The Schlosser Legacy

Right: Herbert Schlosser with his wife


Many people across the globe have read Eric Schlosser’s books “The Fast Food Nation” and “Reefer Madness” but do not truly know his history and how he got to be one of best authors in the country. This article is about how this man came to be and how he got to be who he is today.

Eric Schlosser was born on August 17, 1979 in New York City. Eric’s father, Herbert Schlosser, was originally a Wall Street Lawyer who turned into a newscaster. Eric eventually left “the big apple” for Los Angeles in his pursuit to become a head in the broadcasting world, and eventually in 1974, he became the president of NBC. As Eric aged he became more and more interested in writing and literature. He enrolled at the Colleges at Princeton and Oxford and majored in American History and British Imperial History. Upon graduating college, Schlosser wrote the play Americans in 1985, which is set to the theme of American Imperialism in the early 20th century. Although this play was not immediately accepted, it was eventually produced in 2003 and is currently being performed out of the United States. After deciding to get out of fictional writing, Schlosser became a journalist for The Atlantic Monthly in Boston. During his career at the magazine company he became very well known. He earned the national Magazine Award for reporting in his two series article “Reefer Madness” and “Marijuana and the Law” in 1994. He then won the Sidney Hillman award for the article “In the Strawberry Fields” in 1995. Besides writing for the Atlantic Monthly, Schlosser wrote for Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, The Nation, and The New Yorker. Then in 2001, Eric Schlosser wrote The Fast Food Nation, which became a New York Times Best-Seller for three years. Originally, “Fast Food Nation” began as a two part article for The Rolling Stone but quickly escalated into one of the most well written documentaries of recent time. “Fast Food Nation” even became a movie in 2006 which was directed by Richard Linklater. During the time of the “Fast Food Nation” craze, Schlosser wrote the book “Reefer Madness” which was a continuation of his earlier articles “Reefer Madness” and “Marijuana and the Law”.

Currently, Schlosser resides with his wife Shauna Redford, Robert Redford’s daughter, and two children in California. He is currently working on a book about control and the American Penitentiaries. Eric Schlosser has helped many understand the way things work and it is in this article that we can truly see how he came to be the journalist he is today.

Time Management

On October 12, I attended my fourth workshop of the year. The interesting thing about this specific workshop was that the professor, who was supposed to teach the seminar, never showed up. Fortunately, a replacement did show up with 30 minutes to go in the seminar. Since the replacement only explained the steps involved with selecting new classes, I decided to write this blog on time management.

When you look at time management you automatically think organization. In fact, that is one of the biggest parts of time management. Organization can not only help people achieve present goals, but also help people with their long-term goals as well. Many people use things like action plans to achieve these goals. Action plans help to organize the work that needs to be done to achieve a longer goal . Plus, the plan establishes how long and how much each of the specific work needs to be done. Another time management device that helps with achieving a certain goal is Personal Goal Setting. I feel the most important part for keeping your time management plan working, is planning goals and activities you may like. It is known that if you really don’t want to do activities that you plan, you have a much greater chance of forgetting it in the future.
So the big question is. How do you make sure you don’t arrive late for that next meeting or cram for the next test? If you follow just four simple rules you will have success in not only arriving on time, but using your time for work more efficiently. The first rule is developing a plan for not only tomorrow’s agenda but also one for a month away. A calendar or an organizer can help to do this more efficiently and supply a material way of remembering things. It is true that some things in life are unexpected, but it is still important that you have a plan to get around on a normal day. Not all plans are set in stone, but are just there to set a base for the structure of the day. Remember, you are not a robot so you don’t have to follow everything that is written. It comes back to the fact that the plan is always your choice.

The second rule is that if you have free time during a certain day and that day is followed by a compacted day, you must use your sense and use that free time to work ahead. In other words, it is better not to procrastinate what you can do on a slow today than on a busy tomorrow. If you have that test in three days, take time to go over it moderately every day instead of cramming the night before the test. Trust me, it doesn’t work.

The third rule kind of fits into the previous rule. Go to bed early and use solo time in the morning for quiet projects. This rule is important when you need to concentrate on a certain task. Work like reading, writing, and future planning are ideal during this peaceful time because they require the most focus to complete. Even though the only thing a lot of people like to do in the morning is sleep, it is actually found to be the best time to do work. It is a period of the day that most of everything is reenergized from sleep. It is that point in the day that the brain is completely stress-free and without stress. Without stress there is no worry and without worry, there is no rushing. If we keep everything on a gentle pace, there is a definite guarantee that you will become more successful at both organizing your time and becoming more productive.

