experts in male factor infertility now believe that
only very low concentrations, such as 5-10 million per
milliliter, accurately reflect a decrease in concentration
that is important for fertility."

The Harvard researchers claimed that men who did not eat
soy had average sperm counts between 80-120 million per ml.

What the heck were these superstuds doing in a fertility
clinic?

Even with 40 million less sperm, soy eaters would have
averaged 40-80 million sperm per ml, between two and
four times the historical average.

Final comment:

I did not reach the senior author, but after many phone
calls did speak with somebody associated with the study
who asked not to be identified. I respect that.

I was told:

"Asian men consume 5-10 times the amount of soy as
did the men in our study, yet, it remains obvious that
Asian males have no fertility problems."

If you are a male and eat soy, continue to do so.
Even the scientists doing this research suspect that
obesity plays a much greater role in sterility than
any possible soy consumption. Be aware of another
study:

"The study measured testosterone levels in 696 Oxford
University men. Of the study participants, 233 were vegan
(ate no animal products) and 237 were vegetarian (ate milk
and dairy products). The remaining 237 subjects were men
who ate meat on most days of the week...vegans had higher
testosterone levels than vegetarians and meat eaters."

British Journal of Cancer, 83(1), July 2000

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Eating Cheese Will Make You Sleepy

Over the years, I've heard from many hundreds of
people that, after eating cheese, they get sleepy.
Each case in itself is remarkable, and would be
considered to be an "anecdote" by doctors and
scientists. Hundreds of cases would be called
"anecdotal evidence." To my understanding, there
has been no study linking cheese consumption
to "sleepiness."

In the best interests of science, I am revealing why
cheese eaters get tired. Since I am the first to report
this, it is my option of naming this phenomenon after
myself, so from here on, please refer to this as the
"Notmilkman Effect."

It has been well established that people get sleepy
after eating Thanksgiving meals. Scientists place
the blame upon an amino acid in turkey flesh called
tryptophan.

There was a time when tryptophan supplements were
used by insomniacs. Pop a pill and go right to sleep.
In 1990, the food and drug administration took
tryptophan products off the market after a few
dozen deaths were reported. More than 5,000 people
got seriously ill after ingesting tryptophan. Some
were diagnosed with eosinophilic-myalgia, a syndrome
in which extreme muscle pain leads to serious swelling
of arms and legs.

I obtained data for the average tryptophan level in all
cuts of turkey by accessing the United States Department
of Agriculture Nutrient Database:

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp

A 100-gram portion of turkey contains 0.31 gram of
tryptophan. For the sake of comparison, that number
will be our baseline.

You might ask yourself if Gouda is good for sleep.
Does Wisconsin's finest Cheddar cause more drowsiness
than a group of cheeseheads talking about whether Bret
Farve will be paid $12 million this year not to play
for the the Green Bay Packers? Will Parmesan cheese at
dinner put you to sleep an hour later while watching a
performance of Figaro? How about goat cheese?

Here's what you need to know about tryptophan levels
in 100 gram portions of food:

Turkey (all cuts) = 0.31 gram of tryptophan
Cheddar Cheese = 0.32 gram of tryptophan
Hard Goat Cheese = 0.32 gram of tryptophan
Parmesan Cheese = 0.482 gram of tryptophan

Tip: If you have to negotiate a big deal, or
are playing a chess championship in Iceland,
send your adversary a gourmet cheese platter
a few hours before your scheduled meeting.
You will certainly Brie victorious.

Pleasant dreams!

Robert "Notmilkman" Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Eating Soy Will Make You Sterile

That's the recent claim of soy bashers, thanks to
the latest headline based upon a publication in
the journal of Human Reproduction.

See if you can figure out the fatal flaw of this study.

The research involved 99 men with fertility-related problems
who visited the Massachusetts General Hospital Fertility
Center with their partners between 2000 and 2006.

Were these men asked whether they also consumed broccoli or
apples? Americans eat four times the amount of phytoestrogens
each day in fruit and veggies as they do from soy products.

Are the phytoestrogens in soy and the phytoestrogens found
in broccoli and apples hazardous?

Tune in to NBC during the first week of August for
the Olympic answer to this troubling enigma. Perhaps
this is why there are so few Chinese people...

George Bush, Sr. avoided broccoli, and in doing so,
angered America's all-powerful and politically connected
broccoli lobby. As a result, Bush was not re-elected and
served only one term.

OK, so I exaggerate a bit, but Bush's dislike for
cruciferous vegetables was legendary. Were the
instincts of ex-President Bush correct?

According to Mercola.com and his group of soy-bashers
(soyonlineservice.com, Sally Fallon, and the Price
Pottinger Institute), broccoli is also a deadly poison
and must be avoided. So too, for that matter, should
you never again eat seeds, whole grains, berries, fruit,
vegetables, nuts, or sprouts. Let's explore why.

Despite the fact that phytoestrogens (plant estrogens)
are not steroids like human estrogen, there are those
who would have you induce vomiting, if ever you
swallowed a soy product containing isoflavones. My
advice to you is to not swallow their illogical line
of reasoning.

For each milligram of phytoestrogens that she eats
in soy products, the average American woman will also
consume an additional four milligrams of pytoestrogens
from fruits and vegetables. Advice to abstain from
phytoestrogens is insanity, and Internet hype and
hysteria has infected the good judgement of many
so-called health advocates. This includes many ignorant
physicians, who read one such article and assimilate
just enough information to offer erroneous and dangerous
health advice to their patients.

Phytoestrogens are widely distributed in plants. There
are three categories of phytoestrogens--isoflavones
(which are found in soy), lignans (seeds, fruits
and veggies), and coumestans (broccoli and sprouts).

So, if you take the advice of Internet soy-bashing
ignoramuses and do not drink soymilk because you fear
phytoestrogens, by all means, you must give up fruits,
veggies, nuts, and grains too.

The only reason that phytoestrogens are considered to be
very dangerous is that the name sounds like estrogen,
even though they are not steroid hormones, and even though
their mechanisms of action do not mimic estrogen. Beware
of phytoestrogens, you are told. Like the "boogeyman,"
phytoestrogens in fruit and veggies are gonna get you
while you sleep.

A publication in the February 2004 issue of the American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition (R. Ziegler, 2004;79:183-4)
suggests that women who eat high levels of soy isoflavones
have lower rates of breast cancer than those who consume
low levels of isoflavones.

Dr. Regina Ziegler is a researcher with the National Cancer
Institute. She has taught health and nutrition courses at
Yale and Harvard Universities. Ziegler writes:

"The daily intake of phytoestrogens in white U.S
women has been estimated to be <1 mg, with 80% from
lignans, 20% from isoflavones, and <0.1 from coumestans."

******************************************************
In other words, according to Ziegler, an expert in her
field, Americans eat four times the amount of
phytoestrogens in fruit and veggies as they do from
soy products.
******************************************************
Ziegler continues:

"Historically, breast cancer rates in the United States
have been 4-7 times those in Asia, whereas isoflavone
intake in the United States is <1% that in Asian
populations."

So should you take Mercola's advice and eliminate soy
and all fruits and vegetables because of phytoestrogens?
Should you also follow his dietary advice by eating
raw milk and dairy products and raw meat? If you follow
Mercola, you will be led into a cave with other
Neanderthals.

You might consider contrary advice. An apple a day
does keep the doctor away because of those magical
phytoestrogens. So too do brown rice and almonds,
broccoli, and fresh sprouts. Go heavy on the soy.

Dead raw flesh and cooked animal parts should not
be served with body fluids from diseased animals.
Every cell in your miraculous body craves life, not
death. Cells and enzymes from carrots and oranges.
Green plants containing chlorophyll, and calcium
with magnesium in a proportion that is efficiently
utilized by the human body. A rose will never become
a dead chicken, even if it is so re-named. Neither would
a phytoestrogen become a steroid hormone, nor act like one.

For health, eat isoflavones and phytoestrogens. Your
body will thank you.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Nature Overcompensates

In the mid 1980s, a California pond was found to be home
to hundreds of frogs containing male and female gonads,
multiple limbs, and other deformities not normally common
to their species. It was as if a drunk and dyslexic
Mother Nature had stumbled out of a stupor and cast a
grotesques spell upon one little corner of her realm. And
she had, and for what reason? Researchers detected extremely
high amounts of environmental chemicals including phosplates,
herbicides, pesticides, and bovine urine and feces from a
nearby dairy farm. Mother Nature reacted, and random chaos
was the result. If humankind had learned anything from this
incident, it would have been that consequences are not often
accurately predicted. Like the body wastes which had entered
a once-pristine waterway, crap happens.

When mankind naively believes itself to be capable
of improving upon nature, unpleasant surprises often
result. In that regard, genetic engineering will
one day be recognized for the horror that it is:
genetic catastrophe.

Consider the spawning salmon. She lays ten thousand
pea-sized eggs, yet, only a few survive to continue
the species. Deep water fish can produce millions of
eggs each season. Nature's solution to insure survival
is to make lots of what is needed. That same mechanism
applies to internal "housekeeping." Internal hormonal
secretions contain thousands of times more chemical
messengers than are needed. That's because most of those
hormones are broken down long before they deliver their
sets of instructions to cellular receptors. What has
man wrought? We have improved upon nature to upset
the natural balance. By overdosing the cells with
too many hormones, man has turned health into disease.

When milk is passed through a fine filter at pressures
equal to 4,000 pounds per square inch, the fat globules
(liposomes) are made smaller (micronized) by a factor of
10 times or more. These fat molecules become evenly
dispersed within the liquid milk so that, by federal code,
after 48 hours of storage at 45 degrees Fahrenheit, there
is no visible cream separation in the milk. One pint of
homogenized cow's milk can contain one-trillion micronized
fat molecules.

Humankind often takes small steps in changing biological
mechanisms, attempting to improve upon nature. In the case
of homogenization, the dairy industry took an accidental
giant stride by insuring that protein growth hormones in
milk survive digestion. Homogenization insures that
these powerful growth hormones survive. One of these
chemical messengers has been identified as a key factor
in the growth of human cancer. See:

http://www.notmilk.com/b.html

Remember those time-release cold capsule TV commercials?
Encapsulate cold medicine in gelatin capsules and "medicine"
works many hours after ingestion. Milk is nature's natural
mechanism, delivering hormones, lactoferrins and immunoglobulins
to nursing infants. Through homogenization, fat molecules in
milk become smaller and become "capsules" for substances that
bypass digestive processes. Proteins would normally be broken
down into amino acids, and digested in the stomach or gut. By
homogenizing milk, these proteins are not broken down and are
absorbed into the bloodstream, intact.

Genetic engineering makes a bad product worse. Milk naturally
contains powerful growth hormones. Milk from cows treated with
the genetically engineered bovine growth hormone contains
increased amounts of naturally occurring hormones. After cows
are treated with rbST (or rbGH), levels of another hormone in
milk, IGF-I, increase. IGF-I (insulin-like growth factor) is
identical between humans and cows. In the case of existing
cancers, normally controlled by immune systems, IGF-I
ingestion is like pouring gasoline on a fire.

