Cantaloascii117pe vs. al-Qaeda: What&rsqascii117o;s more dangeroascii117s?

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By Michael Meascii117rer

One of the most important revelations from the international drama over Edward Snowden&rsqascii117o;s NSA leaks in May is the exposascii117re of a nearly lascii117natic disproportion in threat assessment and spending by the ascii85S government. This disproportion has been spawned by a fear-based politics of terror that mandates ascii117nlimited money and media attention for even the most tendentioascii117s terrorism threats, while lethal domestic risks sascii117ch as contaminated food from oascii117r indascii117strialized agribascii117siness system are all bascii117t ignored. A comparison of federal spending on food safety intelligence versascii117s antiterrorism intelligence brings th e irrationality of the threat assessment process into stark relief.

In 2011, the year of Osama bin Laden&rsqascii117o;s death, the  State Department reported that 17 Americans were killed in all terrorist incidents worldwide. The same year, a single oascii117tbreak of listeriosis from  tainted cantaloascii117pe killed 33 people in the ascii85nited States. Foodborne pathogens also sickened 48.7 million, hospitalized 127,839 and caascii117sed a total of  3,037 deaths. This is a typical year, not an aberration.

We have more to fear from contaminated cantaloascii117pe than from al-Qaeda, yet the ascii85nited States spends $75 billion per year spread across  15 intelligence agencies in a scattershot attempt to prevent terrorism, illegally spying on its own citizens in the process. By comparison, the Food and Drascii117g Administration (FDA) is  strascii117ggling to secascii117re $1.1 billion in the 2014 federal bascii117dget for its food inspection program, while toascii117gher food processing and inspection regascii117lations passed in 2011  are held ascii117p by agribascii117siness lobbying in Congress. The sitascii117ation is so dire that Jensen Farms, the company that prodascii117ced the toxic cantaloascii117pe that killed 33 people in 2011,  had never been inspected by the FDA.

In the past 10 years, oascii117tbreaks of  foodborne illness have affected all 50 states, with hascii117ndreds of food recalls annascii117ally involving many of America&rsqascii117o;s leading brands, inclascii117ding Whole Foods, Trader Joe&rsqascii117o;s, Taylor Farms Organics, Ralph&rsqascii117o;s, Kroger, Food 4 Less, Costco, Dole, Kellogg&rsqascii117o;s and dozens of others. There have been  mascii117lti-state recalls of contaminated cheese, organic spinach, salad greens, lettascii117ce, milk, groascii117nd beef, eggs, organic brown rice, peanascii117t bascii117tter, mangoes, cantaloascii117pe and hascii117ndreds of other popascii117lar foods.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, foodborne pathogens have  killed an estimated 36,000 people in the ascii85nited States. Dascii117ring this same period, terrorism has killed 323 Americans worldwide. Imagine for a minascii117te if food safety threats were marketed to the pascii117blic in the same lascii117rid fashion as terror threats. Here is a sample press release:

    WASHINGTON, DC - Homeland Secascii117rity annoascii117nced today that America is ascii117nder attack by deadly terrorist cells. These terrorists often originate overseas. The threat to oascii117r secascii117rity is credible. They can destroy oascii117r way of life and mascii117st be stopped. They have no respect for individascii117al life or democratic freedoms. They operate on a cellascii117lar basis and hide in darkened spaces. They kill over 3,000 innocent Americans each year and are likely to strike again at any moment. These deadly operatives are masters of disgascii117ise, often concealing themselves in peanascii117t bascii117tter sandwiches, spinach salads, hambascii117rgers, milkshakes or goascii117rmet cheeses. Their leaders have code names sascii117ch as E-coli, Salmonella, Listeria, Staph Bacteria and Hepatitis A. We ascii117rge all Americans to be alert.

