If Tom Cruise were a tomato, what kind would he be?
If the modern industrialized tomato were a celebrity, it would be Tom Cruise, the modern industrialized actor.
The similarities are striking:
The actor and the fruit both look superficially appealing. They both have thin skins, not to mention an artificially long shelf life. And neither is as flavorful, juicy or interesting as its perfect appearance might suggest. Bland and boring as cardboard would be more apt descriptors.
In contrast, the old-fashioned, home-grown heirloom tomato — the kind that you pick warm from the vine on this Fourth of July, slice thin and sprinkle with salt and pepper — might be deemed the Tom Hanks of the gardening world. Like Hanks, its features may be a little more irregular and misshapen, and it comes in a wider palette of red, green and yellow. But in the end, it offers a far more interesting and rewarding flavor.
The difference between them is significant. For example, try to imagine Tom Cruise playing Forrest Gump. The very thought will make your brain cramp, as if you ate too much ice cream too quickly.
That’s all I’m going to say about that.
How then can you account for the ubiquity of Cruise and his tomato counterpart? In both cases, as in too many others, the answer comes down to a genetic weakness for marketing over quality.
According to a study published in the journal Science last week, the blandness of the modern tomato can be traced to the work of botanists roughly 70 years ago. After discovering a genetic mutation that made tomatoes turn a uniform and attractive red, they began to breed that mutation into almost all commercially available strains of tomatoes. At the time, they either didn’t understand or didn’t care that the same mutation that made tomatoes turn uniformly scarlet also made tomatoes less sweet and juicy.
And why was it so important to breed tomatoes to have a uniform red color? Why was that attribute valued so much more highly than actual taste and flavor?
Because human beings, like other primates, are genetically programmed to prefer red fruit. We respond instinctively to the color red because in nature, red tells us that the fruit in question is ripe and rich in natural sugars and other nutrients.
In other words, the modern industrialized tomato has been genetically altered to lie to us. Its bright red color promises our lizard brain a burst of juicy flavor that the fruit itself can no longer deliver. It has been bred into a fraud.
However, according to Ann Powell, a biochemist and one of the lead authors in the new study, there is hope that the damage done by science to the tomato can be undone, returning the fruit to its true nature.
“This information … provides a strategy to recapture quality characteristics that had been unknowingly bred out of modern cultivated tomatoes,” Powell says, predicting that “some of the qualities that people value in heirloom tomatoes can be made available in other types of tomatoes.”
Now, I recognize that in a world wrestling with a tough economy, global warming and other major issues, the possible reincarnation of the old-fashioned tomato isn’t exactly news to make you jump up and down on Oprah’s couch, should you be inclined to express joy in such a fashion. And on the scale of scientific achievement, it’s not as if they’re resurrecting the wooly mammoth from DNA salvaged from a melting glacier.
On the other hand, it’s often the small pleasures in life that see us through hard times. And if science can undo a mistake, if the sweet promise of a tomato’s deep scarlet can once again be made real, that’s good.
One less thing, you might say.
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408 comments Add your comment
RB from Gwinnett
July 3rd, 2012
11:42 am
Next topic please….
Gale
July 3rd, 2012
11:43 am
Jay, some days you are just funny, as well as informative. Anything that puts Tom Cruise in a poor light is all right by me. Heirloom seeds will be the thing that saves the human race.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
July 3rd, 2012
11:43 am
If Tom Cruise were a tomato, what kind would he be?
Rotten
Kamchak ~ Thug from the Steppes
July 3rd, 2012
11:44 am
Kyle Wingfield
July 3rd, 2012
11:37 am
There will be no more comments on this thread. All comments on all threads will be going through moderation until further notice.
Ruh, roh!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Comparing Tom Cruise to anything other than a bad actor is insulting.
DannyX
July 3rd, 2012
11:47 am
Another bad actor, Ronald Reagan, tried to have ketchup classified as a vegetable.
ByteMe - Political thug
July 3rd, 2012
11:49 am
I’ll bet this is one of those “informational rabbit holes” you start by researching something else before you realize you wasted 2 hours learning something silly about the topic you didn’t really want to learn about, but oh well, now you know.
Happy Tomato on Grilled Burger Day tomorrow!
