the alphaghetti gobbler loves to DROP SOME KNOWLEDGE ABOUT CLASS AND FOOD, WHAAAAT.
i never post any more (in 2010, i made 42 [ha!] posts all year). but i do get in internet fights like every day, so i thought: maybe i can make some posts out of those! it's worked before.
this one's not an internet fight, exactly, but it's something that happened on facebook (the grounds of about 80% of my internet rage), beginning back on tuesday. my friend becca posted a status update that inspired some kindof crappy words to be said:
Rebecca S
is it wrong that i love Alpha-Ghetti still? :)
Tuesday at 7:39pm · Like ·
Sarah H likes this.
Colleen N Odd yes, wrong...who knows! lol
Tuesday at 7:46pm · Like
Rebecca S :P
Tuesday at 7:49pm · Like
Arshdeep B ewwwwwwwww that's not food
Tuesday at 7:54pm · Like
Rebecca S i know..but its a childhood comfort food, what can i say? :)
Tuesday at 7:55pm · Like
Joan M there is nothing wrong with alpha getti. It is still spagetti in a different form without the mess.
Tuesday at 7:57pm · Like · 1 person
Jessica S what about alpha-ghetti makes it not food?
i would understand if you said you didn't like it, but i assure you that it is perfectly edible, and also contains nutrients: two of the main factors of FOOD.
Wednesday at 1:30am · Like
Sarah H definitely not :)
Wednesday at 9:13am · Like
Rebecca S alpha ghetti is the lowest form of food pretty much...more sodium than i like to know about!
but cant help lovin my childhood faves! :)
Wednesday at 6:37pm · Like
i was unimpressed with the way she responded to me, but i let it go for a couple days, hoping i would just forget about it. unfortunately, i did not. so just a moment ago i sent her a message as follows:
okay, so i need to say something, because this is really bothering me.
the reason why i interjected the way i did in that conversation on your wall about the alphaghetti is two-fold, and i'd like you to please consider carefully what i have to say.
first of all, it really deeply disturbs me when i see people talking about food, and creating food hierarchies. i don't think that helps anyone. has it helped you stop eating alphaghetti, since you have decided it is a bad food? clearly not, nor do i think it should. i'd wager that it maybe even makes you eat the stuff even more, and you know what? g'won head, girl! enjoy your damn life, for crying out loud. enjoy your FOOD, because that's what it's for. it breaks my heart to see people create such a dysfunctional relationship with their NATURAL BODILY FUNCTIONS.
alphaghetti has calcium, it has iron, it has vitamin a, it has protein... could you eat something that gives your body more? sure. but i also think that it's patently absurd to think that anyone is ever going to eat the most optimal foods every time they put something in their mouths. variety is the spice of life, and all that. and i think it's really important to note that you ARE still getting nutrients from the food you eat, whether it's sprouted brown rice with raw veggies and fish, or a fucking can of alphaghetti. you mentioned sodium? one full can has ~50mg of sodium in it. that's LESS than half a chicken breast. do you complain about the sodium content every time you eat chicken breasts? something tells me you really don't...
which brings me to my second point (and actually the main point that brought me to say anything in the first place): the way people talk about food and health in developed countries like canada is fuckin' BUSTED, dude. the reason why finding people complaining about food like alphaghetti is EASY, but finding people speaking the same way of chicken breasts is quite tough? classism. i've noticed this trend, after watching people talk about the food they eat (and don't eat) for years: the food that people are most readily prepared to move into the "non-food" category frequently tends to be the things that people of class privilege think that poor people eat. please chew on this for a moment. it may not be overt, but privilege often isn't, and i believe that class and perceptions of class absolutely influence the way we talk about eating on every level.
a fun experiment: turn on iron chef some night. pay special attention to the foods that the iron chef and hir competitor prepare. if you have the knowledge, try and do a nutritional tally of all the courses, or even just one. listen closely for someone making ANY mention of the healthful levels of the food. i am willing to bet you a can of alphaghetti that no matter which episode you turn on, there will be a TON of what are traditionally considered "bad" food items (straight up duck fat! carbs gallore! super-salty preserved fancypants foods like caviar!) and not a single mention of how "bad" the foods are for the judges. but there will be cooing. oh yes, everyone will be super pumped about the super extravagant meals prepared on stage. because that is how we roll.
