October 9, 2006

• The “Starving Africans” Bit Doesn’t Work On Me

  I think all of us, at some point in our lives, have been scolded for wasting food–and the scolding usually consists of the phrase, “there are starving Africans in the world!” or some variation of the term. That’s the automatic chiding that comes out of a person’s mouth the instant they sense someone is going to toss their half-eaten sandwich, the Tootsi Pop that wouldn’t give up its chocolate center, the nasty left-over KFC that became all soggy after a night in the refridgerator. Move too close to a trash bin while you’re holding a bag of chips and *BAM!* 1 thousand people are going to start screaming, “what about the Africans?!?”

  

  It’s scientifically proven.

  But using the plight of the hungry as a way to get people not to waste food doesn’t make very much sense…since not throwing away food doesn’t make fewer people hungry, does it? Let’s think about this for second:

  If you told me I should get a box for the leftover fatty pieces of chicken that I refuse to eat, and your only argument is that some homeless person is hungry right this second—I wouldn’t be any more inclined to box up the fatty pieces. Because even if I did, that hungry homeless person would still be hungry.  And even if I did force myself to eat the fatty pieces on behalf of the homeless, the orphans, or the starving Africans, they would still be starving. So unless you could show me how my finishing up every little bit of food on my plate will actually, physically, benefit those who are less fortunate, don’t open your mouth unless you’re planning on eating my leftover fatty chicken pieces for me.

  Okay, I know all that stuff I wrote is based on my taking the “starving Africans” phrase literally. I know the actual purpose of the phrase is to get us to appreciate what we have. That is a very good purpose…no one should take their good fortune for granted. But I actually think throwing food away is an indication of my appreciation, and not a sign that I am ungrateful. Because if I throw food away, that means I’ve been able to eat as much as I wanted, and now I no longer need to eat anymore–it essentially shows that I have a full belly and am thankful that I am not starving and needing every bit of nourishment I can get my hands on.

  And if that doesn’t work for you, then maybe this will: I am not throwing food away, because when I put it in the trash can, I am actually donating it to someone who will eat it later for dinner.

  Note: this doesn’t mean I don’t care about the starving people. I just think there are much more effective ways of helping people out than eating all your leftovers…ever heard of donating money to charity?

  • 2:15 pm
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