Soothsayer
July 3rd, 2012
11:49 am
“Note: Due to the soap-opera shenanigans of a few commenters Monday night, all comments are going through moderation until further notice. Any comment that includes personal attacks or ventures off-topic while the on-topic discussion is still going strong will not be published. Those of you who think anything goes because I need the “hits” do not understand a) what a “hit” is or b) how beyond frustrated with some of you I have become. Be forewarned that the comments you submit, even if they are not published, may affect whether I let some of you back onto the blog ever again.”
flagboy?
July 3rd, 2012
11:50 am
picking on Tom Cruise. edgy.
I’m waiting on the “Nickelback is not a Good Band” blog. That should prove to be popular as well.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
July 3rd, 2012
11:51 am
Kamchak ~ Thug from the Steppes
July 3rd, 2012
11:44 am
Did Kyle get canned or did @@ finally say “too much”…
flagboy?
July 3rd, 2012
11:51 am
With that said, there is some kind of Cherokee purple tomato that is mighty tasty.
Happy 4th everyone.
josef
July 3rd, 2012
11:52 am
IMAM
Great column! Thanks, again, for the humorous break from the daily cr*p to things that are really important in the great scheme of things… Seriously…
And the rest of y’all who don’t like Tom Cruise…I do…okay, so he’s a nut case and a pretty boy
he’s really not a half bad actor given the right vehicle…
Jefferson
July 3rd, 2012
11:53 am
He has slept well most of his adult life.
ty webb
July 3rd, 2012
11:54 am
I disagree, Hanks is just as bland.
the cat
July 3rd, 2012
11:55 am
Rumor in the street is the 5 year contract had expired. Seems reasonable to me Katie wanted to get the young child away from Scientology.
Patrick
July 3rd, 2012
11:55 am
You’d better be careful about picking on Tom Cruise, Jay–those Scientology folks don’t play around.
You’ll have a re-animated L. Ron Hubbard zombie coming after you!
BS Aplenty
July 3rd, 2012
11:55 am
I’ll file your argument under the “ugly people need love, too” folder.
josef
July 3rd, 2012
11:57 am
Oh, and what kind of tomato would he be? L’il feller would probably be a tomatillo…
There is problably one person that might have the answer...
July 3rd, 2012
11:57 am
…see Nicole Kidman!
PJ
July 3rd, 2012
12:00 pm
RIP Andy Griffith. Now there was a actor and a hell of nice guy.
Granny Godzilla - Union Thugette
July 3rd, 2012
12:00 pm
Flamme?
Moneymaker?
Blondkopfchen?
Micro-Tom?
Long Tom?
or my favorite….Burpees Globemaster Hybrid?
JamVet
July 3rd, 2012
12:03 pm
Early in his career he was in some really good movies – Top Gun, The Color of Money, Rain Man and especially Born on the Fourth of July and A Few Good Men. In addition, C*cktail, Days of Thunder and Jerry MacGuire were tolerable.
But he has a bunch of clunkers and the truth be told, I’ve not seen a film with him in it since the late 90s…
Pass the Cheesy Grits Please
July 3rd, 2012
12:04 pm
Tom Cruise promotes a “Religion” that is basically one big scam.
Scientology makes you pay ( often huge sums ) to move up the ladder in the Religion.
No other organized Religion does this. If I walk into a Catholic church they wont say ‘ Well there is this Jesus fellow but we really cant say more until we get the deed to your house. ”
Scientology has ruined alot of lives. Its no joke.
http://www.xenu.net/
The fact that Cruise is either complicit in this, or ignorant of it, is deplorable.
JamVet
July 3rd, 2012
12:05 pm
Eyes Wide Shut was so bad, I am not sure if I even made it to the end…
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:06 pm
Unmentionable calls those tomatoes, “Buckhead Tomatoes,” says they’re “gaudy, overpriced and totally tasteless.”
Ahem
July 3rd, 2012
12:07 pm
Talk about throwing rotten tomatoes:
“Government Motors: As GM shares near record low, taxpayer loss on bailout rises to $35 billion…
Normally you might say, tough luck investors. But this is Government Motors. The Treasury still owns 26.5% of GM, or 500 million shares. Taxpayers are still out $26.4 billion in direct aid. Shares would have to hit $53 for the government to break even.
Those shares were worth about $9.8 billion as of Monday. That would leave taxpayers with a loss of $16.6 billion.
But that’s not the full tally. Obama let GM keep $45 billion in past losses to offset future profits. Those are usually wiped out or slashed, along with debts, in bankruptcy. But the administration essentially gifted $45 billion in write-offs (book value $18 billion) to GM. So when GM earned a $7.6 billion profit in 2011 (more on that below), it paid no taxes.
