Book Description
The United States is currently embroiled in a national debate over the growing public health crisis caused by poor diet. People are starting to ask who is to blame and how can we fix the problem, especially among children. Major food companies are responding with a massive public relations campaign. These companies, including McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Kraft, and General Mills, are increasingly on the defensive. In response, they pretend to sell healthier food and otherwise position themselves as "part of the solution." Yet they continue to lobby against commonsense nutrition policies.
Appetite for Profit exposes this hypocrisy and explains how to fight back by offering reliable resources. Readers will learn how to spot the PR and how to organize to improve food in schools and elsewhere.
For the first time, author Michele Simon explains why we cannot trust food corporations to "do the right thing." She describes the local battles of going up against the powerful food lobbies and offers a comprehensive guide to the public relations, front groups, and lobbying tactics that food companies employ to trick the American public. Simon also provides an entertaining glossary that explains corporate rhetoric, including phrases like "better-for-you foods" and "frivolous lawsuit."
Customer Reviews:
A great resource for those who want to protect themselves and their families.......2007-10-03
This book will teach you how to spot the PR, how to not be fooled, and how to organize, for example, to improve school food. The government and large corporations have a lot of big bucks at stake. They do not care about your health. They care about profits. This is true in all business.
So you, the consumer, must learn what is hype (PR) and what is real. You need to protect yourself and your family.
This book gives you a comprehensive guide to the public relations, front groups, and lobbying tactics that food companies employ to trick the American public.
Highly recommended.
No solution in sight.......2007-07-26
I agree with Michelle Simon that
(1) we cannot believe anything the corporate food giants tell us
(2) they haven't the slightest interest in promoting healthy eating habits, not even for our children
(3) they are in it for profit, pure and simple
(4) they are in part responsible for the obesity epidemic that is sweeping the country
(5) their reaction to criticism is to spin, not to change.
What I don't agree with is that they are to be condemned for their practices any more than corporations in other industries. As Simon points out in the first chapter, "Anatomy of a Food Corporation: Why We Can't Trust Them," their officers have a fiduciary responsibility under the law to look out for the interests of their stock holders. In making this point Simon is following Joel Bakan whose excellent book (and film documentary) The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power (2004), made it clear that corporations are, effectively speaking, pathological entities that externalize the costs of doing business whenever possible. Just as coal mining companies prefer not to clean up the mess they make, food companies prefer not to pay for the medical and other costs associated with the food they produce and sell.
I emphatically agree that it would be wonderful if there were some way we could make MacDonald's, PepsiCo, etc. foot some of the bills for obesity-related diseases. But that would require an enlightened Congress and White House, something we don't have, and are not likely to have for the foreseeable future.
What food corporations have is the power to invade our consciousnesses with their advertising. Because virtually all media is under corporate control, its central message to consumers and the public at large, like a pit inside a peach, is "Conform your behavior in a way that benefits the corporation." Corporations not only get us to eat what we shouldn't eat, and to eat more than we should, but they get us to vote for people we shouldn't vote for. The advertising is paid for by the corporations. The politicians are beholden to the corporations.
What we are experiencing is the power of the mass media on a mass population. No one could predict just how awesome that power would be. People are more easily indoctrinated than, say, Washington or Jefferson could have imagined. We live in a democracy by capitalism. An individual's vote is nearly meaningless compared to the votes that can be bought through advertising. Most Americans are too busy making a living and dealing with the day-to-day events of their lives to become knowledgeable about the secret agendas of the corporations and their servants in the Congress, and so few people know what is right and what is wrong regarding any complex issue.
Only education--knowledge about what is really going on--is going to change the direction in which this country is headed. It's going to take a sustained effort at the grass roots level over generations to stem the tide. One result of education would be to change the legal status of corporations to make them responsible for what are now "externalized" costs of doing business. If--and only if--that were done would they behave more nearly in the public interest.
However what knowledge and education are up against is the nearly irresistible lure of products--sugar, fats, salt, easily consumed and easily digested--that were prize products in the prehistory when our ingrained appetites were forged. Big Food is seducing the primordial human in all of us, and the seduction begins at an early age and never lets up.
So there are no easy solutions. The battle against the bulge, as it used to be called, is being fought in all industrialized societies and it is being lost. For myself and some of the people I know, it is not being lost because, like Michelle Simon, we know how to eat properly and how to avoid (most!) of the temptations. The problem is how to get that message to a greater percentage of the population.