Two Connecticut cardiologists, Oster and Ross, demonstrated that
cow proteins survive digestion. Every one of their heart patients
manufactured antibodies to bovine proteins after consuming
homogenized milk. This proved that milk proteins are not destroyed.
These two scientists pointed the finger of blame at homogenization.
Hormones in milk are protected, survive digestion and exert powerful
effects on the human body. For more detail, see:

http://www.notmilk.com/x.html

Many Americans would like to bring back the good 'ole days
when "cream rose to the top." In 1940 there were nearly
twenty-four million dairy cows in the United States producing
milk for 132 million Americans. The total pounds of milk
consumed each day exceeded 2.2 pounds per individual, the
equivalent of one quart. That amount has slowly declined each
decade and has leveled off at a per capita daily intake of
1.6 pounds. Interestingly, the greatest decrease occurred
after the dairy industry made the decision NOT to allow the
cream to rise to the top.

By returning to the days when cream once again rises to the
top of the bottle, dairymen would eliminate the artificial
mechanism by which milk proteins survive in such great
quantity. Many scientists have considered innumerable factors
in explaining increased rates of cancers and heart disease.
Homogenization has not been given the blame, nor the
attention which it merits.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Sad Notmilk Column of May 7, 2004

Today's online version of the Wall Street Journal
(July 27, 2008) contains an asthma alert warning
readers that summer can be a hazardous time for
asthma attacks.

It seems as if this happened just yesterday...
____________________________________________

The telephone call woke Lizzy from a deep sleep. She
had gone to bed Tuesday night around midnight after
studying for Wednesday's Biology and Spanish exams.
We heard Lizzy crying and soon learned that her close
friend Katie had died in her sleep from an asthma
attack. Word gets around fast, even at 6:30 AM.
I will never hear Katie's laugh again. Katie Conway,
dead on May 5, 2005, at age 14.

Asthma Rates Soaring

From 1970 until 2004, American cheese consumption went
from 11 pounds per person per year to 31 pounds. During
that same time period, consumption of cheese in New
Zealand went from 3 pounds to 24 pounds per person
per year, an increase of eight times.

For dairy lovers, New Zealand's grazing cows enjoy a reputation
made possible by perfect climate and enormous open space, making
New Zealand the fifth largest cheese exporter in the world,
behind France, the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark.

As New Zealand's cheese consumption increased over time,
so too did their asthma rates. Nobody in New Zealand seems
to have made the connection. At the end of this column is
an article that appeared in this week's (May 4, 2004) New
Zealand Herald newspaper. The New Zealand Herald reporter
was equally as clueless as a New York Times reporter
who wrote a similar story about Asthma in the United States
on April 19, 2003. Shortly after that article appeared,
I wrote:

One Out of Four Harlem Kids Has Asthma

"Many cases of asthma and sinus infections are reported to
be relieved and even eliminated by cutting out dairy."

Frank Oski, M.D., Chief of Pediatrics at Johns Hopkins
Medical School Natural Health, July, 1994
_______________________________________________________

Saturday's Page One New York Times story (4/19/03) confirmed
everything I've been writing since 1995. One out of four
children in Harlem tests positive for asthma.

Scientists were shocked by the latest data. According to the
New York Times, that frequency of asthma is more than double
the incidence rate which researchers expected to find.
America's national average asthma rate runs about six
percent, or nearly one out of seventeen.

Scientists tested 2000 children under the age of 13 living
in one 24-block New York City Harlem neighborhood and found
that 25.5% of the kids had asthma. The researchers are
clueless as to the cause, but have observed that the asthma
rate has doubled since 1980.

Geoffrey Canada, president of the Harlem Children's Zone,
the study's sponsor, said:

"This is a very poor community where a lot of the families
have very troubled lives, with lots of stresses..."

For many children, living in Harlem means living below the
poverty level. USDA runs an anti-nutrition program called
WIC (Women/Infants/Children). The foundation of WIC's food
giveaway program is subsidized milk and dairy products,
purchased at retail to bail out failing dairy farmers who
have no other outlet for their surplus product.

Our government also feeds 28 million school kids each day
with their National School Lunch Program and School
Breakfast Program (SBP). Those milk meal giveaways cost over
6 billion dollars per year, which does not include the cost
of medical treatment for asthma attacks and asthma medicine.

In attempting to explain exploding asthma rates, the New
York Times article reports:

"Some of the worst triggers, studies have found, are most
prevalent in poor communities, including the feces of
cockroaches and dust mites, cigarette smoke and mold and
mildew. Harlem, East Harlem and the South Bronx also have a
heavy concentration of diesel bus and truck traffic, and the
tiny particles in diesel exhaust are thought to be another
serious asthma trigger."

Environmental considerations are all very important, of
course, and everybody wants more than one breath of fresh
air each day, but not one of the factors cited by the Times
has doubled since 1980. One factor, though, not considered
by researchers, has more than tripled. In 1980, the average
American was eating just ten pounds of cheese per year.
Today, the average American consumes thirty-one pounds of
cheese.

Eighty percent of milk and cheese protein is casein. When
casein is isolated from milk, it becomes the glue to adhere
a label to a bottle of beer. Casein is the glue used to hold
together wood in furniture. When a child living in Harlem
eats cheese or ice cream, this allergy-causing milk protein
triggers the production of histamines, which in turn create
mucus. Sometimes, the reaction takes as long as 12 hours.
Tonight's slice of pizza may trigger tomorrow's asthma
attack.

Asthma is not the only result. Milk hormones interfere with
a child's ability to learn. It is a wonder that only one out
of four kids living in poverty have asthma. Perhaps the
other three are fortunate enough to be severely lactose
intolerant, and avoid complimentary bovine secretions like
the plague.

Ninety-five percent of African-Americans cannot tolerate
lactose. Pizza and ice cream taste delicious on the way into
their bodies. Lactose is a sugar and most people need the
enzyme lactase to break down lactose into glucose and
galactose. Intact, this sugar is broken down in the
intestines by bacteria and the results are gas, bloating,
and intestinal distress.

Milk contains powerful hormones. Rates of sexual maturity in
children are astounding endocrinologists and behavioral
psychologists. A recent study revealed that eighty percent
of nine-year-old African-American girls have developing
breasts.

Children are becoming overweight at an early age. By eating
high caloric food with growth hormones and saturated animal
fat, the body has a way of listening to the signals of those
chemical messengers: Grow!

One out of five children has Attention Deficit Disorder
(ADD).

A recent study in the Journal of Autism linked ADD with a
milk protein, casomorphin.

Herman Mitchell, an asthma researcher and epidemiologist,
has this comment regarding the shocking Harlem asthma data:

"This is certainly one of the highest rates attributed in
the United States, if not the highest."

With that inspiring comment, I decided to take advantage of
a lull in New York City's perpetual traffic jam. Easter
Sunday afforded such an opportunity. It would not be
practical for me to enter the schools and follow 2000 kids,
but I could perform my own completely unbiased observation
of Harlem. I drove from my New Jersey home to the 125th exit
off of the West Side Highway, and soon found myself in "the
hood."

Our New Jersey neighborhood has one pizzeria, and we once
had an ice cream store, but it closed for lack of business
in January of this year. We have cigarette smokers, mice,
and insects, but there is no WIC service in our school
systems. Little or no poverty can be found in Oradell, New
Jersey. No subsidized daily dairy overdoses for our
children.

Dairy is a major part of Harlem's in-school food culture.
That same bad habit has become an addiction of the streets.

The study area was bounded by 116th Street, 123rd Street,
Fifth Avenue and Eighth Avenue. There were just too many
dairy outlets to count. I took notes as I drove, and gave up
on 116th Street. I found Domino's Pizza, and Baskin Robbins
Ice Cream. Krispy Kreme Donuts and fast food franchises
serving shakes and cheeseburgers. As I drove through the
streets, I observed hundreds upon hundreds of quick-fix
dairy foods providing after school treats.

The poorest children in America begin their day at schools
with milk and cereal for breakfast. Snack time provides
chocolate milk and cookies. Lunch means macaroni and cheese
or pizza. The casein within the mozzarella cheese and
cheddar insures poor digestion, and sets into motion a
reaction by which the bronchioles of a child's lungs clog
with mucus.

Here is what happened to one very famous American who lived
and died by the milk mustache. Flo Jo choked on her body
fluids, dying from an asthma attack. Her autopsy:

http://notmilk.com/deb/flojoms.html

As promised, the article in yesterday's New Zealand paper:
_________________________________________________________________

NEW ZEALAND HERALD
Tuesday, May 4, 2004

Asthma rate triple world average

By MARTIN JOHNSTON, health reporter
New Zealanders suffer asthma at three times the global rate,
according to the first international assessment of the disease.

The New Zealand-led assessment, which combines previous studies,
estimates that 300 million people, about 5 per cent of the global
population, suffer asthma.

The rate among New Zealanders is 15 per cent.

The prevalence of the disease is rising - particularly where
populations are urbanising and adopting Western lifestyles -
but the basic reasons remain unclear.

The latest study, for the World Health Organisation and the
Global Initiative for Asthma, is published today to coincide
with World Asthma Day.

It predicts that by 2025, some 400 million to 450 million
people will have asthma, an increase of up to 50 per cent.

The lead researcher, Professor Richard Beasley, director of
the Wellington-based Medical Research Institute, said last
night that the study provided the first firm estimate of the
disease's global prevalence using standardised data.

He said the rising prevalence was driven by a growing
population, people shifting from rural areas to cities and
the spread of Western habits.

"We know that with the adoption of urban and Western lifestyles
the rate of asthma goes up markedly.

"One of the strong factors from studies, particularly in
developing countries, is that asthma prevalence rates are much
higher in cities than in rural areas.

The exact features of the lifestyle associated with urban living
have not been identified with certainty in terms of why their
rates are so much higher."

The research report says that when people from Southeast Asia
and the Pacific Islands emigrate to Australia and New Zealand
there is a marked increase in asthma prevalence within one
generation.

Many scientists are investigating the "hygiene hypothesis"
- that increasingly sanitised living conditions and a decreasing
exposure to bugs early in life primes the immune system to
overreact later, producing allergic diseases. Most asthma is
triggered by allergies.

Professor Beasley said this theory explained part of the rise
in asthma, "but it's not the whole answer".

Despite New Zealand's high asthma prevalence, the rate of people
dying from the disease is within the range of many Western
countries at 4.6 per 100,000 asthmatics.

At the Western extremes, Canada's rate is 1.6 and Denmark's
9.3. The world's worst rate is in China, at 36.7.

"New Zealand used to have far a higher mortality and
case-fatality rate," Professor Beasley said.

They had fallen steeply in the past 10 years because of the
withdrawal of the drug fenoterol, which was dangerous when
overused, the greater use of inhaled corticosteroids and the
use of asthma management plans.

ASTHMA BURDEN

Global prevalence of asthma estimated to be 300 million
people or about 5 per cent of the population.

New Zealand prevalence 15 per cent.

225,723 people died from the disease worldwide in 2001.

Asthma is 300 times more common than coronary heart disease.

