Italian Food Culture as Marketing

Historiker: "Die italienische Küche ist nichts anderes als Marketing" (Historian: "Italian cuisine is nothing more than marketing")

Translated version:

The story of Pizza Margherita? A fake. Historian Alberto Grandi has discovered that many myths surrounding traditional Italian dishes are completely fabricated.

Everyone immediately thinks of pasta, pizza, and other delicious food when they think of Italy. Specialties like Neapolitan Margherita or Roman Carbonara are now as legendary as the Colosseum, the Amalfi Coast, and Pompeii. For some time now, Italian cuisine has developed a cult following. People cite supposedly original recipes from the time of the Medici dynasty or those originating from poor shepherds in the Apennines. Deviations from these recipes trigger veritable shitstorms on social media. 

 Italian cuisine, the traditional cuisine, is not to be trifled with. This glorification of food is precisely what irks historian Alberto Grandi. That's why he researched the true origins of Italian dishes. What did he discover? It's all fake. Carbonara, the origin stories, even the culinary figure of Nonna. In his book, "Mythos Nationalgericht" (Myth of the National Dish), he claims that Italy's famous cuisine only developed after the Second World War. 

Italian cuisine, the traditional cuisine, is not to be trifled with.  

STANDARD: In some articles about your book, you're described as a "destroyer of Italian cuisine." Is that true? 

Grandi: I'm not destroying it; I'm telling a different kind of story about Italian cuisine. 

STANDARD: Which is? 

Grandi: Over the last 50 years, we've simply invented a great many recipes and stories. There's an excess of myths and legends surrounding Italian cuisine. It's nothing more than marketing. 

STANDARD: So, when I read that tiramisu originated from a 17th-century dish and was already being eaten by the Medici, is that a fairy tale? 

Grandi: Yes, it's marketing. There's nothing wrong with that. Marketing is about selling products. Tiramisu couldn't have been invented until the 60s or 70s. Mascarpone requires refrigeration for production and wasn't readily available to everyone. That only became possible with the development of supermarkets. My mother is 90 today. 50 years ago, mascarpone was a complete novelty for her.

STANDARD: Why do you have a problem with how stories about food are passed down? 

 Grandi: Food has such an enormous place in our culture. And I find that strange. As a historian, I find it difficult that food is now the most important aspect of identity for Italians. I consider that dangerous. Just this morning I was discussing this with a friend. He said that everything in Italy depends on tourism and food. That's not true. 90 percent of Italy's GDP isn't attributable to tourism. The reactions to my work show that many Italians don't know the economic and social reality of our country. 

STANDARD: Food is indeed an emotional topic. Just think about how to prepare a dish "correctly." For many, carbonara can only be made with guanciale and pecorino. 

Grandi: Ten or fifteen years ago, Gualtiero Marchesi, one of the most important Italian chefs, added heavy cream to carbonara. Today, people would go ballistic about that. Carbonara isn't a recipe, it's a religion. A Roman journalist once threatened me with violence because of such statements in my book. 

STANDARD: Is there such a thing? A right or wrong? 

Grandi: That reminds me of the story of Amatriciana sauce. If you use onions in the sauce today, you're considered crazy. But its long history shows that the only truly constant ingredient from the beginning of the 20th century until just ten years ago was the onion. So: What is the right recipe? 

STANDARD: But why does this happen? 

Grandi: Cuisine is no longer just part of our identity, it is our identity. Italians lack confidence in the future, and that's why they invent a past. One true Italian cuisine doesn't exist. It's the same with the nonnas, the grandmothers. They can't cook as well as everyone always claims. Grandmas can make two or three good dishes, and that's it. 

STANDARD: You're telling me the dear old nonnas are fake? 

Grandi: As far as cooking is concerned, yes. They cook up a storm for holidays, but the rest of the year their cooking is poor and monotonous. 

STANDARD: On social media, nonnas are the experts on Italian food. 

Grandi: Massimo Bottura, a very famous chef, says he learned everything from his nonna. That's completely impossible. The ingredients, the flavors, the cooking techniques that a nonna had at her disposal before the World Wars are completely different from today. That's another myth. 

STANDARD: So what did people eat if not pasta and pizza? 

Grandi: Until the First World War, pasta was only known in Naples. The rest of Italy ate a lot of vegetables, soup, and polenta. They cooked with chestnut flour and lard. So not the Mediterranean diet we know. That's also a fabrication. Nobody ate like that. 

STANDARD: Really? 

Grandi: If you look at southern Italy today, it's the region with the highest obesity rates. People used to eat poorly and in small portions; now they eat too much and too rich food. 

STANDARD: Which true story about a dish surprised you the most? 

Grandi: Perhaps the strangest story is that of Parmigiano Reggiano. Parmesan has a very long history, almost 2,000 years. During this time, the cheese has undergone many changes. In its original form—small, soft, fatty, and black on the outside—it was produced in Wisconsin in the USA. Italian immigrants brought it with them. It wasn't until the 1960s that it was further developed in Parma into its current form. 

STANDARD: So how did that terrible Italian food become fantastic? 

Grandi: One factor was the large-scale emigration of Italians between 1860 and 1960. At that time, 25 million people left the country. Thanks to economic growth, some of them returned in the mid-20th century, bringing with them dishes and recipes that are now sold as authentic. 

STANDARD: Which dishes are those? 

Grandi: Pizza, for example. Pizza was invented in Naples, but it tasted awful. The dough was hard, burnt on the outside, and still doughy on the inside. And it didn't have tomatoes. It was only through the Italian diaspora that pizza was further developed and improved in the USA. 

STANDARD: One of the most famous stories is that pizza was created for Queen Margherita's visit and represents the colors of the Italian flag. 

Grandi: There's a document that tells this story. It's a fake. Pizza Margherita wasn't invented until years after the queen's death. And she never ate it. What you find in Naples today is an American invention. 

STANDARD: So the Americans put mozzarella and tomatoes on pizza? 

Grandi: Exactly. Tomato sauce isn't Italian either. It comes from Spain. It only really became established after the Second World War. Tomato sauce is difficult to preserve. That's why industrialization was necessary. 

STANDARD: Is there even such a thing as truly traditional Italian food? 

Grandi: The worst word you can use for Italian cuisine is "traditional." There is no culinary tradition. 

STANDARD: You've listed tomato sauce, Parmesan, tiramisu, and pizza as fake. What about Bolognese? 

Grandi: Everyone makes Bolognese differently. There's no original recipe. These days, people say Bolognese is cooked without tomatoes. But you can't really claim that. 

STANDARD: And Carbonara? 

Grandi: Carbonara is a little different. Although it originated in Italy, it comes from the Americans. At the end of World War II, after the conquest of Rome, soldiers combined their rations of powdered eggs and bacon with pasta. They called it "Spaghetti Breakfast." So it doesn't originate with the charcoal burners in the Apennines who prepared pasta with bacon and cheese during their breaks. Incidentally, the first recipe for Carbonara was published in Chicago in 1952. It wasn't until two years later that it appeared in Italy. And even that was different from the modern version. It used Gruyère cheese, pancetta, and garlic. 

STANDARD: In Austria, Carbonara is also cooked with heavy cream and ham. 

Grandi: Heavy cream was frequently found in Carbonara recipes well into the 1970s. 

STANDARD: So our version isn't a fake Carbonara? 

Grandi: There is no fake Carbonara. Every recipe has its place. But don't say that out loud when you're in Italy. 

STANDARD: Let's go through the rest. What about olive oil? 

Grandi: That's a very strange story. Fifty years ago, olive oil was used for everything except cooking. For oil lamps, for example. It tasted very sour and very intense. It was unsuitable for food. Italians preferred to cook with lard, butter, or margarine. It wasn't until the 1980s that the quality of the oil improved enough to be used for cooking. 

STANDARD: Pasta comes from China, right? Grandi: Yes and no. Pasta came to Italy via Sicily through the Arabs. People used to eat pasta by hand, mixed only with garlic, fat, and cheese. 

STANDARD: Can you still go out to eat in your hometown without being insulted? 

Grandi: (Laughs.) I don't know what it would be like in Naples; I haven't dared to go there yet. But yes, I can still go out to eat. 

STANDARD: What do you eat then? 

Grandi: Spaghetti with tomato sauce.

Links - 11th May 2026 (1 [including Vegans])

Meat Consumption and Cognitive Health by APOE Genotype - "These findings suggest that higher meat consumption than conventionally recommended may be associated with benefits in a genetically defined subgroup comprising approximately one-quarter of the global population."

