Mad Cow

[RACooper]

Hey... well now the US is experienceing the Mad Cow scare and the resulting impact to the beef industry.

I loved watching news and seeing the guy from the Dept. of Agriculture stating how wrong and reactionary other countries were being by banning the import of US beef..... the same guy that was the most intractable when it came to the Canadian Mad Cow scare, and refused to allow the import of Canadian beef..... hmm a little karma?

Okay now that I have gotten that off my chest I have a question or observation-

If I was a terrorist who was trying to bring down the "great capitalist satan blah blah blah" infecting some cattle with the disease would be the way I would go. BSE is realtively common outside of the devoloped world, and probably damn cheap to aquire, transport, and deploy. Think about the easy it would be to penetrate the "security" of some processing plants, or even cattle herds. Also think about the impact to the public opinion, the beef industry, international trade, and the "American way of life" (got to watch them burgers).

[Rudey]

Originally posted by RACooper
Hey... well now the US is experienceing the Mad Cow scare and the resulting impact to the beef industry.

I loved watching news and seeing the guy from the Dept. of Agriculture stating how wrong and reactionary other countries were being by banning the import of US beef..... the same guy that was the most intractable when it came to the Canadian Mad Cow scare, and refused to allow the import of Canadian beef..... hmm a little karma?

Okay now that I have gotten that off my chest I have a question or observation-

If I was a terrorist who was trying to bring down the "great capitalist satan blah blah blah" infecting some cattle with the disease would be the way I would go. BSE is realtively common outside of the devoloped world, and probably damn cheap to aquire, transport, and deploy. Think about the easy it would be to penetrate the "security" of some processing plants, or even cattle herds. Also think about the impact to the public opinion, the beef industry, international trade, and the "American way of life" (got to watch them burgers).

You are retarded.

-Rudey
--Not a little, but a lot.

[justamom]

Actually, this topic came up last night as we were eating our prime rib.

The same thought about terrorism infecting a herd and the impact it would have was discussed. I agree, it really wouldn't be that difficult.

Though chicken is the top seller, beef has seen their prices climb and the industry has been enjoying a rebound. The issue with ground beef is the parts that are used when making ground meat.
I read that the current opinion is the tissue surrounding and including the central nervous system are the parts that get "infected". (So far)

One problem is that these ground up pieces are used in animal feed for the protein. It can spread as other animals eat feed that has infected animal parts in it. There was a case (last summer I think) where the disease was found in a deer. Not much mentioned about that, but hunters who enjoy venison might take note.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if it isn't already in people. It takes so long to show up and the only way to confirm it is through an autopsy. Will we start seeing obits with "In lue of flowers, please make donations to mad cow research"? Scary!

[CanadianTeke]

Originally posted by justamom

I wouldn't be at all surprised if it isn't already in people. It takes so long to show up and the only way to confirm it is through an autopsy. Will we start seeing obits with "In lue of flowers, please make donations to mad cow research"? Scary!

I went to give blood here, but because i have spent more than 3 months in the United Kingdom since 1982 I can't, because nobody knows how BSE works inside of the human body, and how long it's incubation period is. Untill more is known i am considered a threat because i may at one time have been exposed to Mad Cow.

[justamom]

I was searching the net and came across some really unusual information.

Maybe Rudey knows-There was something about Kosher meat and the way it was prepared being safer.

CanadianTeke Gee, that's an awful thought. I do recall the bans on the meat though.

I've forgotten why they banned the babyback ribs.

This seems to be another example of shortcuts to the bottom line.
Some people will do anything for money. If the outcome doesn't show up for years, by the time the discovery is made, the trail is lost. Why an ill animal was ever distributed in ANY form is beyond understanding. Our food supply is not safe. Green onions from Mexico- to burgers from Mc D's. Vegetarian or carnivore-I guess we should all go back to farming!

....oh and forget the fish, full of mercury!

[Rudey]

Originally posted by justamom
I was searching the net and came across some really unusual information.

Maybe Rudey knows-There was something about Kosher meat and the way it was prepared being safer.

CanadianTeke Gee, that's an awful thought. I do recall the bans on the meat though.

I've forgotten why they banned the babyback ribs.

This seems to be another example of shortcuts to the bottom line.
Some people will do anything for money. If the outcome doesn't show up for years, by the time the discovery is made, the trail is lost. Why an ill animal was ever distributed in ANY form is beyond understanding. Our food supply is not safe. Green onions from Mexico- to burgers from Mc D's. Vegetarian or carnivore-I guess we should all go back to farming!

....oh and forget the fish, full of mercury!