Include that $18 billion gift, and taxpayers’ true loss climbs to nearly $35 billion.
Of course, there’s no chance that the Obama administration will sell off its GM stake before Election Day. That would force Obama to recognize actual losses, which would remind voters that the bailout was a massive transfer from taxpayers to unions….”
How about an heirloom right between the eyes for the Most Wonderful Leader.
JamVet
July 3rd, 2012
12:07 pm
Hanks, on the other hand, has been in a ton of good or great movies…
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:08 pm
He’d be the kind of tomato that needs two cans to contain it.
Like the two cans that come attached to one of these.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-meter
Thulsa Doom
July 3rd, 2012
12:10 pm
Science and big agriculture has done the same thing to other crops like corn for example. The original maize eaten by the natives was not as sugary as the corn we have today. Scientists have made present strains much more sweeter and more sugary. And then we wonder why we have an epideic of diabetes today. Thanks monsanto and conagra and ADM.
ty webb
July 3rd, 2012
12:11 pm
and I would argue that pretty much all of today’s movie “stars” are bland…the days of larger than life “Stars” like Stewart, Wayne, Bogart, McQueen, Brando, etc are gone…Now we get 3D movies that look like video games.
Taipei Personality
July 3rd, 2012
12:11 pm
hydroponic on-the-vine
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:12 pm
“Risky Business,” “Jerry McGuire,” “The Color of Money,” “A Few Good Men, ” “Rain Man,” and even though I hated it, “Interview with the Vampire…” Like I said, given the right vehicle…but I agree with ZamVet most of the more recent stuff has been clunkers…we’ll see whether or not he’s able to make the move to mature actor in his older years…
getalife
July 3rd, 2012
12:12 pm
“Note: Due to the soap-opera shenanigans of a few commenters Monday night, all comments are going through moderation until further notice. Any comment that includes personal attacks or ventures off-topic while the on-topic discussion is still going strong will not be published. Those of you who think anything goes because I need the “hits” do not understand a) what a “hit” is or b) how beyond frustrated with some of you I have become. Be forewarned that the comments you submit, even if they are not published, may affect whether I let some of you back onto the blog ever again.”
This is a no drama Obama blog cons.
Thanks.
Adam
July 3rd, 2012
12:12 pm
Uh uh. No comment. Celebrity fodder no good.
Get me some political gaffe-crack! STAT!
Taipei Personality
July 3rd, 2012
12:12 pm
meanwhile I wish the best of luck to Katie and Suri…they will need it against those wackos!
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:13 pm
Doom — “Science and big agriculture has done the same thing to other crops like corn for example. The original maize eaten by the natives was not as sugary as the corn we have today. Scientists have made present strains much more sweeter and more sugary. And then we wonder why we have an epideic of diabetes today. Thanks monsanto and conagra and ADM.”
To be fair, it’s not that the corn itself is that much sweeter; it’s that we consume SO MUCH HFCS on a daily basis — it’s like we’re eating far more in a day than native peoples ate a few hundred years ago.
Not trying to diss you Doom, but my dad’s a professor of Agriculture and a professional food scientist, and I get an earful of the latest food news every holiday season.
Thulsa Doom
July 3rd, 2012
12:14 pm
Tom Hanks is a much better actor than Cruise. After all he did play a role as a famed football player under the Bear at Alabama- Forrest Gump.
Midori
July 3rd, 2012
12:15 pm
Kammy –
what happened over there to warrant Kyle’s shutdown?
getalife
July 3rd, 2012
12:15 pm
I think Jay is trying to calm the masses with some recent posts or he needs a vacation.
There is one way to clam the masses and it does apply to gardening.
Free the kush.
JDW
July 3rd, 2012
12:16 pm
Dadgum it Jay, I have been rolling on the floor laughing all morning unable to function due to the humor of the evening and now I find that Tom Cruise is a tomato! I don’t think I will have a straight face again until tomorrow when I get to eat some of those other tomatoes!
Scooter
July 3rd, 2012
12:16 pm
And politicians still know how to empower themselves by appealing to natural attractions to economic security over liberty. But hey, let us eat heirloom tomatoes!
ty webb
July 3rd, 2012
12:17 pm
Hanks, as an actor, hasn’t really put out anything worth a damn in the last ten years either.
