Home-Ec was Episode 16 in Season 3 of Roseanne back in 1991. Roseanne ends up taking the home economics class Darlene is in to the Buy 'n Bag supermarket. Her tips are surprisingly sharp, including buying the generic cereal and putting the cereal into the name brand box.
The opposite end of that scale was watching Mehmet Oz shop for crudité in a video designed to show his "regular side" in his run to be the next U.S. senator from Pennsylvania to replace Pat Toomey (R-PA).
Oz picks out store brand salsa and guacamole among his purchases, lambastes the price of said purchases, and blames the high food prices on President Joe Biden. Oz, as you may have guessed, is from the Republican Party, so he blames the current president, who is from the Democratic Party.
As we've learned in the 1970s, the president is not responsible for inflation, regardless of party. The companies who are making record profits off of inflation are much more likely to donate to the elephants (GOP) than donkeys (Dems).
"Guys, that's $20 for crudité and that doesn’t even include the tequila."
In the video, the vegetables add up to $10. Not all of that would go into a crudité. The guacamole was $4 and the salsa was $6.
If Oz really wanted to save money, he could make homemade salsa and guacamole. The taste would improve and you save money. Buying from local farmers markets ensure that the money would stay in Pennsylvania instead of buying a salsa from New York City.
In PA we call this a... veggie tray https://t.co/nDp0Uw27zd
— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) August 15, 2022
Food prices were a concern even before the pandemic. Wages have been stagnant in terms of buying power for 40 years. Will Oz do anything about that? No.
Cheap, processed foods are often inexpensive compared to fresh produce in the supermarket. Will Oz do anything about that? No.
Food ads are dominated with relatively, unhealthy foods, while we, especially kids, don't see ads for fresh produce. Will Oz do anything about that? No.
You can reduce food costs despite inflation
Leaving avocados and oranges whole encourages learning about produce
Vending machines in France show new way to get produce from farmers
Showing kids that fruits and vegetables have merit through watching ads
"If John Fetterman had ever eaten a vegetable in his life, then maybe he wouldn't have had a major stroke and wouldn't be in the position of having to lie about it constantly," Rachel Tripp, Oz's senior communications adviser, said in a statement.
You would think someone working for a person who is an actual doctor would not be so inaccurate about health. Fetterman, the current lieutenant governor, is running against Oz on the Democratic side of the ballot.
Fetterman responded in a tweet. "I had a stroke. I survived it. I'm truly so grateful to still be here today. I know politics can be nasty, but even then, I could *never* imagine ridiculing someone for their health challenges."
Dine in restaurants when you feel safe, not because of a political stunt
Erin O'Toole, then leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, has his own cheap, food-related political stunt last year. Half off food but only Mondays and Wednesdays for a month. Paying the full amount to find a safer place to eat vs. a risk with a small savings.
O'Toole lost that election and was soon booted out as the party leader, not because of this political stunt. This notion of needing to pull cheap, political stunts generally comes from conservative parties. O'Toole stole this idea from the UK Conservatives.
If John Fetterman was pulling a similar stunt, we would crack down just as tough. Democratic and liberal politicians generally want to help people through government action. The other side is the dominant force behind cheap political stunts.
BalanceofFood.com farmers market coverage
Politicians of all stripes would benefit from a grocery store experience like what Roseanne gave in that episode. They should know how poor people actually shop. They aren't building crudité or even a veggie tray. They know their kids need nutritious food but aren't sure how to make that work, given the discrepancies at the grocery store. No political stunt will help them feed themselves and their kids.
photo credit: @DrOz
Twitter capture: @JohnFetterman
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