"evil" news and stories

The game is called The McDonald's Videogame and it sounds innocent enough, but it is immediately apparent from the sinister-looking "Ronald" clown that this is not a happy virtual world. The game is essentially anti-McDonalds propaganda, taking cues from books like Beyond Beef, Fast Food Nation and No Logo to an extreme, albeit cartoon, form. There is nothing wrong with that. But there is something wrong with they way that the creators of the game (an Italian group) pretend to represent the McDonald's corporation.

The phrasing on the site is impossible to overlook. Even on the front page, the site states that "you'll discover all the dirty secrets that made us one of the biggest company [sic] of the world." Of course, since they are not affiliated with the company, there is a disclaimer that states that very fact - but their version of an "about us" page continues with the following: Denying all these well founded accusations would be impossible so we decided to create an online game to explain to young people that this is the price to pay in order to preserve our lifestyle. We'll continue on our way, with our well-known determination. Join us and have fun with us!"

So what is the point here? Stand up and support what you believe in. People are being deceived by the site, to one degree or another (just take a look at the forums), and think that it is run by McDonald's. The authors of the books so admired by the video game creator did not pretend to be affiliated with the company that they were condemning. And they did not need to do so to make a convincing argument. If you don't like McDonald's, just say so. The game is more fun with less propaganda.

(*Note: There is some offensive language in the game if you decide to play it. Consider yourself warned.)

[via Supersized Meals)

Personally, I have nothing against tomatoes. Sure, I'm not fond of the flavorless ones that are picked too early and then gassed to make them look ripe, but that's not their fault. The folks over at TomatoesAreEvil.com feel a little differently, however. Yep, just what it sounds like, this is a site devoted to telling the world of the evil that lurks deep within the heart of the modest "love apple." Of course, you won't hear it referred to as such on there. More likely, you'll hear things like "wolf peach" or "spawn of Satan." There are anti-tomato games, posters (as seen here), clothing and recipes for things like tomato-free lasagna (with an alfredo sauce). Yep, these people hate them some tomatoes. The site is related in some way to Fishster.com, which features an equally entertaining and far less malicious site dedicated to a certain Cartoon Lobster.

Since it is Friday the 13th, it seems an appropriate day to look at food superstitions. Every culture has many of them, some stretching back hundreds of years. What are yours? Did you twist an apple stem to determine the first name of the person you were destined to marry? Were you expected to set the salt shaker down instead of handing it directly to someone? There are so many food myths and legends, I won't pretend that this is the ultimate list; it is just a starting point. These are simply 5 famous food superstitions:

• Throwing rice at weddings ensures fertility
• Throwing spilled salt over your shoulder keeps the devil away
• Garlic keeps evil away
• Push a spoon through the bottom of a boiled egg to “let the witches/devil out”
• Eating specific foods on the New Year will bring good luck