The global economic costs of asthma exceed those of TB and
HIV/Aids combined.
___________________________________________________________

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Randy Pausch Has Died

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo&NR=1

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Nine days after Randy Pausch delivered his final lecture,
(September 29, 2007), I posted this Notmilk column:

Childhood Dreams

Today, I urge you to watch a 47-year-young professor's
final lecture before his due date with death from
pancreatic cancer. The lecture was taped so that the
man's three children (ages 5, 2 and 1) could one day
witness their father's final incredible words of wisdom.
The lecture was delivered just a few days ago and its
message is rapidly spreading through hyperspace.

There were a few instances in which I nearly came to
tears. Then there was the time when I actually began
to dry sob and hyperventilate before stopping myself.

Finally, there came that moment when I actually did
cry. And then came another moment when I surrendered
my defenses to my emotions and cried even more. I did
not weep from sadness. I cried from the overwhelming
experience of what I was witnessing.

http://www.cmu.edu/index.shtml

I ask each one of you to watch this. You will learn.
You may even become inspired. I have asked each of my
daughters to watch this too. That is how important and
inspirational I found the 84 minutes that I ask you to
invest as you are being touched by the power of this
man's words and deeds. You cannot possibly watch this
video and not recognize the infinite human potential
within us all.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Pizza Each Day Keeps Your Doctor Away

Yesterday (July 25, 2008), this press release was issued
by:  http://www.pizzamarketplace.com

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

VICTORIA, British Columbia -- When Villages Pizza owner John
Papaloukas saw pizza appearing in media reports of food that
wouldn't be allowed in B.C. schools, he knew he had to set
the record straight. So, he sent his pizza to a forensics lab
for testing.

Villages sent several pizza samples to a lab in Sidney, B.C.,
which conducted a complete nutritional analysis of the product.
The results came back showing that, with whole wheat dough,
Villages Pizza qualified in the "Choose Most Often" category.

"It was important for us as a business to be able to qualify
the caliber of our product," Papaloukas said in a news release.
"Our health-conscious consumers want to be confident about what
they are buying and they are going to evaluate their choices,
whether it is families, parent advisory committees or our
regular customers. It was a positive step in repositioning
pizza as a healthy meal choice."

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, what
can a daily slice of pizza accomplish?

One portion of Tombstone (appropriately named) Sausage &
Pepperoni Pizza (weighing 125 grams) contains 327 calories,
16.4 grams of fat, and 31 milligrams of cholesterol.

One medium apple (weighing 125 grams) contains 74 calories,
0.45 grams of fat, and no cholesterol.

If you want to shed one pound of fat from your body weight,
you would have to burn 3500 calories.

Compare one person to another. Person A eats an apple each
day and person B eats just one slice of Tombstone Pizza
each day. After one year, the pizza eater would supply his
or her body with 92,345 more calories than the apple eater.
That represents 26 pounds of body fat.

There are 5.38 milligrams of cholesterol contained in 1
medium-sized slice of cooked bacon. In one year, the person
eating the Tombstone Pizza would consume the equivalent
cholesterol contained in 2,103 slices of bacon. That's
nearly 6 slices of bacon per day. The apple eater would
ingest no dietary cholesterol.

During that same year, the pizza eater would eat 12.8
pounds more fat than the apple eater. Picture a small
French poodle weiging 12.8 pounds. Now picture the same
sized ball of fat surgically implanted to the Tombstone
Pizza eater's left thigh.

What might they write on her tombstone?
She elected not to eat an apple a day!

So, why will that slice of pizza each day keep
your doctor away? Where will the doctor go?

Increased cash flow from your diseases will finance
your doctor's skiing trips to Boulder, Colorodo during
the month of February. Your physician will March onto
the Riviera in April. He or she may summer in the
Hamptons, and Fall into the bad habit of keeping away
in lavish style, due to increased income from your
increased illnesses.

Tombstone Pizza? Pin a medal on the genius who
thought up that name.

Weigh the evidence. Do you consider pizza a healthy
food choice?

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Making You Sick to Your Stomach

Ten years ago, experts agreed that 50 million Americans
were affected by lactose intolerance. In 2008, a new
website has upped that number to 70 million.

http://www.lactoseintollerant.org
reports:

"70 million Americans suffer from lactose intolerance.
When a person who is lactose intolerant consumes dairy
they experience painful side effects such as gas, bloating,
diarrhea and nausea. This is due to the fact that people
who suffer from lactose intolerance lack an enzyme called
lactase, which helps their bodies naturally process lactose,
the natural sugar found in dairy products. Since their
bodies cannot produce lactase, even eating small portions
of milk, ice cream, cheese, and other dairy foods can cause
painful and embarrassing symptoms."

In 1998, the population of the United States was 271
million. In 2008, the population of the United States is
301 million. Lactose intolerance seems to be accelerating
at a rate faster than than population growth.

The Notmilk Letter has previously reported:

"Overall, about 75 percent of the world's population,
including 25 percent of those in the U.S., lose their
lactase enzymes after weaning."

Journal of the American Dietetic Assoc. 1996; 96

"Lactose malabsorption and lactase deficiency are
chronic organic pathologic conditions characterized
by abdominal pain and distention, flatulence, and the
passage of loose, watery stools. Once correct diagnosis
is established, introduction of a lactose-free dietary
regime relieves symptoms in most patients...who remain
largely unaware of the relationship between food intake
and symptoms."

Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology, 1999 Apr, 28:3

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Don't Swalow Bull From Raw Milk Advocates

Hartford Courant (Connecticut)

* - * - * - * - * - * - *

Town Farm Dairy Halts Milk Production, Sales
By REGINE LABOSSIERE | Courant Staff Writer
July 23, 2008

SIMSBURY - — The Town Farm Dairy has stopped producing and
selling milk and milk products indefinitely after four
people contracted E. coli, possibly linked to raw milk
they bought from the Simsbury farm, officials said.

Deputy First Selectman John Hampton said the four people
fell ill in the past few days and a couple of them were
hospitalized. The one thing the four had in common was
drinking raw milk they bought at the Town Farm Dairy,
he said.

The state departments of health, agriculture and consumer
protection, as well as the Farmington Valley Health District,
are investigating the cause of the outbreak. E. coli can
cause abdominal cramping, diarrhea and bloody stools. In
severe cases, it can cause kidney and liver damage.

"This is a troubling situation in general. It's a public
health situation that we certainly want to give our
attention to," Hampton said.

The consumption of raw milk can be controversial. Those who
enjoy the unhomogenized, unpasteurized milk say it has better
flavor and is more nutritious than pasteurized milk. But
federal and state agencies have taken measures to protect
consumers from getting sick from the product that is not
treated to kill potentially harmful bacteria.

Between 2000 and 2005, more than 470 people became sick after
consuming raw milk or related products in 18 outbreaks in 16
states, according to a report by the Food and Drug
Administration. The FDA mandates that all milk and milk
products be pasteurized if shipped for interstate sale,
according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention.

States have their own regulations for milk that is shipped
within their borders; 21 states require pasteurization of
all milk products for sale and 25 states allow raw milk
to be sold in some form to the public, the report says. It
also says the states that allow the sale of raw milk report
more outbreaks of food-borne disease attributed to raw milk
than the states that have stricter regulations. Raw milk is
sold throughout Connecticut, but, according to the agriculture
department's statutes and regulations, it must be labeled
saying raw milk has "organisms that may be harmful to human
health."

According to the public health department, there were 282
E. coli cases reported in the state between 2000 and 2007,
spokesman William Gerrish said. Three of those people
reported consuming raw milk before they got sick, he said.
Gerrish said the milk bought at the Simsbury farm had sell-by
dates of June 24, July 4 and July 16.

The Town Farm Dairy is a nonprofit business run by the group
Friends of Town Farm Dairy on land leased from the town. The
group resurrected the farm in recent years and opened the
dairy store last year after its previous owner closed the
farm in 2003.

The success of the farm is important to loyal customers who
flock to the store to buy the organic 1 percent milk, heavy
cream, organic yogurt and chocolate milk. Hampton said its
success is also important to the town: it is the last working
farm in Simsbury and the only certified organic dairy farm
in the state with retail and wholesale distribution.

Friends of Town Farm Dairy hired a couple of farmers last
year to help spearhead the vitality of the business, but
the farmers left July 1, leaving members of the Town Farm
Dairy board and volunteers to milk the dairy cows and run
the day-to-day farming, Hampton said.

The E. coli outbreak "did happen during the transition
time, so certainly one could make that connection that
during that transition some things fell threw the crack,"
Hampton said.

He said the outbreak is "a big issue. We got four people
sick and obviously our thoughts and prayers are with them.
We want to make sure nobody else gets sick, so we're
monitoring it very closely."

Contact Regine Labossiere at rlabossiere@...

* - * - * - * - * - * - *

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Watermelon Sugar

There have been times when I've felt sinfully decadent
after gobbling down a cup of freshly cubed watermelon.
The sweetness level is so incredibly high that is feels
as if I am eating pure sugar. Try juicing watermelon in
your VitaMix (or blender) and the resulting drink is
sweeter and more refreshing than a sugar-saturated cola.

How many calories in that single cup of melon? Just 46!

The cinnamon-raisin bagel which others enjoy will
contain 326 calories, and that does not include
the butter or cream cheese. For a typical 2-ounce
portion of cream cheese, add 168 more calories for
a total of 494 calories. That's more calories than
are in 1/2 gallon (plus a pint) of watermelon!

How I love watermelon sugar!!!

I sometimes watch supermarket shoppers with fascination
as they sort through the watermelon bin, selecting one,
then putting it back to select another, then another,
then changing their mind to pick a third and fourth melon.
Some shake the melons. Others smell them. Most have no
clue how to select a ripe ready-to-eat melon. My two tips:

1) Don't select an all-green melon. Look for one with
a yellow patch where the rind had been sitting on soil.
2) Avoid the melons with soft spots & feasting fruit flies.

It's that time of the year when an entire watermelon
can be purchased for less than the price of a gallon
of gas. The watermelon gives you better mileage, guaranteed!

It is not too late for you to enjoy the summertime
magic contained within one of nature's perfect
fruits, watermelon.

Mark Twain wrote:

"When one has tasted it (watermelon) he knows
what the angels eat."

My day began at 4 AM and my break-fast meal consists
of just one fiber-rich melon containing isoflavones,
particularly lycopene. Lycopene neutralizes antioxidants.
Although humans breathe oxygen in air, there exist
dangerously reactive forms of oxygen that can cause
cellular damage. No other fruit of vegetable contains
as much lycopene as watermelon, not even those
much-publicized tomatoes.

According to watermelon.org, the first Watermelons
were grown in Africa's Kalahari Desert. Watermelon
harvests were recorded 5,000 years ago in the form
of hieroglyphics on walls of ancient Egyptian
buildings.

In 1905, most Americans did not have refrigerators.
Nor were they able to ship and store fruits and vegetables
in the efficient manner that we now take for granted.
In her Ministry of Healing, published in 1905, Ellen
White recognized the importance of fruit in one's diet.
On page 299, she wrote:

"Wherever fruit can be grown in abundance, a liberal
supply should be prepared for winter, by canning or
drying. Small fruits, such as currants, gooseberries,
strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, can be
grown to advantage in many places where they are but
little used and their cultivation is neglected."

In China, watermelon seeds are flavored with soysauce
and dried. You'll find bags of these dried treats in most
Asian grocery stores.

