THE CHEF FROM HELL

Here's an actual conversation I heard in the supermarket yesterday: "Say, is that frozen lasagna any good?"  "I guess so--it hasn't been on the news so far as I know..."  In what seems like a weekly litany of unregulated shenanigans in the food industry there is yet another food recall!  From the Associated Press site: "ConAgra Foods Inc. and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are defending their decision not to recall pot pies linked to a salmonella outbreak, although two East Coast grocery chains made their own choice to pull the product from store shelves.  The Banquet and generic brand chicken and turkey pot pies made by ConAgra have been linked to at least 139 cases of salmonella in 30 states. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said at least 20 people have been hospitalized, but so far no deaths have been linked to the pot pies."  The mind reels at what could be coming down the pike in 2008:  "112 people hospitalized with the gout after eating Hot Pockets!"  "Does Hellman's Mayonnaise have secret ingredients that cause dandruff?!  Film at 11!"  "Listerine is actually Tidi-Bowl toilet cleaner in a different bottle!"