Getting the topic with an article…it isn’t an explicitly political topic, but I think you can translate the rating into one.
Food in the US should be recognized as one of the biggest “policy” failures of our lifetimes. In the last few decades, we have watched Walmart and Dollar General take over retail in rural America, chasing out small local grocers and replacing the options with cheap and processed foods.
"EVENSVILLE, Tenn.—The local Dollar General store, built on a rural highway and surrounded by farmland, sells no fresh meat, greens or fruit. Yet the 7,400-square-foot steel-sided store has most of what Eddie Watson needs.
The selection echoes a suburban drugstore chain, from shower curtains to breakfast cereal, toilet paper, plastic toys and camouflage-pattern socks. Refrigerators and freezers on one wall hold milk, eggs and frozen pizza."
We treat diet related issues with medicine. Insulin, blood pressure meds, cholesterol meds. Diet (and exercise) also have dramatic impacts on our mental health, so we spend more for cocktails of drugs to keep us happy, and deal with our waste lines getting larger.
“There is an epidemic of obesity in adults in rural America. It is estimated that about 19% of the population resides in rural areas, which encompasses 97% of America’s total landmass. Although rural America makes up a fraction of America’s total population, it has been estimated that the prevalence of obesity is approximately 6.2 times higher than in urban America. This illustrates an apparent disparity that exists between the rural population and urban populations that needs to be examined.”
Democrats and progressives are known for things like banning big gulps and red meat, while the impacts of our diets are seen most in red America. Taking away choice is very anti-American, but how can we help Americans make better choices?