I don't know what could make it safer specifically. Maybe it's the fact that kosher butchers study the trade for years before starting and are considered very pious. Most butcher shops exceed USDA standards and are often exempt from them because of this. Animals are not fed other dead animals, they are examined prior to slaughter and the organs are examined after the slaughter, and most of the animal is actually discarded. Also if it's prepared Glatt Kosher, then certain organs are looked at specifically to make sure they are Glatt or clean. I'm not sure what affect this has on Mad Cow. And Israel has kosher McDonalds, Subway, Burger King, and more.

-Rudey

[SATX*APhi]

I went out to dinner with a friend of mine the other night and ordered my steak medium rare. I hadn't heard about the Mad Cow scare, so to me it was no big deal. When my food came, it was then that my friend decided to tell me about the Mad Cow scare. I sent my steak back to be cooked for another couple of minutes.

[PhiPsiRuss]

Originally posted by Rudey
I don't know what could make it safer specifically. Maybe it's the fact that kosher butchers study the trade for years before starting and are considered very pious. Most butcher shops exceed USDA standards and are often exempt from them because of this. Animals are not fed other dead animals, they are examined prior to slaughter and the organs are examined after the slaughter, and most of the animal is actually discarded. Also if it's prepared Glatt Kosher, then certain organs are looked at specifically to make sure they are Glatt or clean. I'm not sure what affect this has on Mad Cow. And Israel has kosher McDonalds, Subway, Burger King, and more.

-Rudey

Also, for meat to be kosher, the animal has to be killed in a way that is quickest and causes the least amount of pain, as I remember from waiting on tables in a Lubavitch owned kosher restaurant.

[Rudey]

Originally posted by russellwarshay
Also, for meat to be kosher, the animal has to be killed in a way that is quickest and causes the least amount of pain, as I remember from waiting on tables in a Lubavitch owned kosher restaurant.

Yah, but I doubt that has any effect on Mad Cow Disease

-Rudey

[justamom]

COOKING WILL NOT DESTROY IT!

This link will take you to a story on Reuters.

http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle...4&section=news

It seems there is another disease that acts exactly like MCD. Reading the entire article, it places Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease in New Jersey and Kansas. The NJ cases are linked through an individual's investigation of people who ate at a racetrack all the way back to the 80's. Her roadblocks- "Skarbek said she was denied a request for information from the Centers for Disease Control to find out what the agency knows. She sent an appeal on Thursday." The Kansas woman died this week.


exerpt-Some researchers believe that the human form of the disease has already hit the United States, but that the government either did not put the pieces together or was slow in notifying the public and the beef industry. So far, victims of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease in the United States have never been linked to U.S.-produced beef.

A spokesman for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said he did not know if there was any ongoing investigation into whether cases of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease were related to U.S. beef.

"We would investigate any potential cases," said spokesman Von Roebuck. "Anything that has been suspected has been looked at."

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease occurs spontaneously at a rate of about one case per 1 million people. It is incurable and always fatal, chewing holes in the brain that lead to dementia and death. A related illness, known as new variant CJD, has been linked in Europe to eating meat from cattle infected with mad cow disease.

[queequek]

[RACooper]

Originally posted by Rudey
I don't know what could make it safer specifically. Maybe it's the fact that kosher butchers study the trade for years before starting and are considered very pious. Most butcher shops exceed USDA standards and are often exempt from them because of this. Animals are not fed other dead animals, they are examined prior to slaughter and the organs are examined after the slaughter, and most of the animal is actually discarded. Also if it's prepared Glatt Kosher, then certain organs are looked at specifically to make sure they are Glatt or clean. I'm not sure what affect this has on Mad Cow. And Israel has kosher McDonalds, Subway, Burger King, and more.

-Rudey

I would have to say that these more "involved" inspection and preperation of the animals increases the possibility that a suspect animal would be noticed and removed from the herd. However the greatest plus would be the fact that the animals are not fed ground up parts from other dead animals. This appeared to be the primary avenue of infection in the UK.

[ThetaPrincess24]

Well I'm not that worried about it. I ate beef today, and will continue to eat it, because I like it. MMMMMMMMMmmmmmm
Nothing tastes like red meat It's pork, fish, mutton, venison, bear, pigeons, dogs, cats, snake, frogs, gators, rabbits, squirrels, sea food, and now raccoon etc. that I wont eat. Only beef, chicken, and turkey for me, but lots and lots of beef, must must have beef

[valkyrie]

I don't want anyone to get sick, but if the beef industry suffers huge economic losses because of this, I can't say I'm going to feel sad for them, at all.

[AchtungBaby80]

This is really...scary. I mean, I heard the local cattlemen on the news saying that we have a better chance of winning the Powerball drawing than we do of contracting this disease, but...somebody's got to win, so...it's just scary.