Simon's book is a step in the right direction, but only a step. She focuses on the deceptions and lies of the food industry giants, how they spin the news, how they attack opponents, etc., and she gives a lot of information on just who the spinners and liars are, and she describes the tricks they use. But as for a solution... Well, if the knowledge in this book could somehow reach all Americans through their schools and religious organizations, that would be a giant step toward a solution.
Sad but true.......2007-06-18
This is a wonderful book covering more than you probably want to know about the collusion between our government and the food industry. This knowledge is essential, however, in understanding what you're actually buying when you buy fast food, or anything with high fructose corn syrup...any processed foods, really.
1. You're buying poison
2. You're paying for the continuation of a poisonous system...
hah, I sense no bitterness.......2007-05-29
Undoubtedly just one person is going through one five-star review after another and clicking "No" to "Was this review helpful to you?" judging by the patterns in the reviews below. Well, whoever he or she is, the person will just have to go through another. People can discredit Michele Simon all they want, but it doesn't change the fact that pretty much everything she's saying in "Appetite For Profit" is right.
There is nothing more American than what this book is trying to do: bring to light one of the toughest issues our society faces today (aside from the sustainability argument and climate change). While her views and frustration are evident, along with the massive scale of this problem, Simon successfully reframes the question with Big Food. All their cloying slogans, their favourite phrases, their dirty lobbying tactics and their endless pocketbook are exposed in "Appetite for Profit." All this hoopla about "personal responsibility" and "freedom of choice" coupled with the American "rugged individualism" are thrown out the window when we find out who's really calling the shots, and how they're managing to not get caught.
I simply cannot see how anyone can make a coherent argument for the goodness and harmlessness of Big Food after reading this book. Simon includes every false, manipulative, deceiving tactic employed by the food industry and presents a lucid counterargument. She covers all her bases; no issue is too small to go unaddressed. From vending machines in schools to the 30-year battle of making restaurants put out nutrition information, to Big Food blaming the lawyers to falsifying scientific evidence, Simon research shines.
Whoever the naysayer is on these Amazon review tabs, he or she
a) has not picked up the book and therefore has not read Simon's arguments
b) works for Big Food.
Please, anyone who can seriously debate Michele Simon's points addressed in this book, I welcome you to share them, for I would love to hear it. But if the first word out is "Energy balance" or "Personal responsibility", do us all a favour and read "Appetite for Profit."
Concise Truth-Telling: What a Concept!.......2007-01-24
This is an incredibly important book that finally explains why the answer to our food problems does not lie in the corporations themselves. We've all become so duped into believing the PR hype of the food INDUSTRY and have given away our power and our health. This isn't all gloom and doom, however. I especially like that Simon offers solutions for individuals who want to get on board and make a difference. Though they have the power and the money, our voices can still be heard, and I appreciate that Simon offers us that hope. (Oh - and do check out the Anti-Glossary. It's brilliant!) Highly recommended.
Book Description
All the legal facts, negotiating strategies, and coping tips anyone just dismissed from a job needs from an expert on employment law.Job security has disappeared. Even in good times, people get the pink slip whenever cutting staff appears to be in the best interest of the company or those who run it. These days, everyone must be prepared to negotiate severance almost instantly.Alan Sklover, an attorney with over a decade of experience handling severance negotiation for employees, provides an insider's guide to the best approaches to getting a favorable settlement. With its wealth of information, easy-to-read style, and short chapter format, Fired, Downsized, or Laid Off will become the standard text for anyone who wants to know: o What do standard severance packages include? o Tips to keep self-esteem high and stress low through severance negotiationso How to customize a severance package o When to hire an attorney and how to use their services wiselyo How to turn job loss into an opportunity for a new career path, self-employment or early retirementIn these uncertain times, no employee will want to be without this book.
Customer Reviews:
Laid Off or Fired, You Need Help to Make Money.......2006-06-23
If You are Laid Off or Redundant you need ideas to Make Money. First negotiate the best package or payoff from work. Second, how to make money from home for your future. This book does not go into a lot of details on how to start a business, probably the most likely options if you are laid off over 40.
Essential information helpfully presented.......2002-09-11
The problem is that when we have a job we tend to invest in the illusion of security. We also feel disloyal to our employer if we prepare for the time of separation.
The funny thing is that when the whack comes (and to often it is as unforseen as club to the back of the head) you can bet that the company has prepared very carefully every aspect of our severance package before they apply that hit to the sweet spot on your noggin.
Very few people have the clout to get an employment contract let alone negotiate up front for a separation arrangement. For most of us we live in an "at will" world. The author points out that this "at will" isn't necessarily as once sided as our employers would have us believe.
