PhiloMadrid meeting on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 2nd October: The Food Industry (cont)

Dear Friends,

The topic for this Sunday meeting will be again: The Food Industry.

The topic was suggested by James, but unfortunately I couldn't write and
finish an essay this week. Later on I do give some links to articles
that might be interesting on the topic. In a way this is an extension to
our discussion on Vegetarianism. The difference is that we may choose
what to buy and eat, but not the supply of produce to buy and eat. This
is completely out of our control.

Food industry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_industry

These 10 companies control everything you buy (2016 but still interesting)
https://www.businessinsider.com/10-companies-control-the-food-industry-2016-9

Seven challenges and trends the food industry can expect in 2021
https://www.newfoodmagazine.com/article/129788/trends-and-challenges-2021/

A quick search for "food industry" should result in even more
interesting documents.

News:
Oscar has sent me advance notice about his forthcoming book:
"Toranzo, 88 ilustraciones y coplillas" by Oscar
https://www.philomadrid.com/2022/09/toranzo-88-ilustraciones-y-coplillas-by.html

The book will be available in November, and we should have more details
later on.


Finally, send me a message if you need the Skype link.

Best and take care
Lawrence

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813
Email: philomadrid@gmail.com
http://www.philomadrid.com


PhiloMadrid meeting on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 2nd October: The Food
Industry (cont)

PhiloMadrid meeting on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 25th September: The Food Industry

Dear Friends,

This Sunday we are discussing: The Food Industry.

The topic was suggested by James, but unfortunately I couldn't write and
finish an essay this week. Later on I do give some links to articles
that might be interesting on the topic. In a way this is an extension to
our discussion on Vegetarianism. The difference is that we may choose
what to buy and eat, but not the supply of produce to buy and eat. This
is completely out of our control.

Food industry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_industry

These 10 companies control everything you buy (2016 but still interesting)
https://www.businessinsider.com/10-companies-control-the-food-industry-2016-9

Seven challenges and trends the food industry can expect in 2021
https://www.newfoodmagazine.com/article/129788/trends-and-challenges-2021/

A quick search for "food industry" should result in even more
interesting documents.

News:
Oscar has sent me advance notice about his forthcoming book:
"Toranzo, 88 ilustraciones y coplillas" by Oscar
https://www.philomadrid.com/2022/09/toranzo-88-ilustraciones-y-coplillas-by.html

The book will be available in November, and we should have more details
later on.


Finally, send me a message if you need the Skype link.

Best and take care
Lawrence

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813
Email: philomadrid@gmail.com
http://www.philomadrid.com


PhiloMadrid meeting on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 25th September: The Food Industry

PhiloMadrid: Get together - SUNDAY 18th Sept at 6pm Retiro + News

Dear Friends,

Let's risk it and meet at the Retiro this Sunday 18th September.

I was at the Retiro yesterday to check the situation and the bar we met
at in July is open with parasols/paraguas. The park gardeners were also
clearing any dead branches so that looks promising. Here are the details:

DATE and TIME: Sunday 18th September, at 6:00pm (18:00), I'll try to be
there at 5:30pm. The reason so early is because it might get too fresh
in the evening and I really want to avoid any mosquitoes or other night
creatures!

PREPARED: it might be a good idea to get a jacket and umbrella, unless
the weather is super stable!

LOCATION: let's meet at the bar directly to make sure we get a decent
table as soon as possible.

The BAR: is on the right as you go in from the main gate of the Retiro:
Puerta de la Independencia, in Puerta de Alcala. Look out for the guy
with a white beard and we'll also have our small dog with us.

TOPICS: open topics/conversation but let's try to be a bit more imaginative…

OUTSIDE MADRID?: If you are outside Madrid and wish to connect with us
I'll activate my Skype on my mobile phone with video…..hope it works.

News:
Oscar has sent me advance notice about his forthcoming book:
"Toranzo, 88 ilustraciones y coplillas" by Oscar
https://www.philomadrid.com/2022/09/toranzo-88-ilustraciones-y-coplillas-by.html

The book will be available in November, and we should have more details
later on.

Best and take care
Lawrence

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813
Email: philomadrid@gmail.com
http://www.philomadrid.com


PhiloMadrid: Get together - SUNDAY 18th Sept at 6pm Retiro + News

"Toranzo, 88 ilustraciones y coplillas" by Oscar

 

"Toranzo, 88 ilustraciones y coplillas"

 

Second book by Oscar will be available in November.

