Pacific Free Press was launched in March 2007 by Dutch-Canadian Richard
Kastelein of V.O.F. Expathos, in the Netherlands along with Chris Cook- CFUV radio journalist and Editor in Chief of Pacific Free Press. Cook is based in , Victoria, British Columbia.
The mission of Pacific Free Press is simple: to dig out nuggets of truth from
the slag-heap of lies, ignorance and witless diversion that has buried
public discourse today. Pacific Free Press provides a new venue for
disseminating hard news and insightful, fact-based analysis of the
harsh realities too often ignored or distorted by the mainstream press.
January is resolution season. Holiday shopping frenzies subside and unwanted
relatives return home as millions of Americans vow to find a better job,
learn to speak a foreign language, save money, read more, watch TV less,
and, of course, get themselves in shape. But watch out: Too much chatter
about taking responsibility for one's own mental and physical fitness just
might get you labeled a "health nut."
You see, human beings can eat junk food till their arteries scream for mercy
without ever running the risk of being called a "disease nut." However,
frequent use of words like "organic," "natural," or "vegetarian" will send
up a red flag.
Feel free to smoke a pack of cigarettes a day; no one will call you a
fanatic or zealot. But be wary of how much time you spend at the gym or yoga
class or running track. That kind of behavior is reserved for obsessed
people.
Sit on the couch all night. Make no effort to avoid hydrogenated oils.
Consume those sugary desserts. You'll fit right in. Joining a food co-op or
slapping a filter on your faucet could get you added to a no-fly list.
Speaking of flying, airplane food (sic) is an excellent illustration of
modern America's commitment to staying unhealthy. Pushers, I mean, flight
attendants rolling a shiny cart up and down the ever-narrowing aisle will
lean in and smile, "Cheeseburger?" or "Coke?" If you want to garner
attention, decline this public offer of slow-acting poison. If you want to
chance having Homeland Security waiting for you when you de-board, ask for
something that doesn't induce cancer, heart disease, stroke, or diabetes.
You might as well wear a neon sign on your forehead that flashes: PSYCHOTIC.
Stay strong. It was William S. Burroughs who once made clear, "A psychotic
is someone who has just found out what's going on." And once you've found
out what's going on and you start speaking up, you'll find yourself with one
more categorization: "radical" (as if it were an insult). But I suggest you
wear that label with pride. The Latin origin of the word radical is the same
as for the word "root." A radical is one who gets to the root of things.
Plus, as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., declared: "When you're right, you can
never be too radical."
Mickey Z. can be found on the Web at http://www.mickeyz.net.
Writings 
January is resolution season. Holiday shopping frenzies subside and unwanted
relatives return home as millions of Americans vow to find a better job,
learn to speak a foreign language, save money, read more, watch TV less,
and, of course, get themselves in shape. But watch out: Too much chatter
about taking responsibility for one's own mental and physical fitness just
might get you labeled a "health nut."
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