Fast Food Nation : The Dark Side of the All-American Meal (Hardcover)--by Eric Schlosser [2001 Edition] ISBN: 9780395977897

Are we what we eat? To a degree both engrossing and alarming, the story of fast food is the story of postwar Amerca. Though created by a handful of mavericks, the fast food industry has triggered the homogenization of our society. Fast food has hastened the malling of our landscape, widened the chasm between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and propelled the juggernaut of American cultural imperialism abroad. That's a lengthy list of charges, but Eric Schlosser makes them stick with an artful mix of first-rate reportage, wry wit, and careful reasoning. Schlosser's myth-shattering survey stretches from the California subdivisions where the business was born to the industrial corridor along the New Jersey Turnpike where many of fast food's flavors are concocted. He hangs out with the teenagers who make the restaurants run and communes with those unlucky enough to hold America's most dangerous job -- meatpacker. He travels to Las Vegas for a giddily surreal franchisers' convention where Mikhail Gorbachev delivers the keynote address. He even ventures to England and Germany to clock the rate at which those countries are becoming fast food nations. Along the way, Schlosser unearths a trove of fascinating, unsettling truths -- from the unholy alliance between fast food and Hollywood to the seismic changes the industry has wrought in food production, popular culture, and even real estate. He also uncovers the fast food chains' efforts to reel in the youngest, most susceptible consumers even while they hone their institutionalized exploitation of teenagers and minorities. Schlosser then turns a critical eye toward the hot topic of globalization -- a phenomenon launched by fast food. FAST FOOD NATION is a groundbreaking work of investigation and cultural history that may change the way America thinks about the way it eats. To a degree both engrossing and alarming, the story of fast food is the story of postwar Amerca. Though created by a handful of mavericks, the fast food industry has triggered the homogenization of our society. Fast food has hastened the malling of our landscape, widened the chasm between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and propelled the juggernaut of American cultural imperialism abroad. That's a lengthy list of charges, but Eric Schlosser makes them stick with an artful mix of first-rate reportage, wry wit, and careful reasoning. Schlosser's myth-shattering survey stretches from the California subdivisions where the business was born to the industrial corridor along the New Jersey Turnpike where many of fast food's flavors are concocted. He hangs out with the teenagers who make the restaurants run and communes with those unlucky enough to hold America's most dangerous job -- meatpacker. He travels to Las Vegas for a giddily surreal franchisers' convention where Mikhail Gorbachev delivers the keynote address. He even ventures to England and Germany to clock the rate at which those countries are becoming fast food nations. Along the way, Schlosser unearths a trove of fascinating, unsettling truths -- from the unholy alliance between fast food and Hollywood to the seismic changes the industry has wrought in food production, popular culture, and even real estate. He also uncovers the fast food chains' efforts to reel in the youngest, most susceptible consumers even while they hone their institutionalized exploitation of teenagers and minorities. Schlosser then turns a critical eye toward the hot topic of globalization -- a phenomenon launched by fast food. FAST FOOD NATION is a groundbreaking work of investigation and cultural history that may change the way America thinks about the way it eats. (jacket) "To a degree both engrossing and alarming, the story of fast food is the story of postwar America." "Schlosser's myth-shattering survey stretches from the California subdivisions where the business was born to the industrial corridor along the New Jersey Turnpike where many of fast food's flavors are concocted. He hangs out with the teenagers who make the restaurants run and communes with those unlucky enough to hold America's most dangerous job - meatpacker. He travels to Las Vegas for a giddily surreal franchisers' convention where Mikhail Gorbachev delivers the keynote address. And he ventures to England and Germany to clock the rate at which those countries are becoming fast food nations."--Jacket A Journalist Explores The Homogenization Of American Culture And The Impact Of The Fast Food Industry On Modern-day Health, Economy, Politics, Popular Culture, Entertainment, And Food Production. Introduction -- I. American Way -- Founding Fathers -- Your Trusted Friends -- Behind The Counter -- Success -- Ii. Meat And Potatoes -- Why The Fries Taste Good -- On The Range -- Cogs In The Great Machine -- Most Dangerous Job -- What's In The Meat -- Global Realization -- Epilogue: Have It Your Way -- Afterword -- Photo Credits -- Notes. Eric Schlosser ; [with A New Afterword]. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 336-341) And Index. Ala Notable Books, 2002. Tayshas Reading Commended, 2002. A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThe jaw-dropping exposé on how America's fast food industry has shaped the landscape of America.This fascinating study reveals how the fast food industry has altered the landscape of America, widened the gap between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and transformed food production throughout the world. Eric Schlosser inspires readers to look beneath the surface of our food system, consider its impact on society and, most of all, think for themselves. This book has changed the way millions of people think about what they eat and helped to launch today's food movement. Introduction 1 I. The American Way 1. The Founding Fathers 13 2. Your Trusted Friends 31 3. Behind the Counter 59 4. Success 91 II. Meat and Potatoes 5. Why the Fries Taste Good 111 6. On the Range 133 7. Cogs in the Great Machine 149 8. The Most Dangerous Job 169 9. What's in the Meat 193 10. Global Realization 225 Epilogue: Have It Your Way 255 Photo Credits 273 Notes 274 Bibliography 330 Acknowledgments 336 Index 339 CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN SITS on the eastern slope of Colorado's Front Range, rising steeply from the prairie and overlooking the city of Colorado Springs. An exploration of the fast food industry in the United States, from its roots to its long-term consequences