 

More details in November

 

 

 

 

PhiloMadrid on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 11th September: Vegetarianism + NEWS

Dear friends,

This Sunday we are discussing: Vegetarianism

The topic was proposed by James and in my short I try to go beyond the
common arguments for and against vegetarianism.

Vegetarianism
https://www.philomadrid.com/2022/09/vegetarianism.html


NEWS:
I am proposing that on Sunday, 18th September we meet once again at the
Retiro as we did last July. However, I suggest we meet at 6pm if not
before to avoid the mosquitoes at night. I am not suggesting a topic so
we might just have a good conversation avoiding old issues.
Alternatively we can prepare a general list of topics we can look at.

If you're outside Madrid maybe you can join us via Skype; I'll try and
get my mobile phone or tablet connected to Skype.

Of course, all of this is subject to good weather and the Retiro being
open. Let me know what you think.

Finally, let me know if you need the Skype link for our meetings.

Best and take care
Lawrence

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813
Email: philomadrid@gmail.com
http://www.philomadrid.com


PhiloMadrid on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 11th September: Vegetarianism + NEWS

Vegetarianism

Vegetarianism

 

Topic by James

Essay by Lawrence

 

Our starting point on this subject must be the fact that in evolutionary terms humans must have had a survival advantage by being able to eat both meat and plants. Today we also know that pre historic hunter gatherers would decimate a whole herd of animals to get to their meat leaving many carcases unclaimed. I use plants as a generic term for all forms flora produce for food and meat for all fauna used for food.

 

This meat-plant diet was also the foundation of civilized societies and the rise of agriculture. But the risks and benefits of this diet did not change from pre historic conditions. Plants were localised to certain soil conditions and very subject to the elements. Moreover, plants, like humans, do not fare well in cold winter conditions. Plants under an agricultural system, however, also offer high yields of produce to feed many people.

 

Hunting or even rearing animals is equally risky as plant based food. It also takes time to rear or hunt animals: hunters might take days to find enough animals to hunt to feed the whole group. And under agricultural systems, food would have to be deviated from human consumption to feed the animals over a period of time.

 

So what are the key philosophical issues regarding vegetarianism? We are all familiar with the arguments in favour of vegetarianism. Basically, there are two key forms of argument in favour of vegetarianism today: compassion for animals and a plant-based healthy diet.

 

There are also arguments against eating meat on the grounds of being unhealthy. Unfortunately, this is the least valid argument for not eating meat. Firstly, everything is unhealthy if eaten in large quantities, contaminated condition or processed beyond the original nature of the produce. For example it is well documented that meat in the USA is vaccinated for rapid growth and bulk. The European Union has strict quality controls on meat production. Today the availability of fast food will destroy any goodness and benefit of any meat in these menus.

 

Another modern argument for not eating meat is that beef rearing contributes to global warming. But this is not an issue about meat and cows, but rather how we husband these animals. What is not said about this issue is that huge tracts of jungles, such as the Amazon, are being destroyed as we read this to rear cows for beef production. The problem is that those benefiting from this criminal activity channel their profits to off shore tax havens benefiting no one other than themselves. But in the meantime the jungles are being destroyed, taking away the habitat of indigenous peoples and local fauna and flora, and really contributing to global warming.

 

Some moral arguments for not eating meat are quite valid. For example rearing animals is very costly and feeding them can easily destroy the grazing grounds if not managed properly. It makes total sense not to eat beef, when a cow gives milk, provides manure and reproduce other cows. It also makes sense not to eat pork especially in regions where foot and mouth disease and other nasties are common. Chicken is well known to be a huge source of salmonella contamination after slaughter (Chicken and Food Poisoning: https://www.cdc.gov/foodsafety/chicken.html).

 

Plant produce is not necessarily healthier than meat; just because we don’t drop dead after eating something is not evidence that it is healthy. We also think that just because we are eating plant produce and avoiding meat we are getting a positive effect from our food. Look at this quote but read the whole paragraph from “Becoming a vegetarian” (Harvard Medical School: https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/becoming-a-vegetarian): …..becoming a vegetarian won't necessarily be good for you. A diet of soda, cheese pizza, and candy, after all, is technically "vegetarian."  