The final rule is the priority list. It is important that you set your duties according to how important they are at the time you are creating a plan. For example, if you have a paper due in a month and a test in a day, your priority will most likely be studying for the test. If you do not have your plans prioritized, they are basically just as good as not having a plan at all.

To wrap up this discussion I leave you with a few questions to think about. I want you to think about someone you know that has a continuous problem with procrastination. Is that person you are thinking about successful? Would you ever set him to be your role model? If your answer is no, then you are on the right track to having a successful future.

The question that many college students go through today is what they want to major in and what how they get that business experience that will gain them a job upon graduation. In fact, though these major decisions seem difficult, they are actually very easy to make with the help of the colleges career services. In my last workshop for my fall semester I learned about the many things you must do for your transition to the real world and maybe your future employer.

Peggy Mathis, one of the counselors in the Career Services office, started her discussion with the way businesses classify people. She said that businesses started to use tests after World War I to determine who people were. The test that she gave us classified people in four different ways: introverts vs. extroverts, sensing vs. institutional, thinking vs. feeling, and judgment vs. perception. I listened to her descriptions of each and I classified myself as an introvert, intuitional, feeling, and perceptive type of person. What type of person are you?

As Mrs. Mathis continued I learned more and more about the many ways Penn State helps us as students to get involved in our fields of interest through its wonderful internship and co-op programs. I learned about the many career fairs Penn State offers at every one of its campuses.

Along with the idea of searching for co-ops and internships, Mrs. Mathis discussed about Occupational Information Interviewing. This basically means that you should participate in activities that have deal with your field of study. If you never experienced the field of study you never know that you will like it. If you do things with the Campus like career fairs, you are able to ask questions from the people that work in that field of study every day of their lives. If you like what they do you can pursue it but if you don’t, it isn’t too late to change your major or field of study. If you truly want to know if you like a job or if you want to pursue a field that you get enjoyment from I encourage you to ask questions at the many job fairs Penn State offers. My father always said to me “Make sure you like what you do, because if you don’t, you will not enjoy going to work and making a difference”.

It is not often that a person can formally meet and listen to the author of a book they read. On November 12, 2007, I had the privilege of listening and meeting Eric Schlosser, the author of the New York Times Bestseller “Fast Food Nation”. It is after I listened to his speech that I decided to write what I felt about his thoughts. When I arrived at the speech, Mr. Schlosser had already begun his presentation. Unfortunately, he explained most of what he felt about the book before I arrived. When I began to listen to his speech he emphasized the idea that “knowledge is power”. He said that it was this idea that gave him the motivation for writing the “Fast Food Nation”. He stated that if people truly knew about how the fast food business worked, that maybe they would use their new understanding to pursue a change. Isn’t it the goal of our society to help one another and keep everyone safe? If this is the case, Eric Schlosser has done a remarkable thing. He has opened our eyes to the darkness behind the smiling face of not only fast food chains, but to various other well known corporations that we support everyday. During his speech, Mr. Schlosser explained that the knowledge we are gaining as a society is starting to promote change in some of the most powerful companies in the world. As we look back in the past decade we can see the effects of our knowledge in almost every business of the world. Ten years ago, we did not see the magnitude of healthier foods that we see today at fast food restaurants. McDonald’s now serves milk, apple slices, and a variety of salads. This change occurred when doctors started to relay warnings about the health problems with eating those juicy cheeseburgers and fatty fries. This new knowledge that people were given made them start eating at places with a healthier menu. With decreasing business, fast food restaurants like McDonald’s decided to introduce a healthier line of food items to their original menu. This change slowed down the losses of the food chains profits but they never really rebounded. As Schlosser continued through his speech, he explained how the fast food industry schemed their way to a better business during the past years of increased health awareness. He said that they are moving their advertising and focus to the poorer part of our society. Along with the new health foods, many fast food restaurants introduced more options on their widely advertised “Dollar Menus”. With cheaper prices, poorer families would come to the fast food joints, not caring what they eat. It is a sad reality to think that fast food restaurants treat their customers in the same way that they treat their livestock. Most fast food chains’ ultimate goal is to make more money. When Schlosser concluded his speech, he quoted a phrase. He said it is important for us to remember to “Have it your way”. If this was one of the first times you have heard about Eric Schlosser or his past book “Fast Food Nation”, I encourage you to research about him or read his book. It truly opens your eyes to the way you look at the world.