Meme - veganimallover: "Always refer to animals as "he" "she" or "they/them" not "it." An animal is someone, not something. Language is important. Recognize their sentience and please remember to not refer to animals as "it." #animals #animalsofinstagram #animalsarefriends #animalsareawesome #animalsarethebest #someone #someonenotsomething #he #she #they #them #sentientbeings #animalshavefeelingstoo #animalshavefeelings #animalshavesouls #animalshaverights #animalrights #animalequality #justiceforanimals #veganfortheanimals #veganimallover"

Restaurants drop plant-based meats from their menus, citing high costs, low demand - "Globally, the most pronounced surge in plant-based meat consumption took place between 2018 and 2020... Online listicles on where to find such dishes in Singapore mapped out the category's rapid expansion at the height of its popularity... "Particularly in China, during COVID, (demand for plant-based meat) peaked dramatically because of swine fever in China," he said.  "(So) for a period there, the ground pork alternative protein called OmniPork was competitively priced. But as soon as the price of pork came down after COVID, and the swine fever got resolved to a degree, then the interest in plant-based (meat) declined significantly." Yet even at its peak, plant-based meat accounted for only a small fraction of overall meat sales in Singapore.  According to analysis by the Good Food Institute Asia Pacific (GFI APAC) – a Singapore-headquartered non-profit think tank focused on alternative proteins – plant-based meat made up just 0.056 per cent of total meat sales volume here in 2020, even as global investment surged.  By comparison, plant-based meat represented about 1.4 per cent of total meat sales in the United States that year – roughly 25 times higher than Singapore on a percentage basis... Experts said Singapore's experience reflects a mix of structural and cultural factors.  For one thing, many plant-based meat products tend to perform better in burgers than in Asian-style dishes, which often involve preparation methods such as stir-frying, said NTU's Prof Chen... Experts also said the early boom was driven in part by heavy marketing and rapid industry uptake – momentum that faded once novelty wore off.  This is especially so when improvements in taste, texture and cost competitiveness do not keep pace with expectations, or justify higher prices, they added.  "The category moved from novelty-driven trial to repeat-purchase reality, and that's where it got tested," said Dr Elhajjar.  At the same time, some consumers drawn by perceived health benefits have become more aware that such products can be highly processed, with additional components used to bind the plant proteins so that the end product more closely mimics animal meat, said Prof Chen.  This can temper the appeal especially when fresh fruits and vegetables are readily available, the experts added.  Economic pressures have also mattered. During cost-of-living squeezes, non-essential items priced at a premium are often among the first to be cut, experts said... Growth has also continued in some regions like Europe which remains the world's largest market for alternative proteins and is expected to grow for a third straight year, Bloomberg reported in June 2025."

Jeff Probst Weighs In After Vegetarian Survivor Contestant Eats Meat - "After Survivor 47 castaway Kyle Ostwald blindly bet on a plate of chicken wings during a food auction featured in the Wednesday, November 6, episode of the reality competition series, he decided to eat the meat despite years of being a vegetarian. (Kyle’s competitor Sam Phalen offered to buy the wings off him, but Probst, 63, said no sharing or trading would be allowed.)   The moment sparked backlash among some fans..   Probst, who has hosted Survivor since it premiered in 2000, insisted during Wednesday’s episode of his “On Fire With Jeff Probst” podcast that contestants with dietary restrictions “know what they’re getting into” when they apply to be on the show.   “They know that we’re not going to change our show to accommodate anyone, in the same way we didn’t change anything when [Survivor 43 contestant] Noelle [Lambert], who had a prosthetic leg, was on the show,” he said, noting that he had “no advice” for contestants who can’t eat certain foods. “She still had to get up the same challenges over the same giant ball, all that stuff. That’s how we view the game.”...   Kyle noted during the auction that he’d previously switched from veganism to vegetarianism solely because of his Survivor aspirations. Prior to the chicken wings incident, he broke down and ate a piece of crab during a deleted scene"

Billie Eilish Fails To Impress With Enforced Vegan Concert Food Policy In London - "The songstress' decision to make only vegan foods available at the vendors' stands did not sit well with her fans, who had paid a significant amount for her concert ticket.  Billie Eilish has remained a prominent voice in veganism advocacy as she took a stand against the inhumane treatment of animals for meat production years ago. The 23-year-old treated her fans to an entirely plant-based menu at the concert featuring meals like peri-peri haloumi wraps, corn naan, chipotle tacos, pizzas, and pancakes. All meat-based meals have been duly removed from the menu... Eilish also took the fans on a brief journey through veganism, environmental care, and how everyone on her tour is playing an active role in protecting the environment and animals. The crew reportedly also eats only plant-based meals on tour.  An eco village has been set up at the arena to educate show attendees on climate change and its impact on the environment. The Daily Mail confirmed that fans purchasing her concert merchandise must also note that it is made from sustainable products... Eilish has an exception to her veganism. She understands that people can wear shoes made from leather, eat honey from bees, and even ride horses, but that is about as considerate as she can be."

Meme - "r/vegan
"Based"
"I'm not vegan but I was deeply impressed by this all- vegan restaurant! Can't say I'm ready or willing to give up my bacon but I guess I can't talk trash about vegan food anymore lol"
"Hi Jim, thanks for the kind words, but having an animal abuser praise my restaurant feels a bit like getting a compliment from Hitler or Jeffrey Dahmer or something. F*** off, bloodmouth""
Why people don't like vegans

The great vegan slump: Market for plant-based food shrinks nearly £38million as analysts say meat-free firms are in a 'rut' - "The market for plant-based food as shrunk almost £38million as analysts say meat-free firms are in a 'rut'.  Industry experts believe that a struggling economy mixed with a saturated market has seen sales of meat-free products fall dramatically.  It's not just the small businesses that are struggling as three major companies in Quorn, Linda McCartney's and Birds Eye Green Cuisine top the list in the biggest fall in losses... Helen Dewdney, also known as The Complaining Cow, previously told MailOnline that many people are now abandoning veganism after realising that the lifestyle is much harder to maintain than initially thought.  She told MailOnline: 'I think many people thought it would be easier than it is to find alternatives and still have a varied diet.  'Many are looking to just reduce their meat intake and become part-time vegetarians or vegans which in turn means that food outlets serving only a vegan menu are seeing fewer and fewer customers through the doors.'... Last year, Meatless Farm — one of the UK's leading faux-meat retailers — went into administration.  It sold £11million worth of plant-based mince, burgers and chicken in 2021 but struggled as demand for meat-free products slowed.  And in August, it was revealed that vegan brand Beyond Meat saw sales slump by almost a third as it struggled with the downfall in demand. Earlier this year, the British fast-food chain, The Vurger Co, which used ingredients such as tempeh, soya and Beyond Meat to make its creations, confirmed it permanently closed its doors.   It joined the likes of Veggie Pret, with Pret A Manger announcing in February that its last three vegetarian-only stores would be converted into standard outlets that sold meat.  The move brought an end to the concept that was introduced eight years ago and is another sign that veganism's popularity is dying out. At its peak, there were 10 stores serving only vegetarian and vegan options across the UK which included salad bowls and falafel sandwiches.  In 2022, Pret closed three-quarters of their veggie-only stores as it said it was offering meat-free options at other sites and didn't need the standalone outlets.  Neat Burger, backed by Leonardo DiCaprio and Lewis Hamilton, closed half of its London sites last December while a vegan restaurant in Cheshire has been forced to start serving meat because it has too few vegan customers"
From 2024

Sorry I’m Just Another Person Here — governmentbee: analog-machine: tlbodine: ... - "Motherhood denied. Breaking the mother-calf bond is fundamental to all forms of dairy farming."
"“I can’t be vegan, I love cheese”  Dairy industry is as evil as meat. No less harm for animals. Does it look natural that calf can’t drink milk so you can taste your piece of cheese?   GO VEGAN."
"WRONG  That calf is wearing a nose tag. Nose tags are put on calves so that they are able to stay with their mothers longer, but are unable to nurse. They don’t NEED to nurse as they get older, they just get greedier and pushier and will bash up the cow’s udder and bruise it with their noses.  This nose-tag is so that calves can stay with their mothers, their mothers can remain pain-free and healthy, and nobody is stressed.  Educate yourselves you ignorant fucking tarts."
"…really? You don’t think it might have anything to do with the milk being stolen for human consumption? At all? Not even a tiny bit?"
"Militant vegans can fuck right off"
"Based on fur texture and face shape, that calf is at least six months old, probably older.  Calves can survive without actual cow milk even at three months, though older is better (calves weaned that early are usually fed a sort of formula for another couple months).  Also, nose tags like that one don’t go through the cow’s septum.  They basically work like those fake septum rings for humans.  In addition to weaning the calves, another use for nose tags is protecting non-lactating cows.  Sometimes weanlings or even adult cows will suck on themselves or other non-lactating cows; this can cause internal teat scarring bad enough to prevent that teat or teats from ever working.  I’ve seen this happen, and it’s ugly, probably at least somewhat painful, and, if bad enough, would lead to the cow being slaughtered at a very young age because she can’t produce milk, has chronic mastitis, and/or can’t be milked with automatic milking equipment.  So, nose tags actually prevent animal cruelty.  Also, calves will suck on anything remotely oblong (and attempt to eat literally anything), even if they are being adequately fed or overfed.  Often they will suck on other calves’ ears, and, since ears are longer than teats and cows have upper as well as lower teeth in the back of their mouths, many calves get bites on their ears, which often become severely infected.  I’m not sure if nose tags would work there, because physics—a non-toxic but bad-tasting ear paint would be better—but yeah, letting a calf put anything it wants in its mouth is not always a good idea."
"This was the funniest argument about false cruelty I have read.. Thank you."
"I love this for 2 reasons: Most people don’t realize that in farming areas agriculture/horticulture/animal husbandry is part of public school education from as early on as 7th grade. (Though I remember dissecting cow eyes in 4th grade science sooo) I assure you fifteen year old farm kids know more about what constitutes animal cruelty in farms than thirty year old vegans with, or without an agenda.   Also that if you really want good quality beef/pork/eggs/milk/etc you don’t abuse your animals. Ever. That’s not the point and if you want to make any kind of money off your career choice, you are going to treat those creatures better than you treat yourself. You’ll call a vet five times for an infection in your herd before you visit the hospital for a missing foot on your own leg.   So. Yeah. Watch out, because we’re getting internet access these days. We’re on tumblr too."
"P.S. The immigrant workers farming your supermarket produce have no health care or legal protection, and the Bolivians farming your 365 Organic Quinoa can’t afford to eat it. But PLEASE won’t someone think of the poor baby cows who won’t get off the tit?!"
"Also this is a LOT nicer than what mother cows do to calves that won’t be weaned. You know what mother cows do to calves that won’t wean? kick them in the head. Now I don’t know about vegans, but I’d rather have a nose tag that discouraged me from injuring my mother (because calves that don’t wean tend to chew on udders and make mother cows bleed) rather than being kicked in the head.
Source: I grew up on a fucking cattle ranch. I have seen chickens skeletonize a mouse I KNOW SHIT."