I will be scooping out the remaining pulp and juice
and adding it all to my blender for a refreshing drink
while I work later this afternoon.

Watermelon Sugar is the title of a Richard Brautigan
novel. Brautigan was my favorite poet. Watermelon
Sugar brings back memories of a house in Southampton,
NY near my college campus where I met a group of merry
pranksters led by Ken Kesey in 1970. Liz Relin and
Sadie Barrie-Cooper and Robert-John Mulheim would
paint watercolors of rainbow-hued watermelons and
watermelon sugar. Each time I eat watermelon I
recall the sweetness of the Edenic days I spent
at their house.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

My Dysfunctional Local Farmer's Market

The sign had been there for two weeks:
"Farmer's Market on this site July 20th!"

"This site" was located in Emerson, NJ, about 1/2
mile from my New Jersey Home and next to the
tiny railroad station where North Jersey commuters
board trains for the Monday-Friday 40-minute ride
into midtown, Manhattan.

I was thrilled to have a local farmer's market.
Sunday arrived, and I considered walking, but
95 degree temperature and high humidity quickly
erased that idea. Anticipating the purchase of
multiple bags of homegrown fruits and veggies
also made driving a necessity for me.

I drove from my home to the site and immediately
observed that it was a farmer market. Singular.
One van. One farmer. Or so he claimed.

I arrived there at 1 PM and was the lone customer.
Unrefrigerated mozzarella balls lay stacked in a
box on a table, each wrapped in cellophane.

"You got cows?"

"Nope", he responded.

"You make your own cheese?"

He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.

"Anything special about that mozzarella?"

He shook his head again. The sign said $7.99 per pound.
That's a hefty price to pay for E. coli and salmonella.

He did have beautiful corn.

"Pioneer Hi-Bred" I asked?
(Pioner Hi-Bred is DuPont's $10 billion GMO
corn company.)

He nodded his head affirmatively. We were alone and
he admitted a truth which I had already suspected.
A farmer selling genetically engineered corn at a
farmer's market? We had a short talk regarding GMOs.
(Genetically Modified Organisms). I understand why he feels
that he must use them. I told him about weeds developing
immunities to herbicides and glycophosphates. He
understood, but attempted to justify his use of GMOs
and could not come to terms with my gentle explanation
of why he was part of the problem.

There were loose baskets of potatoes. In our neck of
the woods, potatoes are harvested in September.

"You grow those?"

"We grow potatoes, but these come from Idaho."

The peaches looked nice, but they were quite
firm and clearly picked in an unripe state.
That unripe state turned out to be Georgia.
At $1.99 per pound, one expects something better.
A rare commodity called honesty, perhaps.

The tomatoes were beautiful, but so are the ones
I've been harvesting daily from my own backyard garden.
At $3.99 per pound, I was not really tempted to bite.
Although I grow my own, there is a local senior
citizen who sits in from of his home during the
month of August. I buy 10 pounds or more at a
time from him and pay just $1 per pound in addition
to the ones I grow myself. I'll soon have a freezer
filled with homemade sauces.

The lettuce was clearly homegrown, with black soil
still attached to the roots. The Romaine had wilted
in the summer heat. I passed, content to enjoy my
freshly picked homegrown lettuce.

The word "lettuce" has its origin in the Latin word
for milk (lac) which was named by Romans, who grew
many different varieties which became a mainstay of
their diet. When I pick my own lettuce I observe that
white sappy cream-colored fluid with each leaf torn
from the stem, but I've never seen "lac" in store-bought
lettuce. Apparently, soon after harvesting, something
essential within the plant dies. Fresh is always best.
His lettuce lacked lac. His lettuce lacked life. He was
out of lac and luck. I passed on the lettuce too.

One does not expect to purchase stale supermarket
produce at local farmer's markets. It just is another
of those food betrayals which I find to be offensive.
Always ask your vendors the sometimes obvious
questions. You'll know by their response whether
their produce belongs in your body.

A soccer-mom drove up and got out of her SUV and loaded
up on out of state taters, GMO corn, and unripe peaches.
Her arrival allowed me to make my getaway. As I drove
away making my retreat, I watched in my rear view
mirror as she picked out two packages of sun-ripened
mozzarella.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Can Cheese and Ice Cream Cause Migraines?

Fifteen hours after ingesting a favorite dairy
product, you might get one of those "Excederin
headaches" that keeps pounding and pounding so
that there is no relief for many excrutiating hours.

Eighty percent of milk protein is casein, an allergenic
substance that causes the production of histamines
(you know all about anti-histamines) resulting
in mucus. For some people, the result is clogged
sinuses. Blood becomes thicker and brain ventricles
swell with substances battling foreign invading dairy
proteins. Pressure on brain membranes--dura, arachnoid,
pia--temporarily make life intolerable for migraine
sufferers.
__________________

Scientific Support
__________________

"Dairy products may play a major role in
the development of allergies, asthma, sleep
difficulties, and migraine headaches."

Pediatrics 1989;84(4):595-603

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Lies are Bitter Pills to Swallow

"Fresh air, exercise, pure water, and clean, sweet premises,
are within the reach of all, with but little expense; but
drugs are expensive, both in the outlay of means, and the
effect produced upon the system."
- Ellen G. White, 1885

Have you heard the silly new Novartis radio commercial
fabricated to fool most of the people most of the time?

Novartis pharmaceutical company has 102,000 employees.
On Thursday (July 17, 2008) Novartis announced that its
quarterly net sales rose 14 percent over last year's second
quarter to $10.73 billion. Novartis also reported a 17 percent
increase in net income for the second quarter.

Novartis has a history of producing deceptive radio ads
and has recently made news after the Federal Trade
Commission's investigation into misrepresentations and
lies regarding Doan's Pills.

Rather than learn their lesson, Novartis has become more
deceptive, in a generic sense.

I've now heard their latest commercial a few times while
driving in my car listening to news radio 880 AM in New York.

In the ad, an elderly woman describes her experience after
a lethal cancer diagnosis. Having only a few months left
to live, she informs radio listeners that her husband was
reading about a Novartis experimental drug trial and had her
enrolled as a clinical subject. Five years later, she's still
alive and has held five grandchildren she otherwise would not
have known. Thanks, Novartis?

What's wrong with this story?

Pharmaceutical companies will not share the data from such
clinical trials, claiming that they are trade secrets. There
is no way to check whether such ads are legitimate. Consider
this: For each little old lady taking a new experimental drug
drug, there exists her counterpart taking a sterile panacea.

I am still waiting to hear the ad from the relatives of
people who were sick and denied the potential "miracle"
cancer cure by being fed false hopes and genuine placebos.

VOICEOVER:

"My wife had less than a year to live. Novartis could have
saved her, but they intentionally gave her sugar-coated pills
which offered no possible cure. Had we known, we would have
tried an alternative therapy rather than no therapy at all."

How about those who rapidly die from traumatic liver, kidney,
and heart failures from experimental poisons used in secret
trials which rarely make news because pharmaceutical companies
are not required to release data?

I am still waiting to hear the ad from the relatives of people
taking one experimental drug after another which have produced
disastrous results.

VOICEOVER:

"My wife only had less than a year to live. Novartis tortured
her to death in just a few weeks."

Commercials are designed to sell Novartis stock offerings
and prime smaller companies for takeovers. Such commercials
enhance the corporate stature of pharmaceutical conglomerates.
Consumers cannot legally purchase leading edge Novartis drugs
on a retail whim. Such pharmaceuticals must first be
prescribed by licensed medical practitioners. Radio ads
for modern cancer drugs are not designed to actually sell
such drugs. They are ingenuously premeditated to sell concepts.

Drugs will make you free.
That is a lie.
Truth is, drugs will enslave you.
During the nineteenth century, Karl Marx called religion the
"opiate of the masses." In the 21st century, media advertising
has become the "opiate" of the masses. It is addictive and
all-consuming.

To Novartis: Continue the research if you must, but please
end the commercials. They are deceptive, teaching society's
sick and infirm that drugs are their best hope and Novartis
is their best friend. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Drug-pushing doctors receive far too many incentives from
pharmaceutical companies to teach patients to avoid pills.
Free vacations. Free Rolex watches. Cash kickbacks. The
bribes are getting so bad, that in a recent moment of
confusion I called my own physician "Senator."

As for little white lies and little white pills...the older
and wiser I become, the less likely I am to swallow either.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Unfinished Symphonies

The most famous of Franz Schubert's orchestrations was his
"Unfinished Symphony."

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-tqeLb3G_TM

Although Beethoven had gone deaf, he wrote and conducted
the Ninth Symphony as his own personal ode to joy. Imagine
what Beethoven's Tenth might have sounded like? There is
actually evidence that Beethoven began writing a tenth.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PYvYZFukRqo

It remains beyond our comprehension as to what dimensions
Albert Einstein might have opened while expanding upon his
theory of unified fields. Did Einstein leave his final
unified "symphony of everything" unfinished?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=XOiedIGMp5Q

The most creative of imaginations would hardly do justice to
the enchanted fields of flowers under starry nights that
Vincent Van Gogh might have translated upon canvas had he
not died at 37 years of age. Try to imagine the adult toys
that Nikola Tesla or Thomas Edison might have constructed
for humankind's amusement. What unique paths to peace might
America have taken had FDR or JFK or MLK lived another five
years?

I have recently discovered the writings of Ellen G. White.
For seventy years, this woman of prophecy related to her
followers thousands of personal revelations from God, some
lasting for a few moments and others lasting for hours. The
50,000 pages of text that she produced serve as nutritional
guidance for members of the Seventh-day Adventist church. In
1868, White sensed that one day milk and dairy products would
no longer be safe to consume. This was White's perception
of things to come, based upon her great wisdom. She wrote:

"I wish to say that when the time comes that it is no
longer safe to use milk, cream, butter, and eggs, God
will reveal this." (1868)

Thirty-four years later, White had not yet received her
absolute "dairy" vision, but she allowed for future
prophecy by writing:

"Let the people be taught how to prepare food without the
use of milk or butter. Tell them that the time will soon
come when there will be no safety in using eggs, milk, cream,
or butter." (1902)

Had Ellen G. White been alive today, she might have written
opus after opus, symphony after symphony, merging modern
day science and religion, making more powerful our twenty-first
century NotMilk movement. Other Ellen G. White quotes:

"I frequently sit down to the tables of the brethren and
sisters, and see that they use a great amount of milk and
sugar. These clog the system, irritate the digestive organs,
and affect the brain." (1870)

"Animals from which milk is obtained are not always healthy.
They may be diseased. I would recommend that people eat
flesh meats sooner than large quantities of milk and sugar.
It would not do the injury that milk and sugar do." (1870)

"Sugar and milk combined are liable to cause fermentation in
the stomach, and are thus harmful." (1890)

"Especially harmful are the custards and puddings in which
milk, eggs, and sugar are the chief ingredients. The use of
milk and sugar taken together should be avoided." (1893)

"The light given me is that it will not be very long before
we shall have to give up any animal food. Even milk will
have to be discarded. Disease is accumulating rapidly." (1899)

"The health food business is in need of means and of the active
cooperation of our people, that it may accomplish the work it
ought to do. Its purpose is to supply the people with food which
will take the place of flesh meat, and also milk and butter."
(January 1, 1900)

"If for dessert sweet cake is eaten with milk or cream,
fermentation will be created in the stomach, and then the weak
points of the human organism will tell the story. The brain
will be affected by the disturbance in the stomach." (1900)

Ellen G. White's unfinished overture is soon to be
completed, for I have been touched by a similar vision.

