What I’m Reading (July 25)

My son recently returned from a trip to Japan, and he expressed great enthusiasm for a piece of chicken he got for less than a dollar at the local convenience store. He is not alone in his praise for Japanese convenience store food, no less a cultural icon than Anthony Bourdain had a must-have egg salad sandwich. The underlying reason for their success is a Japanese term, Tanpin Kanri, which basically means localizing the choices to the needs of the customer. For the visually inclined from the Wall St. Journal, 7-Eleven Is Reinventing Its $17B Food Business to Be More Japanese

Are they coming for Captain Crunch? 

“While there’s a slew of observational trials tying ultra-processed foods to a variety of maladies, ranging from type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease to anxiety and depression, those studies cannot prove eating these foods caused the undesirable outcomes.

Beyond the lack of data, even defining ultra-processed is contentious. One of the most commonly used definitions states that any food product with more than five ingredients is ultra-processed. In practice, that means whole grain breads are categorized the same as Twinkies.

Both of these factors will make the FDA’s task of directly regulating these products exceptionally challenging, multiple former FDA officials told STAT.”

While they might not ban the Captain, they may require a label. But that time is a way off, and if you believe that Big Tobacco has a “playbook,” you will not be surprised that the FDA has one, too. From Stat, Top FDA officials weighing regulation of ultra-processed foods, internal documents show

I have been reading The Wolves of K Street, the story of modern special-interest lobbying. I spend a lot of time swearing at those lobbyists on both sides of the aisle. However, lobbying goes back even further than the 70s, although it was then that it began to be supercharged. Consider this from the lobbyists defeating Sinclair Lewis in his attempt to be Governor of California.

“We need more partisanship in this country,” Whitaker said. Never shy from controversy; instead, win the controversy. “The average American doesn’t want to be educated; he doesn’t want to improve his mind; he doesn’t even want to work, consciously, at being a good citizen,” Whitaker advised. “But there are two ways you can interest him in a campaign, and only two that we have ever found successful.” You can put on a fight (“he likes a good hot battle, with no punches pulled”), or you can put on a show (“he likes the movies; he likes mysteries; he likes fireworks and parades”): “So if you can’t fight, put on a show! And if you put on a good show, Mr. and Mrs. America will turn out to see it.”

From the archives of the New Yorker, The Lie Factory

I’ve written before that our local “live” theater is a small venue, so we have far more tribute bands than the real thing. Perhaps this is why this caught my eye. 

“In late 2015, I was approached by the Travellin’ Band, a Winnipeg-based Creedence tribute act. Its lead singer had just quit, and the band wanted to know if I’d be interested in stepping into the plaid-and-denim lead role. It was the opportunity I’d dreamt of: no more sleeping in my truck after gigs, real money in my hand, regular shows with a trio of professional musicians backing me. Persistence had paid off, but perfection was more complicated.”

And it didn’t hurt that Creedence Clearwater Revival has been a long-time favorite. From the Atlantic, How I Faked My Way To Rock Stardom. A backstage look at tribute bands