A Disney World Curse? Suicide Deaths Rise - Disturbing Cases Rock The 'Most Magical Place On Earth' - "A number of deaths reported at Walt Disney World in Florida over recent months have drawn public attention and online discussion, raising questions about safety at one of the world's most visited tourist destinations. Authorities have confirmed that several of the incidents involved suspected suicides or medical emergencies... Since October 2025, at least six deaths have been reported across the wider Walt Disney World property"
From January

Meme - *Halloween*
"TODAY'S YOUR FAVOURITE HOLIDAY! WHY THE LONG FACE?"
"SHE'S DEFROSTING TOMORROW!"
*Mariah Carey in Christmas outfit*

Zeek Arkham 🇺🇸 on X - "The difference between the right and left?  We can accept someone regardless of their political views. Dolly Parton leans to the Left, but we can put that aside and think she’s awesome. Plenty of other celebrities might not share our views, but we can see past it all.  The Left rains down hatred on anyone who might not think like them. Chuck Norris is a horrible person because he might have leaned right. Oba Femi (the WWE wrestler) named Elon Musk as someone he looked up to as a measure of success and the Left is turning on him, despite him not putting his political views out there.  It’s cult-like and hive mentality. It’s unhealthy and insane. Yet, they tell everyone we’re the party of hate and intolerance."

Celia on X - "Found Turkish delights at the Wroclaw Christmas markets, & I was reminded of the time my daughter was desperate to try them after reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. She took one bite and said, with horror, “Edmund traded his soul to the White Witch for THAT!? ASLAN DIED FOR THAT!?”"

The Only Olympics Worth Watching. (sex themed events)

Army major investigated for songs joking about soldiers all dying - "A British Army major faces punishment after recording a song that ridicules the state of the armed forces.  The lyrics of Dying in the First Wave mock Britain’s military for being “a little bit s---” and predicts soldiers will all die “in the first wave” of a war.  It was recorded by an officer attending a training course in Shrivenham, Wiltshire, designed to prepare soldiers and Royal Marines for promotion to the rank of major.  The Telegraph understands the song enraged Army chiefs, and attendees of the 26-week course were threatened with failure by senior commanders until the songwriter was found.  A second song was then released, apologising for saying the Army didn’t have “enough kit on air, land and sea” and accusing military bosses of having “no sense of humour”. It is understood the Army is investigating, with the songwriter reportedly threatened with a formal warning for “bringing the military into disrepute”.  MPs and veteran officers described the investigation as “mean-spirited” and said the song was part of a long tradition of “morale-raising self-deprecation”. The row comes as Sir Keir Starmer faces repeated criticism over the state of the Armed Forces, which are facing a £28bn black hole in its budget over four years. The Army has shrunk to its smallest size in more than 200 years."

Bonnie Loo says ex still owes her six-figure sum, was living with 'soulmate' female friend when they were dating - "Loo, 29, opened up about her boyfriend of two years, whom she broke up with earlier this year... Loo shared that her ex was very close to a female friend, who is working in the industry, and discovered that while they were dating, he had been cohabiting with her for a while.  “It was a little triggering for me because I only found out about this through my friends. They would ask me if I was kept in the dark, or if I was lied to,” she said.  During an interview on Just Swipe Lah, Loo further revealed that she followed the woman on Instagram and instinctually knew that she was living in her ex’s condo after seeing some of her photos.  However, her ex denied it after she jokingly asked him about it.  Her friend then did some internet sleuthing to find photos of the condos in his residence, and it matched what was in the woman’s photos.  Then, her ex sold his house and eventually told Loo that he was going to live with the woman because she was renting him a room for cheap.  Loo also found out, through her ex’s mum, that he had been sharing a room with the woman, instead of just being housemates.  In addition, when the ex was meeting his friends, he would sometimes tell Loo that it wasn’t convenient for her to attend, but the female friend would be present instead... Both the ex and his female friend said they were “platonic friends” but also “soulmates”."

Right-wing misinformation on Facebook is more engaging than its left-wing counterpart, research finds
i.e. the left can't meme

Meme - Larry Sharpe: Winnie the Pooh: "the left can't meme"
Winnie the Pooh in tuxedo: Daniel Baryon @apeirophobic: "Right wing memes are short and sweet because they ask you to appeal to kneejerk assumptions which have already been deeply coded into your mind by social propaganda. By contrast, leftist memes are tasked with breaking your social brainwashing, which requires complexity and nuance"
Sid Meeder: "The communist talking about brainwashing and propaganda. The left can't meme because they have no self awareness and chose to not live in reality with the rest of us."
Alex Caron: "This is a perfect explanation of the new American left. They have such incredible amounts of contempt for anybody that thinks different from them. If you have to tell people that you are superior, then you're not. The people that are constantly bragging about how smart they are are usually the ones trying to compensate for something. If you need to convince people that your jokes are funny, there's a chance that your jokes are not that funny."
Jason Feigles: "Truthful/informative or not, memes are supposed to be funny, not a lecture. That is why the left can't meme."
The left insist on shoving their agenda everywhere. Producing a good product/respecting the structure/intentions of the form are secondary to pushing propaganda

New EU Alert: Having A Sense Of Humor Is Proof You Might Be A Far-Right Terrorist - "The European Union (EU) released a non-satirical report this week offering that humor, including the sharing of memes, could be a sign your peer is a “far-right extremist.”  In partnership with the Radicalisation Awareness Network, an EU-funded group involved with “countering violent extremism” through “surveillance and security,” the European Commission published an 18-page report titled “It’s not funny anymore. Far-right extremists’ use of humour.”  “Humour has become a central weapon of extremist movements to subvert open societies and to lower the threshold towards violence,” the report states. “Especially within the context of a recent wave of far-right terrorist attacks, we witness ‘playful’ ways in communicating racist ideologies. …This paper scrutinises how humour functions as a potential factor in terms of influencing far-right extremist violence.”... A significant portion of the EU’s humor document discusses memes and how they are supposedly indicative of right-wing extremism. According to the EU, the far-right “put[s] a lot of time and energy into meme production” to “spread their ideology.”... In recommendations for approaching such identified extremism, the commission argues for the deplatforming of accounts from social media. There is no direct reference to left-wing extremism and whether individuals who promote radical ideas on all sides of the political aisle ought to face consequences."
I'm old enough to remember when the left praised humour as a tool of resistance by the underdog and mocked the right for being humourless

2 students in China help elderly woman who fell onto ground, now face compensation claim of over S$40K - "Two students who helped an elderly woman after she fell are now facing a lawsuit of over RMB 220,000 (S$40,000) in damages.  The incident took place on the afternoon of 15 March 2025 in Putian, Fujian.  It has since sparked debate about responsibility and the potential consequences of stepping in to help...   The elderly woman sought RMB 224,307 (S$41,000) from the students.  The claim includes medical expenses for 12 days of hospitalisation, nursing care fees and mental distress damages, among others."