---
FAT LOVE!!
this one's not an internet fight, exactly, but it's something that happened on facebook (the grounds of about 80% of my internet rage), beginning back on tuesday. my friend becca posted a status update that inspired some kindof crappy words to be said:
Rebecca S
is it wrong that i love Alpha-Ghetti still? :)
Tuesday at 7:39pm · Like ·
Sarah H likes this.
Colleen N Odd yes, wrong...who knows! lol
Tuesday at 7:46pm · Like
Rebecca S :P
Tuesday at 7:49pm · Like
Arshdeep B ewwwwwwwww that's not food
Tuesday at 7:54pm · Like
Rebecca S i know..but its a childhood comfort food, what can i say? :)
Tuesday at 7:55pm · Like
Joan M there is nothing wrong with alpha getti. It is still spagetti in a different form without the mess.
Tuesday at 7:57pm · Like · 1 person
Jessica S what about alpha-ghetti makes it not food?
i would understand if you said you didn't like it, but i assure you that it is perfectly edible, and also contains nutrients: two of the main factors of FOOD.
Wednesday at 1:30am · Like
Sarah H definitely not :)
Wednesday at 9:13am · Like
Rebecca S alpha ghetti is the lowest form of food pretty much...more sodium than i like to know about!
but cant help lovin my childhood faves! :)
Wednesday at 6:37pm · Like
i was unimpressed with the way she responded to me, but i let it go for a couple days, hoping i would just forget about it. unfortunately, i did not. so just a moment ago i sent her a message as follows:
okay, so i need to say something, because this is really bothering me.
the reason why i interjected the way i did in that conversation on your wall about the alphaghetti is two-fold, and i'd like you to please consider carefully what i have to say.
first of all, it really deeply disturbs me when i see people talking about food, and creating food hierarchies. i don't think that helps anyone. has it helped you stop eating alphaghetti, since you have decided it is a bad food? clearly not, nor do i think it should. i'd wager that it maybe even makes you eat the stuff even more, and you know what? g'won head, girl! enjoy your damn life, for crying out loud. enjoy your FOOD, because that's what it's for. it breaks my heart to see people create such a dysfunctional relationship with their NATURAL BODILY FUNCTIONS.
alphaghetti has calcium, it has iron, it has vitamin a, it has protein... could you eat something that gives your body more? sure. but i also think that it's patently absurd to think that anyone is ever going to eat the most optimal foods every time they put something in their mouths. variety is the spice of life, and all that. and i think it's really important to note that you ARE still getting nutrients from the food you eat, whether it's sprouted brown rice with raw veggies and fish, or a fucking can of alphaghetti. you mentioned sodium? one full can has ~50mg of sodium in it. that's LESS than half a chicken breast. do you complain about the sodium content every time you eat chicken breasts? something tells me you really don't...
which brings me to my second point (and actually the main point that brought me to say anything in the first place): the way people talk about food and health in developed countries like canada is fuckin' BUSTED, dude. the reason why finding people complaining about food like alphaghetti is EASY, but finding people speaking the same way of chicken breasts is quite tough? classism. i've noticed this trend, after watching people talk about the food they eat (and don't eat) for years: the food that people are most readily prepared to move into the "non-food" category frequently tends to be the things that people of class privilege think that poor people eat. please chew on this for a moment. it may not be overt, but privilege often isn't, and i believe that class and perceptions of class absolutely influence the way we talk about eating on every level.
a fun experiment: turn on iron chef some night. pay special attention to the foods that the iron chef and hir competitor prepare. if you have the knowledge, try and do a nutritional tally of all the courses, or even just one. listen closely for someone making ANY mention of the healthful levels of the food. i am willing to bet you a can of alphaghetti that no matter which episode you turn on, there will be a TON of what are traditionally considered "bad" food items (straight up duck fat! carbs gallore! super-salty preserved fancypants foods like caviar!) and not a single mention of how "bad" the foods are for the judges. but there will be cooing. oh yes, everyone will be super pumped about the super extravagant meals prepared on stage. because that is how we roll.
---
FAT LOVE!!