They rely on the shock of the moment, our lack of preparation, and our shame for losing our job to streamline us into signing away rights and getting the heck out of dodge. It isn't in their interests to give you time to think and prepare, and, frankly, when you are laying off 1,000 or 10,000 people you simply can't enter into separate negotiations with every one of them. However, I can tell you that in the UK employees are routinely given employment contracts as they are hired.
This is why every employee should read this book today. Prepare and think about the ever more inevitable separation. Empoyees need to be on as equal a footing with their employer as they can; given current laws and the limitations of economics. We need to have more open eyes and be less sentimental about our jobs.
This book is a great first step or two on that path. Just as profits are made when you purchase an asset (buying at the right price) - not when you sell them, the basis for your separation (which you should accept as inevitable in some non-specified future) is laid when you are hired. We need to be smarter when we go into these situations and realize the planning and, well, practiced sincerity (masked insincerity) that employers now use during hiring, throughout the term of employment and during termination.
They aren't bad people, necessarily, it is just that they are prepared for what is happeneing and most employees are not. The message of this very helpful book is "Get Prepared!".
It isn't that they are all bad people; it is the nature of the current business and legal climate that leads to much of this nonsense.
This book will provide a great morale booster and provide some thoughts that can help even a newly terminated employee create a decent plan of counter-attack. Better to use this information and take positive action than be pushed downstream like so many cut trees.
Shipping was Delayed!.......2002-04-03
I would have rated this book, but unfortunately, I was not shipped the order as promised. Maybe in a couple of months I will be able to offer better feedback.
"Now I know what to do, and how to do it.".......2000-10-17
Before I came across Mr. Sklover's book, I didn't know where to begin, or what had to be done. It was recommended to me by a friend who used it to help her, and it did. This book starts off slowly, and proceeds step by step in leading you through the process of Going Back, Asking for More, and Getting It..In Writing. It is the book on this subject that I believe will be the book everyone will read, use and keep...for the next time.
A Great Resource Book.......2000-10-16
Written in plain English. Deals with the legal basics, emotional scars, and what's reasonable to ask for. Even has a list of 101 things to possibly ask for. I needed these things very much, and found them in this book. Provides a good insight, too, into what negotiating with your ex-boss, and Human Resources, is all about. I never realized that they wanted something from me even more than I needed the extra severance from them! This book is highly motivating, too. I recommend it for anyone.
Book Description
An authoritative easy-to-use reference arranged in an A-to-Z format, packed with nutrition tips for a healthier life. Part 1 reveals 50 superstar foods with the most potential to treat and prevent disease. Part 2 provides a powerful food arsenal to help fight 50 common ailments. Part 3 has over 100 recipes for treating and fighting disease.
Customer Reviews:
Eat Your Way to Health.......2004-03-14
I am a culinary student at Le Cordon Bleu, and I just finished my required class on nutrition. This book was most helpful in understanding and supplementing my studies regarding phytochemicals, disease prevention and recipe development. I borrowed it from the library and have renewed it twice, and I love the page per food format for quick reference to see what your favorite meals can do for your health. I have asthma and allergies, and I found out that I should be making meals with amaranth, avocados, quinoa and sunflower seeds (page 141) because they supply magnesium, which may help relax muscles in the lungs. I found that I should be eating apples, berries, cherries, and red onions, which contain quercetin, which has an ability to reduce histamine. I found that I should be incorporating Brazil nuts, fish, oysters, and sunflower seeds again because of their selenium content, which also happens to be an antioxidant, and low selenium blood levels have been found in asthmatics. Finally I found that I should be increasing my consumption of broccoli, citrus fruits, peppers and strawberries, containing vitamin C, which helps reduce the harmful oxidants in the envoronment that can worsen allergy and asthma symptoms. I will be adjusting my menus accordingly!
Average customer rating:
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Fight Back! at Work
David Horowitz
Manufacturer: Dell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Business Life
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
| Books
Guides
| Job Hunting & Careers
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
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Labor & Industrial Relations
| Economics
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
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General
| Business & Investing
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Labor & Industrial Relations
| Politics
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ASIN: 0440506360
Release Date: 1995-04-02 |
Book Description
We're trapped in an economic environment where the price for national recovery is fewer jobs, lower pay, and radical belt-tightening for most. Learn your rights as a job applicant, worker or former worker in the toughest job market in years. Famed TV commentator and award-winning consumer activist David Horowitz and legal rights specialist Dana Shilling give you all the information you need in the book that shows you how to fight back and take control - starting today! How to compete in the changing workplace; what to expect, how to use the interview to your own best advantage; know your rights provided by federal law: wages, overtime, all forms of discrimination, civil rights, work-family issues, sexual harassment, COBRA coverage, unemployment insurance, and more; your right to organize: unions and labor law; your legal options if your employer cuts back or eliminates medical benefits; and pension protection and portability: protect your assets by learning your rights.