Meme - Crémieux @cremieuxrecueil: "One study estimated that being exposed to Ramadan in utero reduced the test scores of six-year-old Muslims by up to about 1 IQ point."
This won't stop Muslims from sharing misinterpreted stories about the benefits of fasting, even though fasting is defined in the literature differently from skipping lunch and not drinking water
Clearly, the drop in IQ is due to Islamophobia

Meme - "Timothee and Tom Holland both auditioned for 'Spider-Man' in 2017, but Tom's ballet background ultimately led to him being selected."
@disruptions on IG @disruptions_: "guess that art from is still very much alive after all"

Ashton Forbes on X - "It's looking increasingly likely that Max Blumenthal, son of top Hillary Clinton official Sydney Blumenthal, fabricated the fake story about Israel killing Charlie Kirk, and used Joe Kent's wife and Candace Owens to spread it. Everything leads back to him."

Meme - HustleBitch @HustleBitch_: "How would you describe these moments between Erika Kirk and JD Vance last night?"
M2 @Amer1can_Barbie: "Widow here happy to explain... When my husband passed away I was a shell of a person - I describe that first year after he was gone as mostly an out of body experience - I was doing things like taking our son to school and working, but I was not was present in body only..just going through the motions and trying to process my grief on the outer edges of life's regular demands. When the men he worked with who loved him and would have happily laid down in traffic for him - hugged me it was exactly like this. A full and complete embrace. It was like a breath of life that gave me enough strength to make it through another day... remember on the day of his funeral - as each one of those men - his bothers in arms - showed up and hugged me like this - it was the thing that gave me the strength to endure that day. So, when I see Erika hugging the men who miss her husband as much as she does, I can feel it- and am so grateful she has these moments of reprieve from the crushing heartache of losing him. Hope this helps"

Meme - "Africa: *shantytown*
World: *donates 1.4 trillion*
Africa: *shantytown with SUVs*"
Damn colonialism! The world needs to send even more money!

If Europeans made street food the same way Indians do (ORIGINAL VIDEO)

For some reason people like to chop this video up when they share it, but here is the full version:

Keywords: European street food, Indian street food, street food in India, street food in Europe

Is carbonara American?

"Carbonara is the most American pasta dish. We can pretty much say that is an American invention.

I mean, you can pick my Italian accent. I'm very much Italian. I'm not going crazy. I'm just saying the truth. Let me break it down for you.

So, we got to go back in Italy, in the 1940s during World War II. Cuz before 1940, nobody ever heard or wrote about this dish. The most widely accepted theory is that carbonara was born by the combination of US military rations and pasta. Those ration usually included powdered eggs and dried bacon.

The US soldier used to ask Italian cooks around the country to prepare some pasta with their rations. And that's how carbonara was unofficially born.

Talking official, the very first written recipe was in Chicago in 1952. The very first Italian recipe was just two years later in 1954 on La Cucina Italiana. Gruyere and curdled eggs. Yes, you heard me right. Groviera e uova rapprese.

But it gets even worse. In 1986, Gualtiero Marchesi, the greatest Italian chef ever, wrote his official recipe about carbonara, saying it, that it cannot be made with scrambled eggs. Carbonara needs to be a creamy sauce. That's why according to Gualtiero, cream is not just required, it's essential for the best result.

So how? We arrived to nowadays where Italians think that there is just one holy carbonara recipe which cannot be changed. Absolutely no cream, absolutely yes, guanciale, no bacon.

Well, I don't know. I don't know how we arrived to that. I know that I was born and raised in Italy for 24 years of my life. I used to believe that the carbonara was that and cannot be changed. It was holy. But you know, now opening my mind, studying a little bit more, I found out that it's not true.

A lot of things actually about what Italians believe about their cuisine, it's, are not correct. Now, I'm not saying that Italian cuisine is bullshit and it's not good. The nowadays recipe of carbonara is amazing. It's probably the best one. I don't know if just because I'm used to it, but it's incredible."

Related:

If carbonara is supposed to never have cream, explain the addition of cream in Gualtiero Marchesi's carbonara recipe? : r/ItalianFood

"There is no widely accepted story about the origin of carbonara but there's a widely accepted recipe and that one does not contain cream or garlic."

"Ironically, the oldest published Italian recipe for Carbonara... had garlic in it. No cream, but it did have a creamy sauce made with eggs.

There is no one 'correct' way to make Carbonara, unlike what modern Italian purists like to say. These are some of the oldest published recipes for it in Italy:

The first ever Italian recipe came out in 1954, which... used pancetta, along with spaghetti, eggs, Gruyère and garlic, printed in the magazine La Cucina Italiana. A year later it was published in the cookery book 'La Signora in Cucina', again with pancetta, and this time with Parmesan instead of Gruyère.

In 1960 we finally get to see guanciale, which most modern Italian food purists say is unchangeable, in 'La Grande Cucina', in a recipe that also includes CREAM.

My point with this is, unlike what Italian food purists claim, there is no singular 'correct' or 'traditional' recipe."

If carbonara is supposed to never have cream, explain the addition of cream in Gualtiero Marchesi's carbonara recipe? : r/ItalianFood

"In the 1970s and 80s, cream was a common ingredient in carbonara. As an example, the most famous Italian chef of that time, Gualtiero Marchesi, used cream in his recipe, but plenty of other people were...

cream was a common ingredient.

see eg https://www.repubblica.it/il-gusto/2022/04/06/news/carbonara_la_ricetta_tom_cruise_gwyneth_paltrow_jamie_oliver-344223973/

where they describe a celebrity "Masterchef" of the 1960s, where a Roman actor, Renato Rascel, uses pancetta and cream rather than guanciale (and wins the silver medal) - gold going to a risotto dish.

Ugo Tognazzi (another actor, and famous gourmet)) instead shows off his amazing carbonara recipe served in New York in 1964:,,

mezzo chilo di pasta, per la precisione spaghettini. E poi, 6 uova (3 intere, 3 solo tuorli), pecorino (ma appena 30 grammi) e parmigiano (100 g). Poi un etto e mezzo di bacon (proprio così, bacon), un etto di prosciutto crudo, grasso e magro, 50 g di burro, un bicchiere di panna, e poi peperoncino, cognac o brandy. In quanto alla preparazione: sbattere uova, formaggi, panna, sale e pepe in una terrina, mentre in padella si soffrigge il bacon al quale poi viene aggiunto il prosciutto. Gli spaghettini, al dente, vanno conditi con il burro e poi con la salsa, il soffritto e, tocco finale, con il Cognac."

"then why do you think the resistance to not having cream in carbonara today come from"

"ts a general pushback to 80s italian cuisine, which had cream in everything.

the idea is that its cheating to get the creaminess from cream rather than egg, and it dilutes the flavour

similarly, modern italian risotto aims to achieve 'creaminess' with a minimum of butter, by emulsifying(?) the risotto with a shaking motion"

If carbonara is supposed to never have cream, explain the addition of cream in Gualtiero Marchesi's carbonara recipe? : r/ItalianFood

"It's a crystallization that happened in response to the internet, where italians discovered that another group of people claiming to be italian started to make " traditional " recipes"

Links - 30th December 2025 (2 [including Ultra Processed Foods])

I study the effects of ultra-processed foods... here's why I still eat 'the bad ones' - "he opened up about his daily diet and admitted that he indulges in UPFs as they taste good and can save time. He said: 'Just because something is ultra-processed doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad for you.' 'I use, for example, a marinara sauce that’s low in sugar and sodium, but when I’m making a nice pasta dish, it cuts down the preparation time. I’m not going to make a marinara sauce from scratch.' A 2019 analysis by Hall and his colleagues found that ultra-processed foods led participants to eat about 500 calories a day more than when they ate a matched diet of unprocessed foods, suggesting they are addictive. Despite the findings, Hall says he hasn't been put off UPFs and he 'treats them as recreational substances.' Opening up about his typical daily diet, he made another surprising revelation: that he doesn't eat breakfast. Some nutritionists say skipping breakfast has consequences, as it may lead to low energy, poor concentration, overeating later in the day, or blood sugar imbalances... At a scientific conference in November 2024, he reported that the first 18 trial participants ate about 1,000 calories a day more of an ultra-processed diet that was particularly hyperpalatable and energy dense than those who ate minimally processed foods, leading to weight gain. When those qualities were modified, consumption went down, even if the foods were considered ultra-processed, Hall said."

Impose tax on baked beans, MPs told - "Baked beans should be taxed as part of the war on Britain’s ultra-processed diets, MPs have been told.  Prof Chris van Tulleken, the NHS medic and author of Ultra-Processed People, said it was time to “appropriately” tax supermarket foods such as the breakfast staple and bread.  The healthy food campaigner’s proposals threaten to hike the prices of British favourites like beans on toast, as well as fish fingers and even yoghurts."