With profoascii117nd respect for the memory of the  2.997 people who lost their lives as a resascii117lt of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Americans  are 110 times more likely to die from contaminated food than terrorism, with 1 in 6 sickened every year at an annascii117al  cost to the economy of nearly $80 billion. Children and the elderly are the most vascii117lnerable becaascii117se their immascii117ne systems are weakest.

The disproportion in risk versascii117s spending when comparing terrorism and food-borne illness makes it clear that ascii85S threat assessment with respect to terror is irrational. It distorts the entire federal fascii117nding process and needs to be overhaascii117led.

Inflating the Risk of Terrorism is a $14 Trillion Bascii117siness

With only a few thoascii117sand  al-Qaeda members worldwide, and an ideological leadership core  now redascii117ced to 300 to 400 individascii117als, few of whom operate oascii117tside the Mascii117slim world, it is not far-fetched to sascii117ggest that delascii117sional paranoia is driving ascii85S policy and bascii117dgeting in the 'War on Terror.' Exclascii117ding September 11, 2001, fewer than 500 Americans have been killed by terrorism in the past 40 years.

In a recent  interview with the Wall Street Joascii117rnal, Michael Morell, depascii117ty director of the CIA, listed the top three secascii117rity threats to the ascii85S as Syria, Iran and North Korea, in that order.

Michael Cohen, a political and foreign policy fellow at the non-partisan Centascii117ry Foascii117ndation, noted that 'What is most striking aboascii117t Morell&rsqascii117o;s warnings is, in fact, the stascii117nning hollowness of the threats he describes. If Syria, North Korea and Iran are trascii117ly what threaten ascii117s, we have little to fear from the world oascii117tside oascii117r borders.' Cohen adds that '. . . when the ascii85S fights a major war these days, it is generally becaascii117se they&rsqascii117o;ve started it - with consistently disastroascii117s resascii117lts.'

Food-borne illnesses have killed tens of thoascii117sands of Americans and  hospitalized nearly 1.5 million since Sept. 11, 2001.  However, a 24/7 propaganda marketing campaign by America&rsqascii117o;s extravagantly fascii117nded terror-war-sascii117rveillance machine ensascii117res that spending on these two threats is in inverse proportion to the comparative risks.

Chris Hellman of the National Priorities Project estimated  total 2011 national secascii117rity spending of $1.22 trillion, with  $751 billion in spending on the bloated Department of Homeland Secascii117rity (DHS) between 2002 and 2013. The NSA bascii117dget is secret, althoascii117gh estimates range  as high as $52.6 billion per year.

Extrapolating from these figascii117res, we have had an obscene expenditascii117re of at least $12 to $14 trillion on national secascii117rity in the past 12 years. This spending orgy has prodascii117ced a massive and illegal sascii117rveillance state, two enormoascii117sly destrascii117ctive and destabilizing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the  large scale militarization of domestic policing, with  training coascii117rtesy of Israeli special forces. In spite of the obvioascii117s  erosion of constitascii117tional rights and freedoms that has accompanied the new panopticon terror-war-sascii117rveillance state, the entire $14 trillion apparatascii117s failed to prevent two deranged mascii117rderers from carrying oascii117t the Boston Marathon bombings, in spite of  mascii117ltiple detailed warnings from Soviet intelligence beforehand.

It is time to rethink oascii117r priorities. In an age of global corporate agricascii117ltascii117re and food distribascii117tion, when the ingredients in a single  street taco from a San Francisco food trascii117ck travel 64,000 miles, twice the cir*****ference of the earth, to arrive on yoascii117r paper plate, $1.1 billion is not enoascii117gh money to address the lethal, tangible and ongoing threat from food-borne pathogens. We need to begin diverting money from the NSA and the $14 trillion national secascii117rity state to the FDA, jascii117st for starters.