For me, White's treatment of nutrition represents the
thunderous opening chords of Tchaikovsky's First Piano
Concerto. (Note the passion with which the pianist
attacks his opening chords. Note the passion of the
red-headed violoncello player seated to the left of
the conductor and the right of the pianist.) Passion
for one's work is what fuels greatness.

I would find it hard to understand how any listener
could not feel a powerful wave of emotion (goosebumps)
at the 3:15 mark. At this moment, did Tchaikovsky
intend for his listeners to cry or to laugh? I have
done both from this moment bearing witness and
testimony to human greatness. Tchaikovsky died at
the age of 53.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Yk-D5VtfzEA

With similar flourish, I expect to finish her unfinished
work with my own crashing finale from the first movement
of Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto (55 seconds
beginning at the 8:05 mark).

http://youtube.com/watch?v=i8ZHKt_lHq0&feature=related

To me, Seventh-day Adventists represent Ellen White's
unfinished symphony. If only they would love, adore,
adopt her work as I have done. White's vision represents
humankind's destiny for greatness. Ellen White's vegetarian
philosophy plays like a sweet Paganini violin concerto.
The dominant theme:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=cvstMjDkUqQ

Combine White's visions with my own vegan Notmilk vision
and the resulting symphony will become our unified rhapsody
of variations upon that violin theme of Paganini's. The
following took Rachmaninoff 56 days to write. It is, in my
opinion, the single most brilliant piece of music ever written.
When I listen to this I become inspired to perform magnificent
deeds.

Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody Upon a Theme of Paganini

First Movement

http://youtube.com/watch?v=z9Z-HCq5EeU

Second Movement

http://youtube.com/watch?v=D5bP1CdfM-8&feature=related

Third Movement

http://youtube.com/watch?v=90MuPqYtV_k&feature=related

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Are Cows Dumb?

I found this Internet article from Wales dated
July 16, 2008:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cow Shot On A-455

"A cow has been humanely destroyed by armed officers after
escaping across the A55 dual carriageway in Llanddulas near
Abergele.

At 6:50 this morning police received a report that 17 cows
were loose on the dual carriageway.

The police control room in St Asaph was flooded with 999 calls
from concerned members of the public after the cows wandered
across both carriageways and onto the central reservation.

The road was closed as officers and farmers attempted to herd
the animals into farm vehicles.

One cow escaped from the herd as it ran across the A55. It was
humanely destroyed by armed officers as it was posing a danger
to the public. The road has now been re-opened."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ask yourself three obvious questions:

First Question: If the road had been closed, how
how much of a real danger was the cow to the public?

Second Question: If armed people can humanely destroy cows,
would it be alright for armed cows to bovinely destroy people?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=FQMbXvn2RNI

Third Question: Are cows dumb?

Hoard's Dairyman asked that same question in their Christmas
issue, 1971 (Volume 116, Number 24, page 1333).

That's an important question for both dairymen and animal
rights activists. Dumb old animals don't deserve rights, do
they? That might be a dairy farmer's argument, while animal
rights activists argue that all animals are born with the
ability to feel pain.

So, are cows smart or stupid? Authors Whittlestone,
Albright, and Kilgour (dairy cow behaviorists) addressed
that argument 37 years ago. They wrote:

"The cow is a most versatile animal with unique behavioral
traits."

"After the calf is born, the mother forms a bond with her
youngster. The unique learning phenomenon is established
soon after birth."

"When you think of the complexity of the cow's brain, it is
apparent that she is an animal capable of carrying out
complex instructions."

So, the cow is not so stupid after all, according to dairy
experts. Imagine her ability to reason those final moments
of a life in which she is removed from the farm, placed on a
truck, shipped to an auction ring where she is tortured with
cattle prods, sold to the highest bidder, then trucked again
to her painful death in a slaughterhouse.

Are cows smart or stupid?

We've always suspected the correct answer to that tormenting
question while trying hard to ignore the painful realities
of farm abuse and death by slaughterhouse. To pretend
that cows are merely stupid beasts protects our false
sense of humanity. I anxiously await the sequel to this
intriguing 1971 article. We've yet to determine, "Are humans
smart or stupid?"

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

How Much Pus is in One Sip of Milk?

The next time a friend or loved one takes a glass
of milk to his or her lips, share the following:

There are four eight-ounce glasses of liquid in a quart
of milk. Depending on how you sip your milk, there will
be between 20 and 30 million pus cells per mouthful.

Pus in milk? A dairy cow filters ten-thousand liters
of blood through her udder each day and utilizes dead
white blood cells (somatic cells) to manufacture her
milk. These dead cells are pus cells. Dairy scientists
are aware that when one quart of milk is tainted with
400 million or more pus cells, some 35% of the milking
cows in the herd are infected with mastitis. Udders bleed,
discharges, including mucus, ,bacteria and blood drip into
the milk.

By law, one cup of milk cannot contain more than 50
million pus cells. That's 200 million pus cells
per quart (liter).

The United States Department of Health and
Human Services, along with the Public Health
Service and Food and Drug Administration, has
established a 280-page set of protocols that
is collectively referred to as:

The Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (P.M.O.)

The foreword of this all-inclusive set of
rules and regulations governing every quart
of milk sold in Ameirca says:

"Occasional milkborne outbreaks still occur,
emphasizing the need for continued vigilance
at every stage of production, processing,
pasteurization and distribution of milk and
milk products."

It is a breath of fresh air to read an occasional
governmental truism regarding milk:

"Milk has the potential to serve as a vehicle
of disease and has, in the past, been associated
with disease outbreaks of major proportions."

This document is more than a guideline for milk
producers. It's the law. In the preface, the purpose
of the P.M.O. is summarized:

"The Grade 'A' Pasteurized Milk Ordinance is
incorporated by reference in Federal specifications
for procurement of milk and milk products; is used
as the sanitary regulation for milk and milk products
served on interstate carriers; and is recognized
by the public health agencies, the milk industry,
and many others as a national standard for milk
sanitation."

Many dairy producers have challenged the laws contained
within the all-powerful P.M.O. Courts have clearly
maintained the integrity of these sets of laws when asked
to do so. On page vi of the preface, the P.M.O. states:

"The Ordinance has been widely adopted for many years
and has been upheld by court actions. One of the most
comprehensive decisions upholding the various
provisions of the Ordinance was that of the District
Court, Reno County, Kansas, in the case of Billings et
al v. City of Hutchinson et al., decided May 1, 1934.
In this action, the plaintiffs unsuccessfully sought
to enjoin the enforcement of the Hutchinson ordinance
on the grounds that it was unreasonable..."

The courts have repeatedly upheld the sanctity of this
set of laws.

The dairy industry continues to ignore the spirit of
the laws so enacted.

To date, no individual or group has challenged
national enforcement of these statutes. There is a
first time for all things.

The table of contents (page vii of the preface) lists the
standards for Grade A milk, and defines "Abnormal Milk"
on page 20.

The standards for Grade "A" raw milk for pasteurization
define abnormal milk this way:

"Lactating animals which show evidence of the
secretion of abnormal milk in one or more
quarters (the udder is divided into four quarters),
based upon bacteriological, chemical, or physical
examination, shall be milked last or with separate
equipment and the milk shall be discarded."

The above is further explained ("Public Health Reason"):

"The health of lactating animals is a very important
consideration because a number of diseases of
lactating animals, including salmonellosis,
staphloccal infection and streptococcal infection,
may be transmitted to man through the medium of
milk. The organisms of most of these diseases
may get into the milk either directly from the
udder or indirectly through infected body discharges
which may drop, splash, or be blown into the milk."

What is "abnormal milk?"

The April 25, 2002 issue of Hoard's Dairyman, the dairy
farmer's magazine, addresses that question. Veterinarian
Dave Linn testifies on page 341:

"According to the PMO, all milk from cows producing
'abnormal' milk should be dumped."

Linn compares "wholesome" milk to "abnormal" milk,
and reveals insider industry standards shared by
the National Mastitis Council, United States Department
of Agriculture, and Food and Drug Administration.
If cows are infected, milk is abnormal. This is a dirty
secret that government agencies conspire to keep from
the dairy-eating public. Dr. Linn writes:

"Research has shown that, with a herd cell count of
200,000, there may be as many as 15 percent of the
cows infected. In herds with a 300,000 count, this
figure may be as high as 25%."

("Cell count" refers to the number of somatic cells,
dead white blood cells per milliter of milk).

In 2008, the average 8-0unce glass of milk will
contain 73 million pus cells. Almost every state in
America is in violation of federal statutes. Cow's
milk is unwholesome, unhealthy, and disgusting.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Post Today's Column on Your Refrigerator

There was a time in my life when I only ate
one meal per day. That meal began at about 8
AM and lasted for 14 hours until 10 PM. I called
it "break-fast," because that single and continuous
meal ended an 8-hour fasting period consisting of
sleepy dreams filled with visions of sugarplums.
I would look into the mirror and see Hungry Mungry.

(Excerpted from Shel Silverstein's, Hungry Mungry,
Where the Sidewalk Ends, 1974)

"Hungry Mungry sat at supper,
took his knife and fork,
Ate a bowl of mushroom soup,
ate a slice of roasted pork,
Ate a bowl of stewed tomatoes,
twenty-seven deviled eggs,
Fifteen shrimps, nine baked potatoes,
32 fried chicken legs,
A shank of lamb, a boiled ham,
two bowls of grits,
some black-eyed peas,
Four chocolate shakes, eight angel cakes,
nine custard pies with Muenster cheese,
Ten pots of tea, and after he had eaten
all that he was able,
He poured some broth on the tablecloth
and ate the kitchen table."

When is the proper time to eat? How often should
we eat? How many meals per day? Which should be
the major meal? Dietary advice can be so conflicting
and confusing.

One hundred years ago, there lived a health reformer
whose dietary wisdom I now try to follow. Her name
was Ellen G. White, and I've gleaned ten rules about
eating from her 55,000 pages of text. The more I
read and study White's work, the more her visions
make sense to me.