Dietitian shares new details about what happened after eating ultra-processed foods for month - "a dietician who ate nothing but ultra-processed foods (UPFs) for a month has revealed why she believes they have been unnecessarily demonized by the health and scientific community. Jessica Wilson, 42, from California, made headlines last year for her experiment which saw her consume almost exclusively foods with more than five ingredients, including pre-packaged and frozen meals and takeaway food. Now, in an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com she reveals that 'UPFs can be part of a healthy diet and policymakers need to change the conversation'. One of Ms Wilson's biggest frustrations of the lack of a clear universal definition for UPFs, which she says just confuses consumers. From her research, she says she has been given 'multiple definitions of UPFs from different researchers and doctors' and she was once told that a fresh croissant from a bakery in Paris would be considered a UPF because milling flour from wheat is considered a form of processing. 'People are grasping for straws and trying to insert themselves into a trending topic and it’s not a good look,' the diet expert says. After taking on the UPF diet challenge, Ms Wilson says she has adopted a more relaxed approach to food which has helped reduce her stress levels. Meanwhile, society has become more obsessed than ever with reading food labels and plagued by what she calls 'analysis paralysis'. While burgers, chips and chicken nuggets are some of the best-loved examples of products that fall under the umbrella UPF term, Ms Wilson found from her experiment that there lots of UPFs that aren't bad and actually nutritious. Research shows that more than half of the calories consumed in the US come from ultra-processed food sources, a statistic that has been held up as a bad thing. But Ms Wilson believes this simply shows they are 'essential to many people in our current society' due to their affordability and being processed doesn't necessarily mean bad... Two weeks into her diet, Ms Wilson was surprised to report a range of benefits. She found she was less hungry, she moved around more unintentionally, she experienced less fatigue, needed less caffeine and she wasn't as 'grumpy' after work. Even her wife, Elisha, commented that she was 'complaining less and doing more'. By the third and fourth weeks, Ms Wilson said the positives continued but she struggled slightly with keeping track of the things she ate and she got 'bored' of the UPFs she had in rotation. However, once she had finished the challenge, the dietician she actually felt than she had before. To her surprise, she also toned up and noticed a difference to her physique. The diet expert told this website: 'I don't use a belt daily but I do use a waist leash to walk my dog and that leash got looser and I needed to tighten it. 'So my weight did not change but I had an improvement in body composition.'"

Rise of ultra-processed food PHOBIA: Experts warn fears about UPF means people are eating less healthily - "They also warned that a number of UPFs – such as baked beans, vegetable-based pasta sauces and some soups – are actually very nutritious and can contribute to a healthy diet. The scientists, from the universities of Aberdeen and Liverpool, said the focus of public health guidance should remain on eating a diet full of fruit, vegetables and wholegrains while limiting foods high in fat, sugar and salt. In the new article, published in the journal PLOS Medicine, they argued that less well-off people could be most affected by any blanket health warnings about UPFs without more scientific evidence... The article states there is a potential 'social cost for many people with more limited resources' of removing convenient options. Meanwhile there could be negative mental health impacts on 'those who worry about their health or live with eating disorders, particularly if social circumstances make avoiding UPFs difficult'."

New study challenges what we know about ultra-processed foods - "What we found challenges the simplistic UPF narrative and offers a more nuanced way forward. Two ideas often get blurred in nutrition discourse: liking a food and hedonic overeating (eating for pleasure rather than hunger). Liking is about taste. Hedonic overeating is about continuing to eat because the food feels good. They’re related, but not identical. Many people like porridge but rarely binge on it. Chocolate, biscuits and ice cream, on the other hand, top both lists... Nutrient content mattered – people rated high-fat, high-carb foods as more enjoyable, and low-fibre, high-calorie foods as more “bingeable”. But what people believed about the food also mattered a lot. Perceiving a food as sweet, fatty or highly processed increased the likelihood of overeating, regardless of its actual nutritional content. Foods believed to be bitter or high in fibre had the opposite effect. In one survey, we could predict 78% of the variation in people’s likelihood of overeating by combining nutrient data (41%) with beliefs about the food and its sensory qualities (another 38%). In short, how we think about food affects how we eat it, just as much as what’s actually in it. This brings us to ultra-processed foods. Despite the intense scrutiny, classifying a food as “ultra-processed” added very little to our predictive models. Once we accounted for nutrient content and food perceptions, the Nova classification explained less than 2% of the variation in liking and just 4% in overeating. That’s not to say all UPFs are harmless. Many are high in calories, low in fibre and easy to overconsume. But the UPF label is a blunt instrument. It lumps together sugary soft drinks with fortified cereals, protein bars with vegan meat alternatives. Some of these products may be less healthy, but others can be helpful – especially for older adults with low appetites, people on restricted diets or those seeking convenient nutrition. The message that all UPFs are bad oversimplifies the issue. People don’t eat based on food labels alone. They eat based on how a food tastes, how it makes them feel and how it fits with their health, social or emotional goals. Relying on UPF labels to shape policy could backfire. Warning labels might steer people away from foods that are actually beneficial, like wholegrain cereals, or create confusion about what’s genuinely unhealthy."

Starmer has outed himself as a cultural elitist... and it’s about time - "The truth is, in the days when a politician could proudly enjoy the odd concerto for the enormous boon it is, the likes of Beethoven weren’t considered the preserve of the few. It’s noteworthy that Starmer chose both the Pastoral Symphony and Emperor Piano Concerto as “passions” because, he explained, they gave his father solace at the end of a 60-hour factory week. The rich history of nineteenth and twentieth-century Working Men’s clubs and institutes, which gave the labouring classes access to liberal education, speaks to a similar, lost time."

Cigarette butts fuelling growth in ‘superbugs’, study finds - "A study conducted across 35 Chinese cities suggests cigarette stubs help to spread antibiotic resistant genes – segments of DNA which give bacteria the ability to survive treatment with antibiotics, and give rise to ‘superbugs’.  Scientists took samples from more than 100 public parks, and found “opportunistic” bacteria from a smokers’ mouth combined with hazardous chemicals found in cigarettes, before proliferating and mutating. Then, when the butts are dropped, the bacteria can leach into the surrounding environment."

German nurse killed 10 patients ‘to reduce workload’ at hospital in Wuerselen - "A German palliative care nurse has been jailed for life after being accused of killing patients to reduce his workload.  A court in Aachen, western Germany, found that the 44-year-old male nurse murdered 10 patients using lethal injections and attempted to murder 27 others at a hospital in Würselen... The case echoes that of nurse Niels Hoegel, who was handed a life sentence in 2019 for murdering 85 patients. He is believed to be modern Germany’s most prolific serial killer... In July, a 40-year-old palliative care specialist, named in the media as “Johannes M”, went on trial in Berlin accused of killing 15 patients with lethal injections between 2021 and 2024.  In at least five cases, he was suspected of setting fire to his victims’ homes in an attempt to cover up his crimes."

Winning Second World War was not worth it, says D-Day veteran - "Alec Penstone, who played a vital role sweeping for mines during the D-Day landings, questioned the state of the country for which his fellow servicemen gave their lives during an appearance on Good Morning Britain on Friday.  Asked what Remembrance Sunday meant to him, he said: “My message is, I can see in my mind’s eye those rows and rows of white stones and all the hundreds of my friends who gave their lives, for what? The country of today?  “No, I’m sorry, but the sacrifice wasn’t worth the result of what it is now.”... Asked by host Adil Ray what he meant by his comment, the veteran, who described himself as “just one of the lucky ones” for surviving the war, said: “What we fought for was our freedom, but now it’s a darn sight worse than when I fought for it.”"
Left wingers will hear the words of this original "Antifa" member and push for more freedom: for "anti-Zionists" to assault Jews, migrants to live off the public purse and transwomen to use women's toilets

Common Sense Extremists on X - "“At least you’re not speaking German!” Probably doesn’t land as hard when now there are entire neighborhoods in your country speaking Arabic and Hindi…"

Plumber sues auctioneer after truck shown with terrorists - "All Mark Oberholtzer wanted to do was upgrade his ride. What he got instead was a world of trouble from half a world away.  The Texas City, Texas, plumbing company owner is suing a Ford dealership for more than $1 million in financial losses and damages to his company’s reputation after a pickup truck he once owned ended up with Islamic militants fighting in Syria’s civil war.  A photo of the truck, with his Mark-1 Plumbing decals still attached, went viral, leading to thousands of harassing phone calls.   “By the end of the day, Mark-1’s office, Mark-1’s business phone, and Mark’s personal cell had received over 1,000 phone calls from around the nation,” Oberholzer’s lawyer wrote in the lawsuit, filed December 9 in Harris County, Texas. “These phone calls were in large part harassing and contained countless threats of violence, property harm, injury and even death.”  Oberholtzer said this wouldn’t have happened if the dealership had just removed the decals before the truck was resold...   In October 2013, Oberholtzer took the truck to AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston for a trade-in, according to the lawsuit.  He got a 2012 Ford F-250 and said goodbye to his old truck.  He started to peel off the company’s decals from the truck’s doors but a salesman stopped him, according to the lawsuit. The man told Oberholtzer that peeling off the decal would damage the paint on the truck, according to the lawsuit.  Oberholtzer said the salesman told him that AutoNation would remove the decals before the truck was resold...   Oberholtzer had to temporarily shut down his business and leave town, according to the lawsuit, resulting in financial losses. He’s also had visits from Homeland Security and the FBI.  And he still has to deal with phone calls, which continue to come in a year after the photo first appeared.  He now carries a gun for protection, according to the lawsuit."

