Mike Adams wrote: "People who subsist on junk foods are docile and quickly lose the ability to think for themselves. They go along with whatever they're told by the TV or those in apparent positions of authority, never questioning their actions or what's really happening in the world around them."

I think this reliance on so-called authorities has become a real problem in our country. Many of us have forgotten how to think for ourselves.

Some 30 years ago, I used to listen to experts on TV, in magazines, my doctors, etc., thinking they knew what they were talking about. And as I lived my life, I found I had to figure out what was best for me, as I believe many who are VegSource readers have. I often got angry when I discovered the experts were wrong and I felt deceived. It's not that I didn't listen to "authorities", but I did evaluate what they said, did research on my own so as not to listen to just one expert on a topic and decided how it fit in my own life based on my experience. Sometimes I'm wrong, but so are the experts. They are making their best guess based on what they know at the time.

We can't give up our right and responsibility to think for ourselves. I think TV has had a big effect of keeping us occupied and entertained so we don't think and do for ourselves. We need to be more self-sufficient. We are losing farm land, too, and get lots of our food from other countries. I think that's a shame.

I'm concerned about things like the government takeover of health care because I see it as giving up individual control over our bodies. I fear there will be a very small panel of people dictating treatment for the masses and desiring to make us "docile" and "dumbed down" so they can control us. We can only hope they will agree with our own view, but since we are all so different then likely this panel in charge of our health will not agree with everything each of us believes to be right for ourselves. I'm sure I will get a few thumbs down on this for those that believe government run health care is an ideal, but I'm not willing to give up my medical freedom just to be assured of getting some questionable, cookie cutter form of health care the rest of my life.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. We rely on people to tell us how to vote, how to dress, how to decorate our homes and how to invest. This new tactic is telling healthy eaters they are mentally ill and that's quite a motivator for giving up healthy eating because who wants to be thought of as mentally ill?

It may truly be wild exaggerations and satires of Mike Adams (sort of an Archie Bunker type), but the fact of the matter is, this is really NO joking matter; this is VERY SERIOUS BUSINESS, especially when one sees his or her own family and friends suffer and die untimely deaths due to their gluttony, and from eating "garbage food" loaded with pesticides, additives, poisonous colorings, gasses, hormones, pus and blood in dairy products, radiation, antibiotics and God only knows what else.... We should NOT think it is funny when one even jokes about such serious matters; much like making heroes on the screen out of the bad guys. What will our children think and who will they side with?
Joy Ray
Rayofjoy@aol.com

The problem is that Mike Adams (the author of "Choosing Healthy Foods Now Called a Mental Disorder") falsely accused the whole psychiatric profession (that's a LOT of people!) of considering anyone (ie., everyone; again, a LOT of people) eating healthy foods as "mentally diseased".

Mike's accusation is what is ludicrous. His sweeping generality was the satire. In reality, mental health professionals generally recommend, respect and support eating a healthy diet as part of a happy, healthy lifestyle. The American Dietetic Association approves of vegan diet. The literature is packed with research that proves the benefits of a properly balanced vegan diet.

Healthy, active people enjoying their lives in constructive ways while eating selectively can *NOT* be labelled as orthorexic. That diagnosis is only considered when a person's dietary choices are causing the individual more harm than good.

For example, sadly, there are a few (very few) documented cases of individuals who actually died or been demonstrating symptoms of starvation because they couldn't bring themselves to eat anything they considered less than perfect. *THAT* is orthorexia.

Many of Mike's articles are valuable & insightful, so goodness only knows why he built his commentary on the exaggerations and fabrications in The Guardian article. I have to wonder what good he thought he was doing to "cry wolf" like that.