Rule #1

"You should understand that every organ of the body is
to be treated with respect. In the matter of diet, you
must reason from cause to effect."
(1908)

Rule #2

"It is possible to eat immoderately, even of wholesome
food. It does not follow that because one has discarded
the use of hurtful articles of diet, he can eat just as
much as he pleases. Overeating, no matter what the quality
of the food, clogs the living machine, and thus hinders
it in its work."
(1890)

Rule #3

"Masticate slowly, and allow the saliva to mingle with the
food. The more liquid there is taken into the stomach with
the meals, the more difficult it is for the food to digest;
for the liquid must first be absorbed."
(1890)

Rule #4

"Do not have too great a variety at a meal; three or four
dishes are a plenty. At the next meal you can have a change.
The cook should tax her inventive powers to vary the dishes
she prepares for the table, and the stomach should not be
compelled to take the same kinds of food meal after meal."
(1884)

Rule #5

"Puddings, custards, sweet cake, and vegetables, all served
at the same meal, will cause a disturbance in the stomach."
(1900)

Rule #6

"Many professed health reformers are nothing less than
gluttons. They lay upon the digestive organs so great a
burden that the vitality of the system is exhausted in the
effort to dispose of it. It also has a depressing influence
upon the intellect; for the brain nerve power is called
upon to assist the stomach in its work."
(1870)

Rule #7

"My brother, your brain is benumbed. A man who disposes of
the quantity of food that you do, should be a laboring man.
Exercise is important to digestion, and to a healthy condition
of body and mind. You need physical exercise. You move and
act as if you were wooden, as though you had no elasticity.
Healthy, active exercise is what you need. This will
invigorate the mind."
(1901)

Rule #8

"The influence of pure, fresh air is to cause the blood
to circulate healthfully through the system. It refreshes
the body, and tends to render it strong and healthy, while
at the same time its influence is decidedly felt upon the
mind, imparting a degree of composure and serenity. It
excites the appetite, and renders the digestion of food
more perfect, and induces sound and sweet sleep."
(1868)

Rule #9

"In order to secure healthy digestion, food should be
eaten slowly. Those who wish to avoid dyspepsia, and those
who realize their obligation to keep all their powers in
a condition which will enable them to render the best
service to God, will do well to remember this. If your
time to eat is limited, do not bolt your food, but eat
less, and masticate slowly. The benefit derived from food
does not depend so much on the quantity eaten as on its
thorough digestion; nor the gratification of taste so
much on the amount of food swallowed as on the length of
time it remains in the mouth. Those who are excited,
anxious, or in a hurry, would do well not to eat until
they have found rest or relief; for the vital powers,
already severely taxed, cannot supply the necessary
digestive fluids."
(1890)

Rule #10

"Custom has decreed that the food should be placed upon
the tables in courses. Not knowing what is coming next,
one may eat a sufficiency of food which perhaps is not
the best suited to him. When the last course is brought on,
he often ventures to overstep the bounds, and take the
tempting dessert, which, however, proves anything but good
for him. If all the food intended for a meal is placed on
the table at the beginning, one has opportunity to make
the best choice."
(1905)

These rules make so much sense. Next time you serve dinner,
put the dessert on the table at the same time as the entree.
Apply rule number ten to your life for a simple change, and
you shall benefit by having better digestion.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

God's Philosopher & God's Nutritionist Meet the Notmilkman

I refer to Ellen G. White as GOD'S NUTRITIONIST which
is also the title of the book I wrote in tribute to her
vegetarian philosophy as expressed in White's COUNSEL
ON DIET AND FOODS.

I then compiled 800 quotations into FOOD FOR THOUGHT
which is based upon Mrs. White's MINISTRY OF HEALING.
My "working title" for that book was GOD'S PHILOSOPHER.

I sell both books (signed by the author, of course) for
$40 which includes shipping and handling. I cannot come
close to the price now being offered by Amazon. You can
purchase GOD'S NUTRITIONIST for $13.56 plus shipping and
FOOD FOR THOUGHT for 11.53 plus shipping. Buy both books
and Amazon will pay for the shipping.

GOD'S NUTRITIONIST: http://tinyurl.com/6pgjr5
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: http://tinyurl.com/67sads

For touches of Ellen White's brilliance:

June 26, 2008
Food For Thought
My new book is out, and I am thrilled.
It is a gem. A work of art.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3065

June 27, 2008
Beacon of Light & Path of Truth
A conversation with a friend comparing chiropractors
to medical doctors.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3066

June 28, 2008
52 Different Notmilk Columns

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3067

Juney 29, 2008
Faith in Self
Reading my own book...

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3068

June 30, 2008
Losing Faith vs. Gaining Strength
A Notmilk reader's last year includes multiple nightmares.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3069

July 1, 2008

Posthumous Tim Russert Interview
Brilliant commentary from John McDougall, MD

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3070

July 2, 2008
My Private Little Joke
The quote that never was in FOOD FOR THOUGHT

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3071

July 3, 2008
Ripe Summer Peaches and Ice Cream
One absolute I've learned about dairy industry marketing:
Things Do Not Happen By Accident.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3072

July 4, 2008
A Midsummer Weekend's Dream
Having three daughters home at the same time is a rare gift.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3073

July 5, 2008
Phony Supplements and Dangerous Medicine
Medicines which do not heal and phony snake-oil supplements
which do more harm than good...

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3074

July 6, 2008
The King of Center Court
The greatest athletic contest I've ever seen...

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3075

July 7, 2008
Oprah's Vegan Diet
Oprah's Not-so Vegan experiment.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3076

July 8, 2008
Sharing My Garden With Friends
I wish that you could share the moment with me
each morning when I walk outside to weed my garden
before 6 AM.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3077

July 9, 2008
This is Absolutely Disgusting
Tuberculosis lays waste to California Happy cow herds.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3078

July 10

July is National Ice Cream Month
Comparing America's worst food to America's best...

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/notmilk/message/3079

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

The Cow Who Made General Custer Famous

The Battle of Little Bighorn, also known as Custer's
Last Stand, did not just happen. A complex series of
events over a 20-year period escalated into war and
led George Armstrong Custer to his ill-fated summer
day Montana in 1876.

This is the true story of the cow who started that war.
In the days of the Oregon Trail, one homesteader's cow
became separated from her wagon train and wandered
into a Sioux camp. Losing a cow was a catastrophic
event for a family of 19th century settlers.

Today, you can buy a small herd of 10 cows for the same
cost as a brand new family van. In those days, your
prairie schooner (covered wagon) cost exactly the same
as the family cow, about $70. Rice, beans, and dried
fruit could be had for just 6 cents per pound. Flour
cost only 2 cents per pound. A rifle was $15.

One hundred and thirty two years ago there were few
lawyers or activists in the Old West, so the Sioux
didn't sue, nor declare war. They might have even
returned this funny looking animal, if only the
settlers had asked. Instead, the pioneers went to
Fort Laramie, Wyoming, where they reported their lost
cow as a theft. They blamed the Native Americans. One
very eager West Point graduate, Lt. John Grattan,
assembled 29 soldiers and then set out to punish the
Indians who by that time had barbecued the unfortunate
animal. The chief offered the soldiers a horse in trade
for the cow, but Grattan's response was to open fire.
He killed the chief, and the Sioux fired back killing
21 soldiers. Shortly thereafter, 650 soldiers returned
to massacre 85 Sioux men, women, and children. The year
was 1855. The result was years of hostilities by both
sides. All because of one wandering cow.

Long ago when America was young, and when settlers sought
a better way of life on the west coast of the United
States, that dairy cow would have yielded just one quart
of milk each day. That hardly produced enough mozzarella
cheese to melt atop even one slice of pizza for a hungry
cowboy or cowgirl.

There were many wagon train expeditions that never made
it through the Rocky Mountains due to a number of
hardships, more often than not a combination of severe
weather and too little food.

Shortly after the Sioux massacre, another group of
settlers became lost and their stores of food ran low.
They had been traveling through rough country, and they
had seen no evidence of human life for nearly a week.
Suddenly, from out of nowhere, they came upon an old
Jewish man sitting beneath a tree.

The leader galloped his horse over to the man and asked,
"We're lost and running out of food. Is there someplace
around here where we can get something to eat?"

"Vell," the old Jew said, "I vouldn't go up dat
hill und down other side. You'll run into a big
bacon tree."

"A bacon tree?" asked the incredulous wagon train leader.

"Yah, ah bacon tree. I vudn't lie."

The expedition guide rode off on his horse and related
his conversation to the other settlers. He told them
that they might be able to find food on the other side
of the next ridge. One settler wasn't so sure.

"Then why did he warn you not to go there?"
the pioneer asked.

"Oh, you know those Jews - they don't eat pigs."

Despite reservations, starvation gave way to precaution
and the wagon train did go up the hill and down the
other side. Suddenly, Indians attacked and massacred
everybody except the leader, who managed to escape
back to the old Jew.

The near-dead cowboy, arrows protruding from his body,
crawled up to the Jew and grabbed him by the leg. With
great difficulty, he spoke. "You fool! You sent us to
our deaths! We followed your instructions, but there
was no bacon tree. Just hundreds of Indians, who
massacred everyone."

The Jew held up his hand to his face and cried "Oy vey,
vait a zecond." He then got out an English-Yiddish
dictionary, and began thumbing through it. "Oh, no, vat
have I done? It vuz not a bacon tree, it vuz...a ham bush!

OK, I apologize for that. The cow story is true.
You can look it up.
;>)

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Multiple Sclerosis & Dairy Consumption

Multiple sclerosis affects approximately
300,000 Americans. Two-thirds of those diagnosed
with MS are women. Most researchers believe that
MS is an autoimmune disease. Auto means "self."

It is interesting to note that Eskimos and Bantus
(50 million individuals living in East Africa) rarely
get MS. Neither do those native North and South
American Indian or Asian populations that consume
no cow's milk or dairy products.

The British medical journal Lancet reported that
dairy-rich diets filled have been closely linked to the
development of MS. (The Lancet 1974;2:1061)

A study published in the journal Neuroepidemiology
revealed an association between eating dairy foods
(cow's milk, butter, and cream) and an increased
prevalence of MS. (Neuroepidemiology 1992;11:304­12.)

MS researcher, Luther Lindner, M.D., a pathologist
at Texas A & M University College of Medicine, wrote:

"It might be prudent to limit the intake
of milk and milk products."

The body's reaction to a foreign protein is to destroy
that antigen-like invader with an antibody. For those
individuals possessing a genetic pre-disposition to
such an event, the antibody then turns upon one's own
cells. That is an auto-immune response. In the case of
MS, the body's response is to attack the outer membrane
protecting nerve cells, or the myelin sheath. Symptoms
of MS include tingling or numbness of the limbs, paralysis,
and vision problems. Sometimes MS patients experience
slurred speech accompanied by chronic pain.

It has long been established that early exposure to bovine
proteins is a trigger for insulin dependent diabetes mellitus.
Researchers have made that same milk consumption connection
to MS. The July 30, 1992 issue of the New England Journal
of Medicine first reported the diabetes autoimmune response
milk connection:

"Patients with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus produce
antibodies to cow milk proteins that participate in the
development of islet dysfunction... Taken as a whole, our
findings suggest that an active response in patients with
IDDM (to the bovine protein) is a feature of the auto immune
response."

In October of 1996, The Lancet reported:

"Antibodies to bovine beta-casein are present in over a third
of IDDM patients and relatively non-existent in healthy
individuals."

Two months later (December 14, 1996), The Lancet revealed:

"Cow's milk proteins are unique in one respect: in industrialized
countries they are the first foreign proteins entering the infant
gut, since most formulations for babies are cow milk-based.
The first pilot stage of our IDD prevention study found that
oral exposure to dairy milk proteins in infancy resulted in
both cellular and immune response...this suggests the possible
importance of the gut immune system to the pathogenesis of IDD."

The April 1, 2001 issue of the Journal of Immunology
contained a study linking MS to milk consumption.