In the many public institutions and colleges, people undergo stereotyping. In fact, in today’s societies, stereotypes have become so commonplace that people never realize how destructive they can be and what problems they may cause. Many students in schools are classified into groups like nerds, jocks, goths, gangsters, band geeks, cheerleaders and even druggies. Some stereo types even tie into a person’s race or social class. Stereotyping is built into so much of our society that many students go too far and cause problems that gain national attention.

What problems am I talking about? I am talking about the recent rise in school shootings. Whether it is the Virginia Tech Massacre or Columbine incident, police and detectives alike have said that both of these situations were caused by a form of stereotyping. In both circumstances, the people involved with the killing were outcasts to the school or college’s mainstream of students by stereotypical treatment. Instead of discussing their problems with school or college officials, they believed that they had to solve the stereotyping themselves. So, what did they do? They believed the only way to shut people up was to not allow them to speak at all. Even though the number of students who decide to kill people in these situations is small, it still a wake- up call that stereotyping needs to stop. Calling people names and treating them a certain way doesn’t seem to harm people, but it could cause them to do things that may either harm themselves or others. To me, school shootings and violence in places of education can be stopped with eliminating stereotypes. If we treat each other equally, we may all find life to be better and more enjoyable. I will always remember that there were times in my life when I did know it all, wasn’t popular, or had a name like “geek”, and my friends helped me through, taught me to care and showed me that we are all sharing this world together.

In the spirit of the upcoming holiday, I decided to write a blog on the past and present celebrations of Halloween. I am sure not many know where this holiday of frights came from and why it was named Halloween. I will also describe other celebrations around the world that tie into this widely known holiday.

Halloween has been celebrated by the American public for many years with parades, candy, costumes, and monsters. With this business-driven holiday increasing profits of costume and candy companies, it strays farther and farther away from its origins. For the people who don’t know, the holiday of Halloween originated from the Pagan festival called Samhain, which was celebrated by the Celts of Ireland and Great Britain. They believed that during the time of the celebration, spirits could make contact with the physical world. They also believed that magic was stronger and more abundant at this time. When the Scottish and Irish immigrated to the United States, they carried the celebration over with them. Even though these immigrants came over many centuries, their celebration only emerged as a different celebration when it was adopted by society in the late twentieth century. It changed from a spiritual celebration to a money making ploy to target children and young adults. When you think about it, you can see the tie between this circumstance and fast food restaurants in “Fast Food Nation”. Doesn’t it seem that even holidays like Christmas, Halloween, and Easter are straying from their true purpose and becoming just another money maker for companies like Mars and Hershey?


You may be thinking now, “Why Halloween is named Halloween?” The answer to that is very simple and it requires a look at another celebration that many Christian’s celebrate. The celebration I am talking about is called “All Saints Day” and “All Hallows Eve” in which “Hallow” means “saint”. This event is celebrated by a feast on November 1st or the first Sunday after Pentecost which commemorates the achievements and lives of past saints. Even though this event is celebrated by most Christians, the idea of who is considered to be a saint is left open. In western Christianity, people believe that “All Saints Day” celebrates those who have gone to heaven, while the next day, “All Souls' Day”, commemorates the departed faithful who have not yet reached heaven. These differences in celebration also change between countries.

In Portugal, Spain and Mexico, ofrendas (offerings) are made on this day. These offerings include food and material objects. They also normally place pictures of the deceased within a collage of flowers, burning incense, and candles. In Spain, the play Don Juan Tenorio is traditionally performed. In Belgium, France, Hungary, Italy, Portugal and Spain people bring flowers to the graves of dead relatives.

In the countries of Poland, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia, Lithuania, Croatia, Austria, Hungary and Germany, the tradition is to light candles and visit the graves of deceased relatives.

In the Philippines, the day is spent visiting the graves of deceased relatives, where they offer prayers, lay flowers, and light candles, often in a picnic-like atmosphere.

