Iceni Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Katrina food shortages. Seems that that nice Mr Bush rejected all 330,000 ready meals that the Brits rushed out to them at the UK's expense because they would rather folk went hungry than got BSE. German, Russian, Spanish and French food went into the same warehouse - full story here http://uk.news.yahoo.com/15102005/325/u-s-rejects-katrina-meals-donated-britain.html.As for my part, next time I give to charity and I am currently checking my present list as I don't like to waste money I will make sure that not one single cent goes anywhere near the US.I know the French are only slightly involved but my UK tax money is probably rotting somewhere as this stuff has to be kept properly and as they have stated, they did not even check the use by date. Ah well, we had just better leave them to roughing up retired elderly non drinking ex teachers because they 'thought' he was on 'drugs or someting'. Poor man cannot even sue due to local laws. Having seen the full video now on US TV I have made up my mind what actually happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamedup Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Personally I cannot think of anything more stupid than sending food to the USA. It isn't as if they haven't enough to gave the fattest population in the world every day. All they had to do was to ask the fatties to eat half their daily intake every day and there would be more than enough to go round.I am very careful about which charities I give to. Helas I have no control over governments and how they waste our money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viv Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I notice that the US are quite happy to give the UK donated food to other nations, but heaven forbid they eat it themselves!: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Smith Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 "All they had to do was to ask the fatties to eat half their daily intake every day and there would be more than enough to go round."And how would that bright idea work, exactly? How would the food get to the people who needed it? These were emergency rations, needed in the first few days after the disaster, which is why they were sent. In the event they weren't used. After they hadn't been used someone noticed they breached US import regulations.But, of course, all those hungry people in New Orleans were too fat, too American and too black to bother about, so let them starve. Nice. Your humanity commends you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iceni Posted October 15, 2005 Author Share Posted October 15, 2005 "But, of course, all those hungry people in New Orleans were too fat, too American and too black to bother about, so let them starve."Quite right too, Dick. I don't often agree with you but there's a first for everything.Johnnot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tag Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Just for once Dick I think you are right. The USA has gone mad. Rome burning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Smith Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I think I'll give up doing irony... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ty Korrigan Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 America... Its just one big island in a floating in a sea of paranoia...I think if I was the head of a Muslim state I would be the first to offer aid to the 'fat 52' just to piss them off! What a blag!I feel sure that there are many very good people in America and I certainly don't despise your working man but if there is a country in need of a revolution...I wish I was a monkey in a zoo... and George Bush the visitor that put his face too close to the bars...No I wouldn't rip his arm off or hurl my turd into his face but simply turn my back to him...Then break wind (because I couldn't resist it!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deimos Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I’ve not read the article but believe it was over £2m worth of food from the UK. The US are rumoured to be looking for somewhere they can send it on to (now there is gratitude).Countries responded to the US appeal for help but there were too paranoid about BSE in the UK food and let that get in the way of getting food to those who needed it. Apparently the food actually travelled backwards and forwards between where it was needed and where it was stored so there was no logistical problem about delivery to those who needed it – just they thought it was contaminated with BSE.US have not yet offered any explanation for why food from other countries was “banned”.So all those UK tax payers – how many people’s tax was wasted in that exercise.Maybe people (in UK/Europe) will learn from their mistakes and next time the US asks for help ….. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iceni Posted October 15, 2005 Author Share Posted October 15, 2005 [quote]I think I'll give up doing irony...[/quote]Too late as usual Dick, Di stopped doing irony when we moved into one room. There just is not the space to set up an irony board. More to the point, I no longer care whether my socks and handkerchiefs are irony anyway.John and Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantine<br><br><br><br>Susie Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 The US could forward it onto Malawi - there's five million people there desperately needing food:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4345246.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ty Korrigan Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Hark at Dick grinding the fat axe...bet he picks me up on my full stops... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Smith Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Ty 'wrote':Hark at Dick grinding the fat axe...bet he picks me up on my full stops...What are you on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ty Korrigan Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I am on 'Jenlan Ambree' my chubby friend and tomorrow I shall probally beg your forgiveness chap...God save the Queen and her FCUKing regime...RAAAAAH! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamedup Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Silly me, imagining that the US wouldn't have enough food to feed their own in a crisis.And silly EU/Brit Govt for sending banned food to around 500 miles from New Orleans when the US couldn't logistic a booze up in a brewery, so what chance of logisticing anything in a time of crisis. Although maybe they would have if it had been somewhere else.It is all a mess, and I will never believe that the US didn't have enough food to feed their own though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WJT Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I will start by apologizing to the person on the other site for stealing this from them but I thought it was worth pasting because I think it was the same -- that started the same thread on that site. His Post:I think it's sometimes worth reading beyond the screaming headlines a little... none of the hurricane victims had gone hungry as a result the embargo was initially overlooked in the chaos that followed the hurricane that devastated parts of Louisiana and Mississippi, officials said. One US official, who wished to remain