Michael Dosch, M.D., and his team of researchers
determined that multiple sclerosis and type I (juvenile)
diabetes mellitus are far more closely linked than previously
thought. Dosch attributes exposure to cow milk protein as
a risk factor in the development of both diseases for people
who are genetically susceptible. According to Dosch:

"We found that immunologically, type I diabetes and
multiple sclerosis are almost the same - in a test tube
you can barely tell the two diseases apart. We found
that the autoimmunity was not specific to the organ
system affected by the disease. Previously it was thought
that in MS autoimmunity would develop in the central
nervous system, and in diabetes it would only be found
in the pancreas. We found that both tissues are targeted
in each disease."

Women are targeted by dairy industry scare tactics that
misinform about osteoporosis. Two-thirds of MS victims
are women. As milk and cheese consumption increase
along population lines, so too do an epidemic number
of MS cases. The numbers add up. The clues add up.
The science supports epidemiological studies. Got MS?
The milk connection has been established.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Got Lousy Bowel Movements?

According to the National Association For Continence,
which studies bathroom behavior, the average American
spends 55 minutes per day sitting on the toilet.

What is he or she doing in there?

Having one or more lousy bowel movements,
that's what.

Incontinence is the inability of the
body to control the evacuative functions."

Dogs and cats eat dog and cat food.
They have no problems evacuating
their bowels. I've seen 'em in the act.
I've danced around their firm healthy
deposits on neighborhood sidewalks.

I've seen horses and cattle deposit
their droppings, and my own Boston Terrier
has never had a problem with incontinence.
Of course, she eats no mozzerella. Nor
does she eat Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

Eighty percent of the protein in milk
and dairy products is casein, the same
tenacious glue used to hold together
the wood in furniture.

Eat casein and one will produce histamines,
then quarts and quarts of mucus.

What goes in one end, goes out the other.

The average American eats 666 pounds per year
of mucus-forming milk and dairy products.

Give up milk and dairy products for just
one week. During that time you will expel
a gallon or more of mucous.

Got normal bowel movements?
After just one week, you will improve.
You will no longer sit on the toilet
for 55 minutes like the average American.

Give up milk and dairy, and you'll
be flush with good health.

There's only one thing keeping you from
being as regular as Kitty and Fido.
Give up the dairy, and you'll recapture
50 of those 55 minutes that are spent
on ceramic thrones paying tribute to
America's dairy industry.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

July is National Ice Cream Month

I can think of no unhealthier substance eaten
by so many people than ice cream. Picture the
Japanese cuisine, and sushi immediately comes to mind.
Imagine a representative Korean food and you think of
kim chee or hot/pickled cabbage/bok choy. Italy is
pasta marinara. France is snails (yeech). Germany is
beer. The United States of Atherosclerosis? Ice cream.

I received a press release from Marti Pupillo
proclaiming July as National Ice Cream month.

You might want to ask Marti a question or two. She's
the media representative for the International Dairy
Foods Association, or IDFA. Sample questions can be
found at the conclusion of today's column.

Marti Pupillo - 202-737-IDFA (202-737-4332)

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
The Press Release
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

July is National Ice Cream Month

In 1984, President Ronald Reagan designated July as
National Ice Cream Month and the third Sunday of the
month as National Ice Cream Day. He recognized ice
cream as a fun and nutritious food that is enjoyed
by a full 90% of the nation's population. President
Reagan called for all people of the United States to
observe these events with "appropriate ceremonies and
activities."

The International Ice Cream Association (IICA) encourages
retailers and consumers to celebrate July as National
Ice Cream Month. In 2008, National Ice Cream Day will
be Sunday, July 20.

The U.S. ice cream industry generates more than $21
billion in annual sales and provides jobs for thousands
of citizens. About 9% of all the milk produced by U.S.
dairy farmers is used to produce ice cream, contributing
significantly to the economic well-being of the nation's
dairy industry.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

If you keyword search the Notmilk group Messages:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/NotMilk

You'll find mention of "ice cream" many, many times.
Rather than knock ice cream as I have done on
435 previous occasions, I challenge you to replace
cuisine's worst possible food with some of the best
alternatives.

If you visited my home and opened the refrigerator,
you would find it filled with containers of freshly
cut fruit. When my daughters were young, I'd cut up
fruit and present it to them. These days, each one
starts her day on the way to work with her own mixed bag.

At this moment there are quart containers filled with
strawberries, blueberries, and cantaloupe. Let's compare
one-pint portions of each to one pint of rich vanilla
ice cream.

(Fat, sugar, and fiber are expressed in grams.
Cholesterol levels are in milligrams. All data
is derived from USDA's Nutrient Database.)

ITEM (Pint)....CAL----FAT---SUGAR---FIBER---CHOL.

Ice Cream.....1064---69.32---88.40---0.0----392
Strawberries..0092---00.86---14.08---5.8----000
Blueberries....0168---00.98---29.48---7.2----000
Cantaloupe....0106---00.60---24.52---2.8----000

NOTE: There are 3 milligrams of cholesterol in
one medium sized slice of cooked Armour bacon
(16 slices to the pound).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Five Question for Marti (202-737-4332)

1) What did President Reagan mean when he called ice
cream "nutritious?"

2) Since 1 slice of Armour bacon contains 3 milligrams
of cholesterol, and since there are 392 milligrams
of cholesterol in one pint of rich vanilla ice cream,
would I be getting the same cholesterol contained in
131 slices of bacon if I consumed that pint?

3) Is cholesterol good for you?

4) Regarding those tens of thousands of cows being
slaughtered in California this week because of
tuberculosis...they've been milked for the past six
months and that milk has been turned into ice cream
and distributed nationally. Should I be concerned
for my health, or should I just be grossed out that
I've been eating processed body fluids from diseased
animals?

5) Is it fair to still call California cows "happy cows?"

6) President Reagan used to nod off toward the end of
his term during cabinet sessions and get confused with
facts when speaking to reporters. Do you think that the
Alzheimers he developed and eventually died from
contributed to his decision to call ice cream "nutritious?"

Please let me know what Marti has to say.

If you should get Marti's email address, please share
these quotations with her from page 60 of FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

"Those foods should be chosen which best supply the
elements needed for building up the body. In this
choice, appetite is not a safe guide. Through wrong
habits of eating, the appetite has become perverted.
Often it demands food that impairs health and causes
weakness instead of strength. We cannot safely be
guided by the customs of society. The disease and
suffering that everywhere prevail are largely due
to popular errors in regard to diet."
- Ellen G. White

"Indigestion is charged by God with enforcing morality
on the stomach."
- Victor Hugo

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

This is Absolutely Disgusting

Today's article contains excerpts from a story which
appeared in yesterday's Modesto Bee newspaper.

########################################

Slaughter begins in Calif dairy herd exposed to TB
By TRACIE CONE , Associated Press Writer
July 09, 2008

FRESNO, Calif. —

"More than 4,800 dairy cows at risk of carrying tuberculosis
are being slaughtered this week in central California, where
nearly 16,000 cattle in the country's largest milk-producing
region have been quarantined, federal officials said."

"Federal and state agriculture officials were still tightlipped
about the identities and locations of the three dairies where
cows tested positive for the disease, which can be transmitted
to humans and other mammals through the air or through drinking
unpasteurized milk from an infected cow."

"The owner of one dairy has accepted a USDA buyout of up to
$3,000 a head, and his cows are headed for the slaughterhouses.
The two other dairies are weighing whether to operate under
strict quarantines, which can last for years."

"One of the affected dairies milks more than 10,000 cows and
sells semen and embryos from high-production cows and bulls
internationally."

########################################

In FOOD FOR THOUGHT (page 35 of my new book) the nagture of
today's California "Happy Cow" lie is considered by two of the
world's great philosophers.

"Often animals are taken to market and sold for food when
they are so diseased that their owners fear to keep them
any longer...Shut away from the light and pure air, breathing
the atmosphere of filthy stables, perhaps fattening on
decaying food, the entire body soon becomes contaminated
with foul matter."
- Ellen G. White

"The fate of animals is of greater importance to me than
the fear of appearing ridiculous; it is indissolubly
connected with the fate of men."
- Emile Zola

Milk from tubeculosis-infected California cows has been used
to produce the cheese, ice cream, and pizza Americans will eat
this summer.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

This Summer's Simple Garden

I wish that you could share the moment with me each morning
when I walk outside to weed my garden before 6 AM. I share
the bounty with resident chipmunks and squirrels, but they
leave plenty, thankful that I use no herbicides or pesticides.

Cooking with fresh herbs makes such a difference to the
taste of sauteed veggies and grains. I've got large planters
filled with basil, oregano, parsley, dill, thyme, and rosemary.

Hundreds of plum tomatoes fill one section of plants which
were positioned in my yard so that they might soak up maximum
sunshine. Those who claim that Italian-grown tomatoes sold
in metallic cans are best have never tasted my fresh New
Jersey homegrowns.

My marinara sauces are complex, with a leaf and a sprig
and a snip of whatever herbs tempt me. I finish the sauces
with a splash of chardonnay or pinot noir, depending upon
last second whims. Couscous cooked in richly herbed broths
or whole wheat pastas, sometimes mixed with saffron and
served with steamed baby carrots and zucchini.

Soon my enormous succlulent beefsteak tomatoes will be ripe
with magic lycopene, citrulline, and flavors yet to be named.
The majority of fresh ingredients for my unique pesto sauce
grow a few feet from my back door. One teaspoon of raw pesto
from fresh basil, homegrown garlic, nutritional yeast, and olive
oil..slathered on each thick wedge of tomato makes for a perfect
breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I'll soon have thin purple Japanese
eggplant to cook in my unique method so that they absorb any of
the various cooking liquids which I add to the final phase of
cooking. Come for dinner--my lemon eggplant served with risotto
with thin wedges of portobello mushrooms might convince you
that vegan food is superior to dead animal parts.

In my new book, FOOD FOR THOUGHT, I include these delicious
perceptions on page 43:

"The meals should be varied. The same dishes, prepared in the
same way, should not appear on the table meal after meal and
day after day. The meals are eaten with greater relish, and
the system is better nourished, when the food is varied."
- Ellen G. White

"The secret of good cooking is, first, having a love of it.
If you're convinced that cooking is drudgery, you're never
going to be good at it, and you might as well warm up
something frozen."
- James Beard

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Oprah's Not-so Vegan Diet

One month ago (on or about June 10, 2008), Oprah
announced that she would be going on a vegan diet...
just as an experiment. Her fat magically melted away.

This week (July 5, 2008), she's performing a new
experiment.

Oprah's left behind the word "vegan" in America
and is now meat-eating her way through Italy. On
Sunday, she ate a mozzarella the size of the Leaning
Tower of Pisa. On Monday, she ate a provolone in
the shape of the Sistine Chapel. Rumor has it that
she intends to visit the sinking city of Venice.
Superstitious Venetians are urging Oprah to return
to her vegan ways or immediately return to America.
Do not pass Go-gonzola. Do not collect 200 lira.

Italians say that "what happens in Roma, stays in
Roma." Photos of Oprah appear to contradict that
adage. It appears that what happen in Roma, stays
on Oprah's thighs, stomach, and tush.

Very effective experiment, Oprah!

And now for a bit of FOOD FOR THOUGHT.

