Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 30 Nov. - 6 Dec. 2000 Issue No.510

Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Special Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters

Lies, sweet lies

By Fayza Hassan

Most people who pride themselves on being part of the civilised world have become accustomed to being lied to all day long, 365 days a year. Furthermore, they conspire unwittingly in propagating untruths simply by repeating what they hear in the belief that it is accurate, never bothering to examine the statements with which they are assailed continuously. In an age celebrating highly commendable achievements in technology, including the instant dissemination of information, we tend to take for granted the genuineness of "facts" spoon-fed to us by specialists, analysts and experts in every fathomable field.

Recently I went to consult a renowned doctor on some minor ailment. After a rapid and superficial examination, he announced that I was seriously anaemic. "Take iron," he said, as briskly as could be expected from such a luminary. I explained that iron made me thoroughly ill. "You no longer have to worry about iron tablets," the doctor told me gaily; "all you have to do is eat American bread and cereals. They are enriched with vitamins and minerals and include a fair amount of iron. But make sure they are American: other cereals are not enriched," he warned.

I left the surgery quite satisfied. On other occasions, a similar diagnosis had caused me to force-feed myself plateful upon plateful of spinach and raw parsley. I had faithfully followed doctor's orders for months on end, only to discover eventually that the iron contained in leafy green vegetables was not absorbed by the human body. Cereals, however, were different; they were not only pleasant to the taste-buds, but belonged to the category of comfort food. A nice bowl of cereal would definitely make me feel pampered.

The trouble began at the supermarket. American brands of cereals boasted 12 to 15 per cent iron per portion. That made unwieldy quantities to deal with on a daily basis if I wanted to reach the desired 100 per cent. I pushed my investigations further, hoping that some manufacturer would have thought of enriching his ware with a more compact formula, only to discover that every box of cereals, regardless of origin, advertised precisely the same amount of vitamins and iron. I ended up choosing at random, mainly attracted by the fancy package. A little discouraged at the prospect of the compulsory bowl-an-hour regimen necessary to fill the required quota, I decided that I had to begin at once if I wanted to get anywhere in what was starting to look like a losing battle.

Placing the box on the counter as shown in the little diagram, I pulled the "practical flap for easy opening," following the dots as instructed. Nothing happened. I yanked harder, and then much harder, but failed to make headway. After several unsuccessful attempts with a sharp pair of scissors, I ended up hammering the point of a knife into the alleged opening, completing my handiwork with a small saw. The flakes, with "BHA added to preserve freshness," and featuring only "natural colouring and flavouring," were unmistakably stale, and reeked furthermore of an artificial aroma quite reminiscent of bubble gum. I threw the box in the garbage and sipped a glass of skimmed milk instead, suddenly wondering if it really was skimmed. What proof did I have? True, it looked rather bluish and tasted like water, but how could I really know? What was the sticky residue I could spy at the bottom of the container? Then a thought struck me: was it really milk? And if it was, did it come from a mad cow? And what if it was contaminated, even though it did say "pasteurised" on the box?

How many times had the experts told the gullible public that the meat, poultry and/or fish they were eating was safe, only to recant and confess that they had made a mistake? As a vegetarian, I did not have to worry about the meat or the hormones in chicken, but how about the pesticides in the vegetables? They say they no longer use DDT to rid the crops of various pests, but what if they do it on the sly? And are the new pesticides really safer?

People are lied to all the time, I told myself, when superior interests are at stake. We can no longer believe anyone or anything, not even machines. Voters in Florida, who can trust neither their highly sophisticated equipment nor the employees hand-counting the votes, are one case in point. After many years of struggle, cigarette manufacturers have given in and included the surgeon-general's warning on the packets, but why aren't car manufacturers forced to do the same? And shouldn't a similar warning figure prominently on plane tickets?

Labels on garments are equally misleading: "wash by hand in cold water separately" advises my latest -- expensive -- acquisition. Wouldn't it be more honest to say "Warning: this garment is not colour fast. Can be worn only once"?

Sadly, we have become so accustomed to being confused, lied to and bullied into accepting whatever is assertively presented to us that we have stopped asking questions or trying to protect ourselves. Returning the cereals, the milk or the garment and complaining about misrepresentation is considered bad form. Doubting what has been presented on television as a live event is akin to slight mental disturbance. We do not mind being fooled as long as we are not asked to renounce our catatonic peace of mind. Let the powers that be, the doctors, the manufacturers, the agriculturists decide for us. They don't always do it in our best interest, are misled or misleading, idiots or crooks? Well, that is just too bad, we think, but how can we change anything? By speaking up? That's a good one.

Incidentally, I just received the results of my blood test. I am not anaemic at all. But then again, can I trust the lab?

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