Meme - "Why do balls hurt when hit, but not when fucking? How
can guys fuck so hard it sounds like a white man running in flip flops but when they get tapped on the balls, it's painful and nauseating?
Edit: I'm female and just genuinely confused about ball pain"

Meme - "KOMI'S INVITING TADANO OVER
Man: DO You REALLY HAVE A CAT? CAN I GO TO YOUR HOUSE TO SEE THE CAT?
Man in room: ? Where's the cat?
*Woman closes door*
Woman whispers into ear: MEOW."

The world's largest bacteria are visible to the naked eye - "The world's largest bacterium has been discovered amongst the mangroves of the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe.  Measuring over a centimetre long, Thiomargarita magnifica is over 5000 times bigger than the average microbe.   An eyelash-sized bacterium is breaking records and boundaries as it redefines what single-celled life can be.  Thiomargarita magnifica is a titan of bacterial life. It is over 10 times bigger than the previous largest bacterium opens in a new window and is large enough that it can be picked up with a pair of tweezers."

Tony The Tiger Helps Sex Worker In Grrreatly Offensive Prank Video - "Tony the Tiger typically helps young kids seize the day in his Frosted Flakes cereal ads. But a new prank video shows the cartoon mascot helping a distressed sex worker hook new customers.  In the video, which surfaced online Wednesday, two men argue about which one of them will patronize a 43-year-old sex worker named Candy.  "You can ride the baloney pony," a man says as he counts a fistful of money in front of Candy.  "You can have her," says the man's unimpressed friend.  "No, I don't want her," replies the man with the money. "You're stuck with her."  The video cuts to a depressed Candy, who is walking down the street alongside her cereal pimp, who apparently has a position on sex work: "It's gr-e-e-a-t!"  "I don't care Tony, it's such a stupid job anyway," Candy tells the sugar-coated-cereal-pushing cartoon tiger."

Instagram - "Super Sentai Yellow Heroes at a baseball game in 2015."
Team Yellow

In a leaked phone call, CBC management was asked why can't the CBC get interviews w/ Conservatives. : r/CanadianConservative - "Remember when Trudeau was having lunch with Rosemarie Barton before the debates - and referred to her affectionately as “Rosie” during the televised debate?  Nothing was done. Their bias has been incredibly blatant year after year. I don’t bother listening to anything from the CBC as I know it will be some left wing hit piece. Yet…they take my tax dollars."

Federal budget 2025: Canada looks to join Eurovision - "The federal budget announced Tuesday proposed a plan that would boost funding for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and its French-language counterpart, Radio-Canada — and included in that plan was the possibility that Canada could participate in Eurovision.  According to the budget, $150 million would go toward the broadcaster “to strengthen its mandate to serve the public and to better reflect the needs of Canadians” in 2025-26"

CBC hired 84 percent racialized, Indigenous, or disabled while having job vacancies for top talent: Internal report - "The CBC far exceeded its “equity representation” target in the last fiscal year, with 84.1 percent of new hires being “Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities, and racialized people,” according to the public broadcaster’s new corporate report. In the “reflecting contemporary Canada” subsection, the report shows the CBC had aimed for 65 percent of new hires to fall within the three groups, but surpassed it by 19 percentage points.  Some employment lawyers believe the CBC’s fixation on race and disabilities in its hiring process is limiting the broadcaster from accurately reflecting the Canadian population, and could fall into hiring discrimination.  “Moving away from merit-based hiring is a disaster no matter what the makeup of your organization is,” said Toronto-based employment lawyer Puneet Tiwari, partner at Levitt LLP. “If an employer wants a more diverse workplace, it should be an equal opportunity employer, but still hire based on merit. As an Indo-Canadian whose grandparents came here in the 60s, I’ve seen more representation across all media outlets.”  CBC hiring doesn’t appear to reflect the overall ethnic demographics of the country. Canada’s most recent census data from 2021 showed that approximately 4.9 percent of Canadians were Indigenous, 26.5 were visible minorities (with 67.4 percent being white), and 27 percent had disabilities. The country’s demographics and population has dramatically changed in the last four years through immigration, however, increasing from 38.1 million in 2021 to 41.7 million in 2025...   At the same time, the CBC described how they’ve had difficulties hiring top talent due to the precarious state of the journalism industry.  “The shortage of specialized talent, both domestically and internationally, increases recruitment difficulty and costs. This challenge is compounded by a declining interest in media careers, particularly in journalism, which may adversely impact customer experience and revenue.”... the CBC faced backlash when Juno News reported the public broadcaster had hired at least 20 temporary foreign workers through the federal government’s Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIA) program since 2015, claiming there were no Canadians available to fill the jobs...   Journalist Travis Dhanraj, a visible minority journalist, resigned from his role as a CBC news host in July, calling the public broadcaster’s diversity push a branding exercise.  “With the CBC, everything is completely performative. They don’t actually care about hiring the best journalist, or letting the journalist even do their jobs…I think they’re [focused] on ticking boxes,” said Kathryn Marshall, one of the employment lawyers representing Dhanraj. “I think they tokenized him…they wanted him to fit a mould they thought a racialized on air personality journalist should be like”"
Proof that diversity is the way to recruit top talent

Woman, 23, ducked out of agreed paid sex with man then posed as brother to threaten him into paying S$8,100 - "A woman agreed to meet a man she met online for sex in exchange for S$400 (US$312), but later said she could not go through with it as her period had started.  Despite being paid S$150 for her "time", the 23-year-old woman asked the man for more money.  When the man ignored her, the woman posed as a fictitious, angry older brother and lied that she was only 17, threatening to report him for underage sex unless he paid up.  Fearing exposure, the man transferred money multiple times, totalling S$8,100, before finally lodging a police report.  Chang Wai Chain, now aged 24, was sentenced to 11 months' jail on Monday (Sep 15). She pleaded guilty to one count of cheating, which the prosecutor stressed could have been extortion had the charge not been amended. The court heard that Chang had been on the online Sugarbook platform, which connects "sugar daddies" and "sugar babies", as a 23-year-old female named "Jasmine". The victim, a 51-year-old man, contacted her via Telegram and they agreed to meet at his home for sex.  On Apr 4, 2024, they met as arranged. She had a soft drink, chatted briefly with the man, then said she would not have sex because of her period. The man gave her S$150, instead of the agreed S$400, and no sexual acts took place.  The next night, Chang contacted the victim, saying she had lost the S$150 and wanted more for a party. The victim agreed and sent her S$200 via PayNow.   When she later demanded more money and he refused, she pretended to be her own brother. In messages sent to the victim on Apr 8 and Apr 9 last year, she lied about her age and told him he had committed a crime by offering to have paid sex with a 17-year-old.  Eventually, she threatened to report him to the police and expose him on social media. He initially paid her S$3,000 and she kept pressing for more over several days.  The victim finally lodged a police report on Apr 11, 2024, as he feared the demands for money would not cease. In total, he was cheated into transferring Chang S$8,100.  During police investigations, Chang lied repeatedly, claiming she did not have an agreement with the victim for paid sex and claiming that she had asked him for S$6,000 only because she felt he had taken advantage of her.  She also falsely claimed that a friend had sent the underage messages as a “joke” from her phone, and repeated this lie in six police statements between April and June last year."

UK-supplied ambulances sold off to fund repairs for officials' cars - "Ambulances supplied to Malawi by Britain under a three million pound scheme to help stop women dying in childbirth were quietly sold off by local officials to fund repairs to their own vehicles.  A fully-equipped Toyota Land Cruiser ambulance and six tricycle scooters capable of ferrying women from villages to clinics were sent to Karonga, a remote district near the Tanzanian border, under the UK Aid Match Maternal Health programme.  The scheme, which covered Malawi and Kenya, was funded by the Department for International Development (DFID) and ran between 2015 and 2018.  But all of the vehicles, along with medical equipment including an ultrasound machine, were quietly auctioned off by the Karonga District Council earlier this year, prompting outrage among locals and civil society groups who say the sale is a betrayal of their communities and risks undermining trust."
Clearly, colonialism is to blame for Africa's problems and the solution is even more money