In many of the English speaking countries, the festival is traditionally celebrated with the hymn "For All the Saints" by William Walsham How. The most familiar tune for this hymn is Sine Nomine by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

As you can see, candy, monsters, and trick-or-treating is just a tip of the iceberg of this world-wide Christian celebration. If you are a christian and you do not know about this celebration, I recommend you to go to your pastor or cardinal and learn about it. I hope you enjoyed learning about the holiday you thought you knew and what its true purpose and meaning are. Thank you for reading and I hope you have a very Happy Halloween!!!!!

I have included a recent article on Mars' treatment of animals, and a website that explains the ties of Halloween to Christianity.

I would also like to give credit to Wikipedia for the vast amount of information given on the subject.

"Fast Food Nation" Part II

As a continuation of a previous blog, I decided to further my summary of “Fast Food Nation” from chapters 7-10. In each of the following paragraphs, I will summarize and add my personal input for the situations presented in the book. I hope that this blog will help you to further your understanding of what the book is about even if you haven’t read it at all. Chapter seven is titled “Cogs in the Great Machine”. This chapter began in the little meat packing town of Greenly, Colorado. It explains how this town turned from a utopian community to meatpacking run mayhem full of migrant workers caused from the IBP revolution of meatpacking plants. Schlosser then turns to discuss the history of IBP and how the meat packing giant got to be in that little utopian town in Colorado. He said that IBP used the same system that McDonald’s used for its service for its own meatpacking industry. IBP’s arrival to the utopian town of Greenly occurred because the town had no labor unions and the fact that it was close enough to the border to hire cheap and unskilled migrant workers. Once the migrant workers and IBP infiltrated the town, it transformed it into a dirty community with increased crime and poverty. To me this is a horrible reality. Corporations and various businesses seem to both ruin and support its community. As foreign competition rises, companies like IBP have to resort to cheaper labor. The increase of unskilled workers creates more problems in the community like crime and poverty making the business more of a detriment more than a benefit to society. The question is, will this trend of poor business relations with the community continue into our future or will corporations or government cure the problems created by low wage jobs? Some people say that a higher minimum wage will solve the problem and some say that immigration and business regulations need to be tightened. Whatever solution is used one thing is for sure. Something needs to be done. Chapter eight is titled “The Most Dangerous Job” for a good reason. In this chapter Schlosser is taken on a tour of a meatpacking plant somewhere out west. He details his tour in the book and describes a horrific view of what meat packing workers go through every day. His documented tour explained that many of the workers in the plant used extremely sharp knives and worked long hour days which caused a high rate of injury within the workplace. This detail wasn’t as shocking as the fact that the meat company’s extremely low compensation in insurance costs for injuries. The chapter even explained that sometimes the company’s workman’s comp was so low that the injured workers had to go back to work to pay for their own medical payments. To me, these actions just explain to society that a human life is just another resource to use and eventually exhaust. People seem to be treated as well as the animals they slaughter. What is your opinion on this matter? Chapter nine is titled “What’s in the Meat”. This chapter dealt with the recent scares of diseases, primarily E. Coli, in meat processed at the various high production meat packing factories. From reading the previous chapter, you can easily imagine how disease could get into the meat. Before the IBP revolution, the amount of tainted meat was contained within a small area, but with the mass production of meat, recalls of such meat become extremely difficult to manage. Schlosser used the 1997 E. Coli strain in the meat from Hudson foods as an example in the book. Of the total 35 million pounds of ground beef recalled by Hudson, only 10 million pounds had been not eaten during the time of the recall. The worst realization of this chapter is the 200,000 people that get sick every day in the United States from tainted food. As you can see, these problems are all caused by the fact that corporations are constantly spending less money on resources and safety precautions to increase their profit. Chapter ten is titled “Global Realization/ Have it Your Way”. This chapter explains both how the world is changing and how the fast food phenomenon is spreading to the various countries around the globe. Like in America, fast food restaurants are changing the economy of countries like Germany. It is changing what was once peaceful towns in Bavaria, into towns like present day Greenly. Like in the chapter’s title, the principles adopted by the fast food chains and the many facets of America’s food industries are being spread globally. It presents the view that the future does not look good for a nice, peaceful society that once was. Even though I have told you the main points of each chapter, I recommend anybody who finds interest in this blog to read this wonderful documentary. It has truly changed my view of the world and how I interact in it. It is a relief that I can now know what I eat and were it might have come from.