 

And then there are pesticides, vegetables and fruit grown for aesthetic looks rather than nutrition, genetically modified plants that may or may not monopolise the produce, and then there is the appropriation of indigenous plants by multinationals to the detriment of local people. The point I am making is that even if we all moved to plant-based diets it is not without its moral and ethical issues.

 

To put food consumption in perspective consider this quotation from “How Food Waste Affects World Hunger” (https://www.wfpusa.org/articles/how-food-waste-affects-world-hunger/): Globally, one trillion dollars’ worth of food goes to waste every year. That’s one-third of all food produced for human consumption (1.3 billion tons of it).

 

From our perspective what matters is whether we are aware of the real facts about vegetarianism and the choice to move to a plant-based diet. The moral issues about eating meat do not go away by converting to vegetarianism. After all, we are also up against a biological and evolutionary advantage of having an animal-plant based diet.

 

In my opinion, food production and food consumption is not just a matter of ethics and health, but also political accountability. If we don’t hold those in authority to account unscrupulous people will take advantage of the situation. Something modern voters seem to be unaware of such a duty and obligation they have as voters.

 

Best Lawrence

 

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813

Email: philomadrid@gmail.com

http://www.philomadrid.com

 

 

PhiloMadrid on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 4th September: Identity Crisis

Dear Friends,

Welcome back to our meetings on Sunday!

This Sunday we are discussing: Identity Crisis

The topic was proposed by James and I managed to write a few ideas in my
short essay.
Identity Crisis:
https://www.philomadrid.com/2022/09/identity-crisis.html

You might also want to have a look at the topic: Development of Identity
Essay: Development of Identity
https://www.philomadrid.com/2022/07/development-of-identity.html

In the meantime let's hope we might be able to organise some meetings in
the open air during September. If you know of an alternative to the
Retiro let me know.

Finally, send me a message if you need the Skype link.

Best and take care
Lawrence

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813
Email: philomadrid@gmail.com
http://www.philomadrid.com


PhiloMadrid on Skype 6:30pm Sunday 4th September: Identity Crisis

Identity Crisis

 

Identity Crisis,

 

Topic by James

Essay by Lawrence

 

An identity crisis implies that the individual is going through some trying times due to some adverse or challenging events. The issue is: how serious must these events be to bring about such a crisis to the fundamental core of being a human?

 

So how would we define identity in the first place? And what is so special about identity that maybe many adverse events in our life do not necessarily lead to a crisis? I would argue that our identity depends on two questions: Who am I? and What am I?

 

These two questions are strictly speaking not philosophical in te traditional sense but rather a sociological notion of (personal) identity. Identity in philosophy usually deals with whether an entity is the same entity in two different contexts. The classical example is the observation of the morning star (Venus) and the evening star. It just happens that both are the same planet or the Ship of Theseus in Greek philosophy. The Theseus ship takes identity in the context of time and replacement of parts.

 

Leibniz introduced the principle of Identity of Indiscernibles to move away from the classical Greek noti : basically this says that X is Y if all that can be said about X is true about Y as well. (see Identity (philosophy) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_(philosophy) OR The Identity of Indiscernibles https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/identity-indiscernible/)

 

But we are discussing identity in a human context. Applying human moral standards, someone who has changed from the past does not mean that they stopped being that person. The clash between the logic of Identity of Indiscernibles and our morality towards other people means that the meaning of identity is different in the different contexts and disciplines. This is made clear in the references above. But it also means that there is an element of linguistic laziness by not creating new terms to refer to some new phenomenon we discover through our scientific method.

 

But it is this linguistic laziness that can confuse our topic, in the same way that stodgy pap is called pizza. But I digress! So for us the issue is: what do we mean by identity crisis? Someone’s crisis might be an ordinary event for others. Even more, adverse life changing events must surely influence one’s identity. This does not mean we stop being “us” but maybe we start thinking of “us” in a different way.

 

The crisis can be a crisis of “who am I?” or “what am I?”, but also “who shall I be?” given the crisis. Surely having to change one’s personality and character must qualify as a crisis? But will others know or will they notice because we change our relationship with them?

 

Take Care

 

Lawrence

 

telephone/WhatsApp: 606081813

Email: philomadrid@gmail.com

http://www.philomadrid.com