anonymous, told the AFP news agency: "In disasters people have to make quick decisions, commodities have to move quickly and... mistakes always happen." The US Agriculture Department eventually blocked distribution of the packages on 6 September, by which stage about 118,000 of the ready meals had already been sent out to victims. the decision to stop the distribution of the meals would not leave victims hungry "By the time our inspectors were on the ground, we had confirmed that there was no longer the emergency need," Washington was looking at other countries to donate the food to, but had not yet found any takers. "We are looking to use these MREs in the same spirit of charity and goodwill that they were provided to us. "We would certainly hope that other countries in need, or other needy populations would be able to make use of them, and we certainly invite any countries that see a need to contact us," he said. (Taken from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4344168.stm) The bottom line? US health and safety policy quite properly has an embargo on UK Beef following the BSE disaster. When this aid arrived it was initially distributed. By the time the initial relief effort was over they realised that official policy was to keep British beef out of the food chain. They're now warehousing the excess (at a cost of £9k a month) and asking around the rest of the world to see if anyone else wants it. So far it doesn't seem like anyone does. I'm no fan of Bush, but to try to pin this on him or the US government isn't really very fair. After all, they're not the country with the big historic BSE problem... Still, keep the red top headline writers in a job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ty Korrigan Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Do you think the Brits sent over a load of ex army surplus BSE meals condemed by the goverment...? I imagined Birds and weightwatcher meals colourfully wrapped containing only prime cuts and added vitamins... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayB Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 [quote]"But, of course, all those hungry people in New Orleans were too fat, too American and too black to bother about, so let them starve." Quite right too, Dick. I don't often agree with you but there's ...[/quote]**"But, of course, all those hungry people in New Orleans were too fat, too American and too black to bother about, so let them starve."**What I wonder about is who the British 'Mental Giant' was who decided to send a known banned product to the US in the first place. I think it was a racist conspiracy to kill of the poor, black population in the US! (Well, it makes as much sense as the rest of this thread.)The obvious answer is that it is Bush's fault! Everything is, you know. I got this hangnail last week and let me tell you . . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viv Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 I don't know what is "quite proper" about the US still refusing to take British beef. It seems ironic that there is another thread about the media hype over bird Flu and yet far more Americans are likely to die from clogged arteries from the saturated fat in their junk food than BSE!I do agree that the UK should not have sent this food to the USA when clearly it was not going to be accepted.Still, I note today on the BBC that whilst they don't want our meat, they are looking for our support with Iran.It's just great this "special relationship"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motorhead Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 Ever been to an American 'feedlot'? I think BSE is the very least they should be worried about!"Yes sir, would you like fries with your avotan, aureomycin, zinc bacitracin, clenbuterol and assorted steroids. Have a nice day!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deimos Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 I have no idea about the risks from eating British beef. I thought it was meant to be safe now (in fact I thought that even France no longer banned it). Is it possible that the US is using it as an excuse to block imports (and not just charitable imports).Still – its British tax payers money down the drain (either somebody in the UK gov. messing-up or the US being, well the US).However, one thing the incident does illustrate is the gratitude from the US. I could go on but somebody else said it above – we do have a special relationship with the US (we do what they tell us, when they tell us, how they tell us).Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayB Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 [quote]I have no idea about the risks from eating British beef. I thought it was meant to be safe now (in fact I thought that even France no longer banned it). Is it possible that the US is using it as an ...[/quote]**(we do what they tell us, when they tell us, how they tell us).**If you think that that is true, you are appearing to infer that Brits are stupid? I don't think that to be the case at all. Just because you think it does doesn't mean a thing. We share many, many basic values and have come to each other's assistance many, many times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Riff-Raff Element Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 It's fairly clear to me that this was simply a practical joke by some Guardian-reading lefties closeted in the Min of Def or Ag&Fish or elsewhere in the civil service. On the plus side it (presumably) turned over some aging stock and took the storage costs out of the hands of the Britsih tax payer. Quite how this beef should be any more dangerous than the hormone enriched stuff that the US eat all the time I do not know.On similar lines, was the Iranian offer of 20 million barrels of crude oil taken up by the US, or was it declined? I would like to think that this was a cruel attempt at raising a laugh by the Tehran government at hoisting the "Great Satan" by their own petard, but I'm not sure that humour stretches that far. On the other hand, if Castro had offered some emergency sugar supplies... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayB Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 [quote]It's fairly clear to me that this was simply a practical joke by some Guardian-reading lefties closeted in the Min of Def or Ag&Fish or elsewhere in the civil service. On the plus side it (presumably)...[/quote]**On the other hand, if Castro had offered some emergency sugar supplies...**Castro DID offer medical assistance. We have always offered them disaster assistance, as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deimos Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 [quote]**(we do what they tell us, when they tell us, how they tell us).**If you think that that is true, you are appearing to infer that Brits are stupid? I don't think that to be the case at all. Just be...[/quote]Quote (RayB): “If you think that that is true, you are appearing to infer that Brits are stupid?”In this regard the British people are represented by a Mr. Blair. There are a range of opinions as to how much representation is going on in the UK and also a range of opinions about the “stupidity” aspects of the person doing the representing. Words like “poodle” have been used.Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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