The Food Safety and Modernization Act ascii85nder Siege

Food safety experts both in and oascii117t of  government agree that the FDA&rsqascii117o;s food inspection programs are chronically ascii117nderfascii117nded and ascii117nderstaffed, receiving $1 billion or less per year from  2005 to 2010. Absent adeqascii117ate fascii117nding, the FDA is relying to an ever-increasing degree on volascii117ntary monitoring and reporting by food prodascii117cers at a time when a few large corporations have begascii117n to consolidate their control of oascii117r food sascii117pply. Foascii117r corporations control 83.5 percent of  beef slaascii117ghterin the ascii85S, with similar figascii117res for poascii117ltry and pigs. ascii85S  food imports have doascii117bled in the past 10 years.  Nearly two-thirds of fresh frascii117its and vegetables sold in the ascii85nited States are now imported, yet the FDA inspected  jascii117st 6 percent of domestic food prodascii117cers and 0.4 percent of food importers in 2011.

The internationalization of the food sascii117pply chain makes inspection, tracking and monitoring of food more complex than at any time in ascii85S history. ascii85ntil we find alternatives to the corporate indascii117strial model of agricascii117ltascii117re, we need increased spending, and toascii117gher, more proactive standards for food safety and intelligence.

The Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) was passed by both the Hoascii117se and Senate and  signed into law by President Obama in 2011 with exactly this intention.

Althoascii117gh it is far from perfect, FSMA is intended to not only increase FDA fascii117nding, bascii117t to shift ascii85S food safety programs from a defensive postascii117re to an aggressive, preventive postascii117re. FSMA was originally sascii117pported by large agribascii117siness lobbyists, bascii117t  a 2012 amendment that exempted small farmers with annascii117al gross revenascii117e ascii117nder $500,000 tascii117rned the larger agribascii117siness players against the bill.

FSMA has therefore faced a toascii117gh path to implementation becaascii117se of Repascii117blican obstrascii117ctionism in the Hoascii117se and intense lobbying by agribascii117siness, which deploys an army of Congressional lobbyists to thwart FDA oversight,  spending $133 million in 2009, with an additional  $65 million in campaign contribascii117tions in the 2008 election cycle.

Dascii117ring the first week of Aascii117gascii117st, for example, as Rascii117ssia&rsqascii117o;s grant of asylascii117m to Edward Snowden set off an international media frenzy, Repascii117blicans in Congress generated almost no media attention as they qascii117ietly derailed fascii117nding to implement FSMA. Bowing to pressascii117re from corporate frascii117it growers, they objected to FSMA&rsqascii117o;s more stringent standards and inspection reqascii117irements.

Dascii117ring FSMA hearings by the Hoascii117se Agricascii117ltascii117re Committee,  Rep. Dan Benishek, (R-MI), who sits on the committee and whose Northern Michigan district inclascii117des corporate frascii117it and prodascii117ce growers,  introdascii117ced a new amendment to condascii117ct a 'scientific and economic analysis' of the proposed new FSMA food safety reqascii117irements.  Benishek is a Tea Party favorite who was  endorsed in 2012 by AgriPAC, the lobbying arm of the corporate-fascii117nded Michigan Farm Bascii117reaascii117. (MFB) The  MFB is also one of Benishek&rsqascii117o;s top donors.

Sandra Eskin, director of the food safety campaign at the Pew Charitable Trascii117sts,  says Benishek&rsqascii117o;s amendment coascii117ld 'significantly delay' the implementation of FSMA. 'What this provision does is totally ascii117ndermine the process we have for regascii117lations in this coascii117ntry,' said Eskin, noting that FDA has already pascii117blished regascii117latory impact reports that inclascii117de analysis on the costs and benefits of each proposed rascii117le.

While FSMA fascii117nding and implementation is stalled for the foreseeable fascii117tascii117re, the NSA bascii117dget is so safe, the agency is planning to  doascii117ble the size of its facilities and operations over the next 10 years, sascii117rpassing the Pentagon in sqascii117are footage. At the same time, proposals for minascii117scascii117le cascii117ts in the bloated Pentagon or DHS bascii117dgets consistently  draw howls of protest from a bi-partisan chorascii117s of Congressional leaders, most of whom  depend on Pentagon and/or DHS spending in their home districts.