Man spends up to $1,000 to 'test' escort service he found on Locanto: 'The call girls on the platform are fussy' | STOMP - "A man wonders why escort services are allowed to advertise online after he spent up to $1,000 to "test" one he found on classified advertisement website Locanto.  Stomper Eric said he came across the platform while looking for a "licensed social escort service".  To be clear, while the business may be registered, it cannot be "licenced" as an escort service.  The Stomper said: "Since it was there, whether legal or illegal, I tested the personal service it offers. It offered call girls from A Hotel Joo Chiat and A Hotel Dickson. They call themselves Monroe Club.  "Do the police know about this? They are everywhere at Orchard Road from Hotel Supreme to Mercure Singapore on Stevens at a much higher price compared to those in a budget hotel. And they move from one hotel to another to avoid suspicion and the authorities. "This was obviously operated by a well-organised syndicate."  He said he spent up to $1,000 on the escort service and griped: "It doesn't offer good service as described on the platform. Their service is worse than the licensed Geylang brothel girl.  "The call girls on the platform are fussy with many do's and don'ts. They are mostly from lndonesia, Vietnam, China and some from other countries on social visit pass. They are part of a huge syndicate with an international network."  The Stomper asked: "Why they are allowed to actively engage on a public platform in Singapore? I have doubt that the authorities are not working on this area.  "It's cause for concern that Singapore has become a place where this sex service is easily available and for those paying taxes in Geylang to run a legal brothel, but these syndicates avoid paying taxes while running a movable brothel from a hotel to the public housing estate."  The Stomper also claimed he was scammed on Locanto.  He said: "The most absurd and unbelievable is the platform is offering all kinds of services. This range of services is a cause for concern. Some offered a dating service for sugar mummies, but it was a scam.  "I have been scammed by paying $500 to join as a member to get a sugar mummy.""
STOMP really publishes a lot of things

I moved to Italy for a better life. Six months on, here’s why I’m giving up - "Every local I’ve encountered has been charming, spirited and welcoming. The local nursery is an eight-minute amble down the hill and costs nothing. The food is fresh and reliably divine.  The weather has been perfect – hot but never humid in the summer, mild in the spring and autumn.  The country’s leader, Giorgia Meloni, has injected Italy with a shot of optimism and national pride. Most of the locals appear to approve of her – I’ve only heard hysterical American expats wail about her being a “fascist”. In short, Italy feels like the polar opposite of the UK, which was recently ranked – in the Global Mind Project’s annual Mental State of the World report – as the most “stressed” country in the world and the second most “miserable” (ahead of only Uzbekistan). I say this with sadness, because I’m proud to be British and I miss what it used to be. The property market in the UK is just as depressing. I own a studio in London, on which my mortgage repayments doubled earlier this year.  It’s taken me eight months of enormous strain to evict my tenant whose contract had expired and had stopped paying their rent in full, but until recently refused to move out regardless (on the advice of the council, no less, owing to rules that are only getting worse for landlords under Starmer).  I’m now having to sell it for significantly less than I bought it for five years ago.  In Italy, while the “buy a cottage for €1” scheme is largely a farce, it is possible to purchase a fixer-upper with an acre of land for less than €80,000.  As I’ve already mentioned, childcare is free, and people are generally cheerful. So why are we packing up and leaving?  The bureaucracy, for a start, would test the patience of a saint. One day, when it’s a distant memory, I will laugh about how complicated it is in Italy to post a letter or book a doctor’s appointment, but the rage we wrangle with on a daily basis is currently still too hot. I could also do without the devout Catholicism (our son was subject to two hours of religious indoctrination every Wednesday at nursery, which felt a bit overzealous for a toddler).  And, as child-friendly as this nation is, there are not many opportunities for young people coming out of secondary school.  The last reason is my fault, not Italy’s: the language barrier has done for me. I’ve done an intensive Italian course, which certainly helped me get by, but the truth is, I am simply bad at foreign languages. I am shy and awkward enough around strangers in English... This has led me to conclude that no matter how beautiful the scenery or welcoming the society, I will never flourish anywhere in Europe, and is why we’re headed next (and hopefully, for good) to the US."

People are just realizing why there is a bulge on your beer glass - "The nonic pint glass was invented by Hugo Pick back in 1913 to 'provide an improved drinking glass'... The distinctive bulge serves not one but three smart functions. Firstly, it gives drinkers a much better grip, even when the glass is slippery with condensation - preventing embarrassing (and wasteful) drops. Secondly, it makes the glasses incredibly easy to stack and un-stack - very handy for harried bartenders during a busy shift. Unlike standard pint glasses that often stick together when stacked, nonic pints also rest perfectly on each glass's bulge, allowing them to be separated quickly without frustrating delays. But the biggest benefit - and the reason behind the unusual 'nonic' name - is that the bump cleverly protects the delicate rim if the glass gets knocked over."

Voices: We’ve never been healthier or more mindful. No wonder we’re all so miserable - "The rise of sobriety has coincided almost perfectly with the rise of loneliness. They – we – sit in a sober, sugary haze, absorbing humanity and connection through a screen. The digital detox generation might be physically healthier, but emotionally, they’re running on empty... There’s a happy medium that most people naturally find – one or two drinks a night, enough to soften the edges but not enough to erase the plot. The problem isn’t alcohol itself; it’s our relationship with it. We have come to treat booze as either poison or crutch – a moral binary that leaves no space for the ordinary joy of having a drink. Look to France or Italy. There, wine is a companion to life rather than its purpose. The idea of drinking to oblivion is considered strange. Alcohol is folded gently into the rhythm of the day – a glass with lunch, another with dinner – never with the goal of drunkenness in mind. Compare that with Britain’s boom-and-bust relationship with drink: we abstain religiously, then binge like Vikings at the weekend. It’s not a coincidence that countries where alcohol is demonised, or outright banned, tend to be more repressive and miserable. Prohibition doesn’t purify people; it represses them."

On having any Criticisms at all of Restaurants

Related: Food Review Flame

Some people think that posting anything less than a glowing review of a restaurant is meant to be some way of getting back at them. Even generally positive reviews which mention one thing that could've been improved on can be negatively received. 

The reality is that good and bad restaurants both exist. Not everywhere is going to be a 5 or even 4 star place. If everything is awesome, nothing is awesome. And sometimes that's fine. Sometimes price/value, speed, convenience or even needing to use up gift cards can be more important than food quality. 

Restaurants, even small ones, are not entitled to our money. Many people don't eat out often, so when they do they should have access to informed opinions about where they are planning to spend their hard-earned money. 

In addition, taste is subjective. There're places and dishes which other people like which I don't, and vice versa. And sometimes, the very reason I like a dish is the exact same reason someone else hates it, and vice versa. And that's fine. As they say in Latin, de gustibus non est disputandum (In matters of taste, there can be no disputes). But how will you know if tastes differs if no one is willing to talk about that? 

Furthermore, not everyone appreciates negative feedback. I have been asked by an establishment for feedback in the past and the response has been negative. Clearly they were just asking for the sake of asking. If you look around I'm not the only one who's had this experience. If even places that actively ask for feedback aren't always sincere, imagine how unsolicited negative feedback might be received. I've even been told that when I get items for takeout I should call them and give them feedback. That's a lot of time and effort I need to go through to provide something that they may not even care about.

This is to say nothing of third party reactions. I've had dining companions chide me for offering areas for improvement when asked (even when I only mentioned one thing when I could've said multiple). I've even been told that if I tell them anything negative, they may spit in everyone's food. Once, a place asked me how my item was and I said that it tasted weird. They then offered to remake it for me and I accepted. However, the person that I was dining with got upset about this and started complaining. So clearly, there can be negativity even when giving places attempts to "let them make things right". Apparently the polite thing to do is to pretend that everything is great. 

A while back, on Quora I read an answer (which I can't find anymore) by someone working in a restaurant (either a server, cook or restaurant manager) saying that customers who give negative feedback about the food are entitled, that restaurants have their own ways that they do things that they're not going to change for a customer, and that if you don't like how they do them, that's on you - but that if it's something obviously wrong like forgetting the salt, you should tell them. And indeed, when something is that obviously and (almost-)objectively off (or when items are missing or wrong), I do let them know.

And if an establishment does ask me what I thought, I do still tell them, even if I think they don't really want to know (a little spit in food never killed anyone anyway, and if the staff are really so spiteful, it's unlikely that the food is good enough that I'll want to go back).

Food and "Chemicals"

Alan Levinovitz on X

"There's been a LOT about why RFK Jr is a terrible pick, but I want to focus on something that is very concerning to me, but no one seems to be mentioning.

He appeals to a widespread, common-sense idea that the problem with our food is that it has "lots of artificial ingredients". Get the artificial ingredients out — no chemical additives! no food dyes! no high fructose corn syrup! — and our health problems magically resolve.

This is 100% incorrect, and fundamentally misunderstands the problems with our food system. 

Here's the truth: If people keep eating large amounts of highly caloric foods made with organic sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, colored with beet juice instead of Red No4, our health problems will remain precisely the same. 

 

Now in a strange way, forcing manufacturers to use "natural" ingredients COULD improve our food system, but not in the way people think. It wouldn't make the food healthier, but it would make it MORE EXPENSIVE TO PRODUCE.

And that would reduce consumption. Like a tax!

 

Unfortunately, RFK Jr. does not seem to understand that the problem with our food system is the UBIQUITOUS EXISTENCE OF CHEAP, CALORIE-DENSE, HIGHLY PALATABLE FOOD.