On page 53, there is some sage advice for Oprah:

"Carefully consider your diet. Study from cause to effect.
Cultivate self control. Keep appetite under control of
reason. Never abuse the stomach by overeating, but do not
deprive yourself of the wholesome, palatable food that
health demands."
- Ellen G. White

"A man's palate can, in time, become accustomed to anything."
- Napoleon Bonaparte

Oprah: You've visited two worlds. The world of Italy and
the world of Vega. Please pay close attention to your body's
clues and recognize that Italy is a nice place to visit but
you wouldn't want to live there, Instead, make your
permanent home a vegan one.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

The King of Center Court

Twenty years from now, tennis fans will be talking about
yesterday's men's final at Wimbledon. It was the greatest
contest I've ever seen. I began watching at 9 AM. Rain
delays extended the broadcast for nearly seven hours
I was one of more than one billion TV viewers.

People will one day forget the winner. Federer vs. Nadal;
Nadal vs. Federer. It does not really matter who won.
What was magnificent was the competition itself between
two magnificent athletes. Even the commentators announced
more than once, "We are lucky to be here."

Ali versus Frazier at Madison Square Garden was billed as
"The Fight of the Century." Years later, Ali and Frazier
fought the "Thrilla in Manilla." Who won either fight?
It matters not. Such was the spirit of yesterday's tennis
match. It was a joy of athleticism and human potential.
Read the acounts in today's newspapers written by today's
sportswriters. I cannot wait to see how Mike Lupica of
the Daily news expresses himself. Or any of the magnificent
sports columnists from the New York Times. This was more than
just one game, and it will be reported with all of the great
literary skills from sports bards and poets.

The match could have ended two hours earlier. During the
final two hours of the spectacle, I received nearly a dozen
phone calls from people who know my past in regards to
tennis. Friends and family asked many variations of the
same theme:

"Can you believe what you are seeing?"

I was once a very lousy tennis player, but I also once
owned a tennis facility (The Tennis Club just off of Cedar
Lane in Teaneck, NJ). Racquetball is my game, and I'm
pretty hard to beat, but as a tennis player, my scores
were what the pros refer to as "love."

While watching the match, I was impressed by the
conditioning of these two prime athletes. Beautiful
bodies, magnificent stamina, powerful serves, skilled
strokes, artful strategies, pure finesse.

Can we all become Roger Federers or Rafael Nadals?
It is the simple things which make a difference, and
for many couch potatoes who never exercise, I offer
some food for thought. In FOOD FOR THOUGHT these
quotations can be found on page 75:

"Those whose habits are sedentary should, when the
weather will permit, exercise in the open air every
day, summer or winter. Walking is preferable to
riding or driving, for it brings more of the muscles
into exercise. The lungs are forced into healthy
action, since it is impossible to walk briskly without
inflating them."
- Ellen G. White

"Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every
human being, while movement and methodical physical
exercise save it and preserve it."
- Plato

Why not let today become day-one of something you've
been intending to do for a very long time? Set up
an exercise routine and stay with it! Let her words
inspire you...You may not win Wimbledon, but you still
can become the king of center court.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com
GOD'S NUTRITIONIST: http://b.tinyurl.com/6pgjr5
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: http://b.tinyurl.com/67sads

Phony Supplements and Dangerous Medicine

When it comes to medicines which do not heal, and phony
snake-oil supplements which do more harm than good,
FOOD FOR THOUGHT (page 113) includes this advice:

"People need to be taught that drugs do not cure
disease. It is true that they sometimes afford present
relief, and the patient appears to recover as a result
of their use; this is because nature has sufficient
vital force to expel the poison and to correct the
conditions that caused the disease. Health is recovered
in spite of the drug. But in most cases the drug only
changes the form and location of the disease. Often
the effect of the poison seems to be overcome for a time,
but the results remain in the system and work great harm
at some later period."
- Ellen G. White

"I firmly believe that if the entire materia medica
as now used could be sunk to the bottom of the sea,
it would be all the better for mankind - and all the
worse for the fishes."
- Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 87, No. 6,
1945-1951, June 2008, includes this absurd publication:

"Effect of calcium supplementation on fracture risk:
a double-blind randomized controlled trial"

One could arguably call this "the Ferrari of calcium
supplement studies." That's only because the lead author's
name is Heike A Bischoff-Ferrari.

Researcher's objective was to determine whether calcium
supplementation reduced fracture risk.

The scientist's conclusion:

"Calcium supplementation reduced the risk of all fractures
and of minimal trauma fractures among healthy individuals.
The benefit appeared to dissipate after treatment was stopped."

OK, let's examine the language contained in the conclusion,
particularly the term "minimal trauma fractures."

If ever I break a bone, I want it to be a minimal trauma
fracture. Although the authors do not name the alternative,
I assume that the fractures which were not included in the
"minimal fracture" category were maximal fractures. You
just do not want to experience one of those!

Here are the raw data.

THE GROUP TAKING CALCIUM SUPPLEMENTS

# of participants = 464
# of fractures = 46
# of minimal fractures = 15
# of maximal fractures = 31

THE GROUP TAKING PLACEBOS

# of participants = 466
# of fractures = 54
# of minimal fractures = 29
# of maximal fractures = 25

Can you see how easy it is for scientists to play
with numbers based upon their respective biases?

There were seventeen percent more fractures in the
group which took the placebo supplements, but there
were more traumatic fractures (maximal) in that group
actually taking real calcium supplements.

The study conclusion:

"Calcium supplementation reduced the risk of all fractures..."

could easily have been:

Calcium supplementation increases the risk of serious
bone fractures by 24 percent!

You might want to contact Dr. Bischoff-Ferrari for clarification.
I left a message on her telephone and also emailed a request for
comment but she has completely ignored me. Perhaps she has
broken bones in her typing and dialing fingers. If that is the
case, I hope that the breaks are minimal.

Phone: (617)669-9052
E-mail: hbischof@...

NOTE: Newspapers, magazines, radio & television news
shows only report the author's conclusion and in this
manner the public has been fed a dose of junk science.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com
GOD'S NUTRITIONIST: http://tinyurl.com/6pgjr5
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: http://tinyurl.com/67sads

A Midsummer Weekend's Dream

July 5th, 2008 will be a special day for me.

Lizzy (18) is home after completing her freshman year
at a New England University. Her first-year college
performance produced a higher grade point average than
any of her high school terms...just like her father!

Sarah (21) is home after spending the past six months
at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia.
She'll be graduating from her Pennsylvania University
in the spring.

Jennifer (22) is temporarily living at home while
conducting that post-college rite shared by most young
people, an apartment search. Last summer she managed the
affairs of a theatre company in the Hamptons and I hardly
saw her at all. This year she is working her dream job
for a Broadway producer, overseeing the national road
tours of numerous Tony Award winning musicals.

Three daughters in my home at the same time. Even the
dog (Tyke) is pleasantly confused and overwhelmed by
an abundance of love, attention, and tummy rubs.

Three girls just about ready to build their own nests.
This might be the very last weekend that we spend together.

In GOD'S NUTRITIONIST, I've created a primer for the
perfect diet by borrowing 500 quotations from Ellen G.
White's COUNSELS ON DIET AND FOODS and 100 other quotes
from peer-reviewed scientific journals supporting a
plant-based diet.

http://tinyurl.com/6pgjr5

In FOOD FOR THOUGHT, I've created a primer for the
perfect lifestyle by borrowing 400 Ellen White Quotes
from her MINISTRY OF HEALING, mirrored by 400 additional
quotes from men and women of science, art, and literature.

http://tinyurl.com/67sads

On page 21 of FOOD FOR THOUGHT, these words of wisdom appear:

"Parents, let your children see that you love them and
will do all in your power to make them happy. If you
do so, your necessary restrictions will have far greater
weight in their young minds."
- Ellen G. White

"You don't really understand human nature unless you
know why a child on a merry-go-round will wave at his
parents every time around - and why his parents will
always wave back."
- William D. Tammeus

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com

Ripe Summer Peaches and Ice Cream

If there is one absolute I've learned about dairy industry
marketing, it's this: Things Do Not Happen By Accident.

Supermarkets often sell products for less than their cost
in order to get customers into the stores. Such promotions
are called "loss-leaders". Markets work close with dairy
manufacturers, often demanding kickbacks (the industry
calls this "slotting") which enables stores to market
half-price promotions. If you seek to introduce a new
food product to just one high volume supermarket chain,
expect your slotting fee to run between $50,000 and
$200,000. It can be paid in the form of cash or in
free merchandise. This is one reason ice cream is so
cheap come July 4th. This is the nucleus of their
well-conceived plan.

The half-price ice cream which people eat today will reinforce
consumer ice cream buying habits come next fall and winter.

Beginning today, supermarkets will offer pints of Haagen Dazs
and Ben & Jerry's for 2/$6. Welsh Farms brands will be sold
for "less than 1/2 price". Edy's 2-quart containers will
retail for just $2.74, a savings of $1.35, while packages
of Klondike Ice Cream Bars, normally $4, will be sold as
2 for the price of one.

It's July 4th, and in America, that means it's ice cream
time.

You will find no ice cream quotations in my new book,
FOOD FOR THOUGHT.

http://tinyurl.com/67sads

Long before commercial refrigeration made ice cream
distribution and consumption readily available to all
Americans, Ellen White wrote:

"Far too much sugar is ordinarily used in foods. Cakes,
sweet puddings, pastries, jellies, jams, are active
causes of indigestion. Especially harmful are the
custards and puddings in which milk, eggs, and sugar
are the chief ingredients. The free use of milk and
sugar taken together should be avoided."
- Ellen G. White, Food For Thought (page 85)

Pediatrician Charles Atwood, M.D. adds:

"Nearly 70 percent of children who consume a typical
American diet have fatty deposits in their coronary
arteries - the earliest sign of coronary heart disease
- by the age of 12."

If you are the parent of a child, plan accordingly
for the summer day's sweet tooth syndrome.

I recall a memory when I lived in the land of the giants
(I must have been 4 or 5 years old) when my father took
my mom, sister, and myself on the cheapest ride in New
York: The Staten Island Ferry. At that time in the late
1950s, the ride cost only five cents per person. The
25-minute cruise from lower Manhattan to Staten Island
was filled with wonderful city views and a cool breeze
off the water that made a hot summer afternoon tolerable.

What I most remember, is that during the cruise my mother
mysteriously appeared with a basket of fresh ripe peaches
which dripped sweet juice onto my shirt and jeans as I ate
one after another until I could eat no more.

In the spirit of compassion, Ingrid Newkirk, PETA's
founder and director, once wrote:

"A rat is a pig is a dog is a boy."

When it comes to the magnificence of tree-ripened fruit,
I've observed that a peach is a plum is an apple is a pear.

On page 41 of FOOD FOR THOUGHT, Ralph Waldo Emerson is quoted:

"There are only ten minutes in the life of a pear in
which it is perfect to eat."

And what did Ellen G. White say?

You can look it up:

http://tinyurl.com/67sads

Today, I've learned to capture most (not all) of the
juice from a ripe summer peach into my mouth.

Today, a ride on the Staten Island Ferry is free.

Robert Cohen
http://www.notmilk.com