Average customer rating:
- A Troublemaker's Handbook
|
A Troublemaker's Handbook: How to Fight Back Where You Work - And Win!
Dan LA Botz
Manufacturer: Labor Notes
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Labor & Industrial Relations
| Economics
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
| Books
Labor & Industrial Relations
| Politics
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Reference
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0914093045 |
Customer Reviews:
A Troublemaker's Handbook.......1999-12-14
Excellent book, writen from rank and filers view with a million years of experence between covers. Has many specifics on Union operation and how to handle the company. This book really gives you perspective on Worker's Rights. A must have book for Stewards and Activists.
Customer Reviews:
Saved by the Southern *itch!.......2006-11-24
Phillips isn't really the "B" word. Instead, she's a wise Southern woman who knows how to pack a punch with professionalism, grace and humor. Anyone who has ever had a problem with a product or service - no matter how insignificant or horrendous - will be best served by Phillips' advice. "And the truth shall make you free!"
The best Christmas gift received.......2004-01-01
I do love a good read. One of my favorite gifts was the set of Ellen Phillips's "consumer empowerment" books. I actually began reading Fight Back and Win first as I knew it had a large section on senior/elderly issues. Even if I never write a complaint letter, I now own a valuable resource that tells me anything I want to know or how to find it out. The author is amazing. She doesn't condesend to us older people, and her sense of humor helps when discussing some of the self-help promotions that often make me feel ill-at-ease with younger so-called experts.
Of course if and when I get reday to write any sort of complaint letter, she shows me just how to do it to get the desired results. I can't thank Ms. Phillips enough (nor my daughter-in-law who gifted me with these wonderful books).
A Painless Way to Get Action on Consumer Issues.......2003-04-24
The author of "Fight Back and Win" has done the research that most of us wish we had the time to do in order to get action on our complaints. Ms. Phillips has included many examples of letters that are succinct and easily edited to pertain to a variety of consumer complaint situations. At the end of each letter she has listed real names and state consumer protection agencies that one can contact or send carbon copies of the complaint letter. Even better, at the end of each chapter, she lists various organizations and websites tailored to each type of letter.
I myself used her book to quickly write a letter of my own that got a response within a week and the repair I sought completed within two weeks. This book truly can help consumers to "Fight Back and Win".
Fight Back and Win.......2003-03-26
I actually put to use the book Fight Back and Win, by Ellen Phillips, and had great success! I had a travel problem with Delta Airlines and after reading Ms. Phillips's book I wrote them a letter. I was totally amazed how fast I received a response. I knew after reading her first book, Shocked, Appalled, and Dismayed, that between the two books I had all the facts and information I would need to write the appropriate letter to a big business. I honestly recommend this book as a useful book that will be helpful and not put on your bookshelf to collect dust!!!!
A Must Have For The Savy Consumer.......2003-02-02
FIGHT BACK AND WIN is an important resource for the savy consumer and the client centered organization. Highly readible and entertaining, it gives concrete advice on a variety of contemporary problems. Most important it provides the tools for individuals to successfully obtain what they want. Empowerment plus!
Average customer rating:
- Good general advice, but nothing very specific.
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Fight Back and Win: What to Do When You Feel Cheated or Wronged
Reader's Digest Editors
Manufacturer: Readers Digest
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Self-Help
| Health, Mind & Body
| Subjects
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Civil Law
| Administrative Law
| Law
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Civil Procedure
| Procedures & Litigation
| Law
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ASIN: 0762103256
Release Date: 2002-04-18 |
Customer Reviews:
Good general advice, but nothing very specific........2003-03-26
This book offers very general advice to laypersons as to how to deal with a myriad of legal issues, from starting your own business to contesting a traffic ticket. However, more often than not, the advice given is so general in nature that I would question whether it is of much practical value to readers. It seems that the favorite advice of the authors is "see a lawyer." Moreover, the authors frequently acknowledge that laws on certain issues vary so much from state to state that it is not practicable to give specific advice on such subjects. In such cases, they recommend that you research the applicable state law. The book is OK for pointing you in the general direction you need to go, but don't expect it to be a comprehensive guide to solving your legal difficulty.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Social Work, published by National Association of Social Workers on October 1, 2003. The length of the article is 6058 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
From the author: Key words: combating stalking; legal element of stalking; stalking; victims
Citation Details
Title: Stalking: terrorism at our doors--how social workers can help victims fight back.