That's it. That's the whole problem. It has precisely nothing to do with food dye or high fructose corn syrup. 

 

Food manufacturers employ the very best in the business. If you focus on "artificial additives" they are going to spend millions on how to produce "natural" versions of the same food, at the same price point.

*taps earpiece* What's that? You say they're already on it? 

People want easy answers to complicated problems. We want to believe that Haagen-Dazs "Five" is the solution to our problems.

Five simple natural ingredients! Free ice cream for everyone now that it's only got five natural ingredients, and sugar instead of corn syrup!

That's not how it works. But someone like RFK Jr. encourages this simplistic, misguided approach.

At any rate, I've been on this beat for a decade. Here's a piece I wrote in 2015 that explains how these misconceptions work.

For the fun TL;DR, scroll down to the bottom of the piece, where you can see the fake diet I invented, and click on how I exploited misconceptions to make it sound plausible.

This tweet is a perfect example of how RFK Jr. will encourage the kind of misunderstanding I'm talking about here.

Is sugary cereal "healthier" than hamburgers?

Well, I'll tell you this much — the reason sugary cereal is bad has nothing to do with the screenshot of chemically-sounding ingredients.

The reason sugary cereal is bad — "worse" than hamburgers — is because it is easy to eat lots of it, it is calorie dense, it doesn't sate you, and it is extremely cheap! Not the f*ing ingredient list! 

 

This thread blew up, so it has been impossible to respond to everybody. But one of the main objections I've seen is this: "Oh yeah? Then explain why I lose so much weight and feel so much better when I go to Europe?"

The implication is that stricter European standards for food products make for foods that are healthier, sate you more quickly, etc.

But is that the reason? Or is it possible there are other reasons?

I happen to be familiar with this kind of argument because I heard it a lot when I was writing about gluten. People who were gluten-free in the US — notably not people with celiac disease — would say that in Europe they were able to eat bread with gluten, because it was [insert claim: organic, different gluten levels, whatever].

The truth is that in both cases, the answer to the mystery has nothing to do with the food. It has to do with the change in context.

I'll explain a little more: When people feel better going gluten-free, or lose weight on a new diet, there are two main factors that don't involve the specifics of the new diet:

1. They are paying more attention to what they eat and changing their habits. If you are eating unhealthfully, just doing those things will, unsurprisingly, improve your diet! You could go keto, or go vegan: As long as you are fundamentally changing your (previously unhealthy) diet, you're going to feel much better.

2. You feel empowered! The change makes you feel like you can do something. That you are doing something. That what was once hopeless is now possible. And that makes you feel really good. It's important!  

 

So let's consider the "Why do I feel better / eat better in Europe?" question. Is it stricter European regulations on food ingredients?

Well, there's another possibility:

You're in a different context. You're not at your office, next to the vending machine. You don't have access to the same stores and restaurants. You have to fundamentally change up your (previously unhealthy) eating habits. And that is going to make you feel better! If you are consuming less calorie-dense food, less frequently, you'll also lose weight.

Not only that, but often people are going to Europe on vacation. They're walking around! They're relaxed! They're not stress-eating from their fridge and their pantry, because they don't have a fridge or pantry and they're not stressed!

 

So what's more likely: The European standards for food create a miraculous new food environment in which, thanks to the stricter standards on ingredients, you simply get healthier and fitter?

Or European portion size is smaller, you're on vacation, in a different context, and those changes lead to healthier eating habits.

In my opinion, the choice between the two explanations is crystal clear. I usually really enjoy responding to everyone but it's impossible right now. One more response to something I keep hearing: "Well, maybe you're right, but at least RFK Jr. wants to do something about our unhealthy food in general!"

This is truly the weirdest take. For decades medical professionals have been calling for drastic changes to our food culture. The much reviled food pyramid, while wrong about the relative dangers of fat, did NOT recommend eating as many Twinkies as possible.

There have been many, many attempts at targeting soda consumption (with taxes, by trying to get celebrities to not endorse it).

There have been many attempts to stop companies from advertising sugary foods to kids, or making it seem like they are healthy. 

 

There are endless advocates for home cooking, for more balanced diets with foods that aren't as calorie-dense, sate you, and don't leave you craving more.

And...you're not going to believe this, but almost all of these advocates didn't take unfounded positions on "artificial vs. natural" or the danger of "chemicals" and vaccines, or the virtues of hydroxychloroquine.

Sure, some of RFK Jr.'s desired changes are reasonable! If he were the first person to come up with them, I'd be very impresssed.

But he's not. He's one of many, and the way he came to his positions, along with all the other positions he holds that are ridiculous, make him completely unfit to be advising the nation on how to eat more healthfully.  

 

Here's another response to a common objection. People keep saying that American obesity rates and associated health problems are due to artificial ingredients that aren't allowed in Europe.

But how does this explain basic variation in obesity rate by country? Why, for example, does Tonga have an obesity rate 22% higher than the US? Why do Romania (a European country!) and Kuwait have comparable levels to the US?

Why does Canada, which regulates food more or less like the US, have an obesity rate that's 12% lower than the US? 🤔

The answers are complicated, but I'll tell you what isn't the answer: The relative levels of "artificial" ingredients in these countries' foods! 

 

Thousands of anti-seed-oil folks furiously googling at this very moment to see if Canada banned seed oils.

If you've read this far, you may enjoy this anecdote about J.I. Rodale, founder of Rodale Press, and an early advocate of eating organic — and taking "natural" supplements — as panaceas for good fitness and preventing cancer.

At one point, he claimed, "I'm going to live to be 100, unless I'm run down by some sugar-crazed taxi driver."

 

Rodale taped an interview for the Dick Cavett show in 1971. His last interaction with Cavett was to offer him his special "asparagus boiled in urine."

The interview never aired, however, because Rodale had a heart attack onstage, right after the interview ended, and died.

You cannot make this stuff up.

Rodale Press continues to pump out books full of nutrition and health misinformation, just like their founder would have wanted!  

Lastly, for everyone saying "hey buddy what are your qualifications, RFK Jr. just wants to follow the science!"

Here's a very anti-establishment physician who was adamantly against lockdowns during the pandemic, discussing how RFK Jr. comes to his conclusions:"

 

Related: How 'Diet Gurus' Hook Us With Religion Veiled In Science

"As a scholar of religion, it's become increasingly clear to me that when it comes to fad diets, science is often just a veneer. Peel it away and you find timeless myths and superstitions, used to reinforce narratives of good and evil that give meaning to people's lives and the illusion of control over their well-being. 

Take the grain-free monks of ancient China. (My specialty is classical Chinese thought.) Like all diet gurus, these monks used a time-tested formula. They mocked the culinary culture around them, which depended on the so-called wugu, or "five grains."

According to the monks' radical teachings, conventional grain-laden Chinese diets "rotted and befouled" your organs, leading to early disease and death. By avoiding the five grains, you could achieve perfect health, immortality, clear skin, the ability to fly and teleport. Well, not quite. To fully realize the benefits of the monks' diet, you also had to take proprietary supplements, highly technical alchemical preparations that only a select few knew how to make. All of this may sound eerily familiar: Look no further than modern anti-grain polemics like Dr. David Perlmutter's Grain Brain — complete with its own recommended supplement regimen.

Despite basic logic and evidence to the contrary, the philosophy of the grain-free monks gained popularity. That's because then, as now, the appeal of dietary fads had much to do with myths, not facts. Chief among these is the myth of "paradise past," an appealing fiction about a time when everyone was happy and healthy, until they ate the wrong food and fell from grace.

The Chinese monks represented this "fall" as the discovery of agriculture. In Abrahamic religion, it was eating from the tree of knowledge. In either case, bad food is routinely scapegoated as the original cause of our damnation, and we've been trying to eat our way back to paradise ever since.

The mythic narrative of "unnatural" modernity and a "natural" paradise past is persuasive as ever. Religious figures like Adam and Eve have been replaced by Paleolithic man and our grandparents: "Don't eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food," is journalist Michael Pollan's oft-quoted line.

The story also has a powerful moral dimension. It's the Prince of Evil, after all, who tempted Eve. Once secularized, Satan reappears as corporations and scientists who feed us chemical additives, modern grains and GMOs, the "toxic" fruits of sin. (No matter if science doesn't agree that any of these things are very toxic.)

Paradise past. Good and evil. Benevolent Nature with a capital N. The promise of nutritional salvation. After you've constructed a compellingly simple narrative foundation, all you have to do is wrap your chosen diet in scientific rhetoric.

For Chinese monks, that rhetoric involved "five phases theory." For ancient Greeks and Romans it was "humors" — four fluids thought to be the basis of human health. Now it is peer-reviewed studies. Thankfully for diet gurus, the literature of nutrition science is vague, vast and highly contested — just like religious texts — making it easy to cherry-pick whatever data confirm your biases."