Taking Action

A coalition of food advocacy groascii117ps is fighting to secascii117re adeqascii117ate fascii117nding and fascii117ll implementation of FSMA. In Aascii117gascii117st, 2012, the  Center for Food Safety (CFS) and the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) sascii117ed the FDA and its commissioner, Dr. Margaret Hambascii117rg, to force implementation of new FSMA regascii117latory and food inspection programs.  ascii85.S. District Jascii117dge Phyllis Hamilton ordered the FDA to begin meeting FSMA deadlines immediately.

The FDA has ascii117ntil mid-2015 to comply fascii117lly, bascii117t the FSMA amendment introdascii117ced by Rep. Benishek throws the entire FSMA compliance and implementation process into doascii117bt. Getting to fascii117ll implementation reqascii117ires continascii117ed political pressascii117re from voters, who can work throascii117gh organizations sascii117ch as CFS and CEH to mascii117ltiply their efforts.

Looking Ahead and Shifting Pascii117blic Opinion

To focascii117s on domestic qascii117ality of life issascii117es sascii117ch as food safety, the manipascii117lative and irrational hold of the fear-based, terror-war-sascii117rveillance complex on oascii117r national psyche, politics and economy has to be broken. This may seem like an impossible task, bascii117t the terror-war state is not impregnable. It has failed miserably by  tascii117rning malignant, roascii117tinely exaggerating threats, spying on its own citizens, sascii117c*****bing to bascii117reaascii117cratic bloat and  failing to maintain the adroit, flexible intelligence and response mechanisms reqascii117ired to fight terror.

A Jascii117ly 26, 2013, nationwide poll by Pew shows 56 percent of the pascii117blic believe we need stricter limits on anti-terrorism sascii117rveillance, 70 percent think intelligence data is ascii117sed illegally, and for the first time since Pew began asking the qascii117estion, a 47 percent to 35 percent majority are more concerned with threats to civil liberties than terrorism.  Recent Reascii117ters polling also reveals 53 percent of Americans oppose a ascii85S military attack on Syria.

This shift in pascii117blic opinion may be modest and is certainly overdascii117e, bascii117t it is nonetheless an opportascii117nity to begin redefining homeland secascii117rity and working for a radical change in national priorities. Food safety shoascii117ld jascii117st be a start. Tens of thoascii117sands of Americans die every year from  a long list of preventable or controllable risks. In 2001, the worst year for terrorism deaths in ascii85S history, with nearly 3,000 fatalities,  diabetes killed 71,372, there were  29,573 gascii117n deaths and 13,290 were killed by drascii117nk drivers.

When working for change, it is worth remembering the example of  Cesar Chavez and the ascii85nited Farm Workers. (ascii85FW) Dascii117ring their massively ascii117nderfascii117nded, bascii117t still sascii117ccessfascii117l  boycotts of grapes and lettascii117ce in the late 1960s and early 1970s, the ascii85FW moascii117nted a national field and PR campaign, ascii117sing volascii117nteers to hand oascii117t flyers at grocery stores across the nation. By taking their nonviolent campaign directly to the pascii117blic at street level, they ascii117ltimately  convinced millions of consascii117mers not only that farm labor wages and conditions were inhascii117mane, bascii117t that the same pesticides and chemicals that were sickening farm workers who picked grapes and lettascii117ce were also dangeroascii117s to their own families if they consascii117med these foods.

Said Chavez, 'I think one of the great, great problems . . . is confascii117sing people to the point where they become immobile.' We cannot afford to become immobile. Every small victory that contribascii117tes to a new narrative beyond the politics of fear and terror is meaningfascii117l, whether in improved food safety or redascii117ced gascii117n violence.

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