Author: Mary-Ann Leitz Spitz
Publication:
Social Work (Refereed)
Date: October 1, 2003
Publisher: National Association of Social Workers
Volume: 48
Issue: 4
Page: 504(9)
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
"This is an essential book for any practitioner, researcher or student of securitisation - concise and accurate coverage of the key aspects of securitisation on all the main and secondary markets of the world."
Alexander Batchvarov, Managing Director, International Structured Product Strategy, Merrill Lynch, London.
"John Deacon's original book became the leading textbook for those genuinely interested in gaining a profound and detailed understanding of the arcane world of securitisation. The new, updated version confirms John's status as the top writer in this sector. Securitisation has moved on, becoming ever more complex in both its detail and its variety, but John's book never fails to deal with all the intellectual challenges posed, in a clear, logical and comprehensive fashion. A must for all practitioners- - I thoroughly enjoyed it."
Robert Palache, Managing Director, Head of European Infrastructure Finance and Corporate Securitisation, Barclays Capi tal
"Deacons book is an unparalleled treatise on all aspects of asset securitisation and CDOs and is ideal for use by both experienced market practitioners and by those new to the seemingly ever-expanding world of securitisation. The book comprehensively outlines the various structures encountered, ranging from true sale and future flow financings to synthetics and whole business, addressing not only the framework of the structures but also the regulatory and accounting implications. A must have reference book."
David Newby, Executive Director, ABN AMRO BANK N.V., Head of UK and Irish Securitisation, Head of European Commercial Real Estate Securitisation
Synthetic credit derivatives technology, CDOs, the covered bond market, the mortgage-backed market and M&A financing have all come together to make securitization the fastest growing and most flexible area of the global credit markets. This authoritative work looks at the recent synthetic structures and credit derivatives used in CDOs and at the new Basel Capital Accord and addresses the framework of these structures as well as the regulatory and accounting implications. You'll find truly global insights, coverage of both the financial and legal aspects of securitization, and a glossary of market and legal terminology.
Order your copy of this comprehensive update on the development of securitization today!
Download Description
"This is an essential book for any practitioner, researcher or student of securitisation - concise and accurate coverage of the key aspects of securitisation on all the main and secondary markets of the world."
—Alexander Batchvarov, Managing Director, International Structured Product Strategy, Merrill Lynch, London.
"John Deacon's original book became the leading textbook for those genuinely interested in gaining a profound and detailed understanding of the arcane world of securitisation. The new, updated version confirms John's status as the top writer in this sector. Securitisation has moved on, becoming ever more complex in both its detail and its variety, but John's book never fails to deal with all the intellectual challenges posed, in a clear, logical and comprehensive fashion. A must for all practitioners- – I thoroughly enjoyed it."
—Robert Palache, Managing Director, Head of European Infrastructure Finance and Corporate Securitisation, Barclays Capital
"Deacon’s book is an unparalleled treatise on all aspects of asset securitisation and CDOs and is ideal for use by both experienced market practitioners and by those new to the seemingly ever-expanding world of securitisation. The book comprehensively outlines the various structures encountered, ranging from true sale and future flow financings to synthetics and whole business, addressing not only the framework of the structures but also the regulatory and accounting implications. A must have reference book."
—David Newby, Executive Director, ABN AMRO BANK N.V., Head of UK and Irish Securitisation, Head of European Commercial Real Estate Securitisation
Customer Reviews:
Deep Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO) Coverage.......2004-05-17
Although not smooth reading, "Global Securitisation and CDOs" by Mr. John Deacon, provides a comprehensive lay of the Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO) landscape - certainly the sexiest area of securitization and one of the most exciting areas of modern finance. I have worked with CDOs for over two years and find the ever evolving nature of both sides of the CDO world very exciting; their shifting asset structures and their evolving liability configurations make each deal unique from the next.
Overwhelmingly, one senses that "Global Securitisation and CDOs" was written by an industry expert brimming with superb information and an outstanding legal background. And certainly, that is exactly what Mr. John Deacon is. His genuine passion for CDOs and structured finance is self evident. However, similarly obvious, this tome was not written by a professor, professional teacher, or consultant willing to lead you on a structured path toward CDO knowledge. At times, the work reads more like a study than an actual book; information is thrown at the reader without enough connections, structure and signposting.
Fundamentally, "Global Securitisation and CDOs" is a very good (and much needed) handbook/reference guide with useful graphs and tables. I recommend it as a reference guide - suitable for a mixture of skimming and in-depth reading - and as a fantastic starting point for intelligent CDO conversation.
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- Busting Loose From the Money Game: Mind-Blowing Strategies for Changing the Rules of a Game You Can't Win
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