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:17 pm
Midori — “what happened over there to warrant Kyle’s shutdown?”
I don’t know either, but Jay doesn’t want it discussed or rehashed. Clearly, it’s a bit of a sore spot with our hosts just now.
Texas Gravy
July 3rd, 2012
12:17 pm
Q: If Tom Cruise was a tomato, what kind would he be?
A: Whatever kind Travolta likes.
Thomas Heyward Jr.
July 3rd, 2012
12:18 pm
Federal code for……………………………..TOMATOS—————————————-
.
Hank is a Tomato-Tard————–
.
a) Findings and determinations with respect to fresh tomatoes. (1) Under Section 8e of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601–674), it is hereby found that:
(i) Grade, size, quality and maturity regulations have been issued from time to time under Marketing Order No. 966, as amended;
(ii) The marketing of fresh tomatoes from Florida covered by Marketing Order No. 966, as amended, can reasonably be expected to occur during the months of October through June;
(2) Therefore, it is hereby determined that imports of fresh tomatoes during the months of October through June are in most direct competition with the marketing of fresh tomatoes produced in Florida covered by Marketing Order No. 966, as amended.
(b) Grade, size, quality and maturity requirements. On and after the effective date hereof no person may import fresh tomatoes except pear shaped, cherry, hydroponic and greenhouse tomatoes as defined herein, or tomatoes to be used in noncommercial outlets for experimental purposes, unless they are inspected and meet the following requirements;
(1) From October 10 through June 15 of each season, tomatoes offered for importation shall be at least 29/32inches in diameter. Not more than 10 percent, by count, in any lot may be smaller than the minimum specified diameter. All lots of tomatoes shall be at least U.S. No. 2 grade. Provided, That UglyRipeTMand Vintage RipesTMtomatoes shall be graded and at least meet the requirements specified for U.S. No. 2 under the U.S. Standards for Grades of Fresh Tomatoes, except they are exempt from the requirements that they be reasonably well formed and not more than slightly rough, and Provided, Further that the UglyRipeTMand Vintage RipesTMtomatoes meet the requirements of the Identity Preservation program, Fresh Products Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA.
(2) Prior to importation of tomatoes to be used in noncommercial outlets for experimental purposes, the importer shall apply for and obtain from the Vegetable Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250, an approved Certificate for Special Purpose Shipment, complete Part I and comply with all procedures specified thereon. A separate certificate is required for each shipment. Three copies of the certificate shall accompany shipment, of which one copy shall be surrendered to the Federal or Federal-State Inspector of the U.S. Department of Agriculture at the port of entry.
(3) Upon completion of shipment receiver making final disposition of the tomatoes shall complete Part II of the Certificate. Importer shall be responsible for the return, within 10 days, of a signed copy of the certificate to the Chief, Vegetable Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250, certifying that the tomatoes were used for the purpose specified thereon.
(c) Minimum quantity exemption. Any importation which in the aggregate does not exceed 60 pounds may be imported without regard to the provisions of this section.
(d) Plant quarantine. Provisions of this section shall not supersede the restrictions or prohibitions on tomatoes under the Plant Quarantine Act of 1912.
.
(cont)…….
Thulsa Doom
July 3rd, 2012
12:19 pm
Joe Mama,
Just telling you what I’ve read in a couple different books on diet and the food industry- that most of the corn grown today is a much more sugary hybrid than was originally grown way back. And if I remember correctly I think 60 minutes may also have done a story on this very same topic. Makes sense to me. And its not just corn itself but all the corn sugar that goes into so much else of the processessed sugar in all the crap in our food.
wet wiccan
July 3rd, 2012
12:20 pm
There’s only two things that money can’t buy and that’s true love and home grown tomatoes!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-QzLIjL1u4
Thomas Heyward Jr.
July 3rd, 2012
12:22 pm
(e) Designation of governmental inspection service. The Federal or Federal-State Inspection Service, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food of Plant Origin Division, Plant Products Directorate, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, are hereby designated as governmental inspection services for the purpose of certifying the grade, size, quality, and maturity of tomatoes that are imported, or to be imported, into the United States under the provisions of section 8e of the Act.
(f) Inspection and official inspection certificates. (1) An official inspection certificate certifying the tomatoes meet the United States import requirements for tomatoes under Section 8e (7 U.S.C. 608e–1), issued by a designated governmental inspection service and applicable to a specified lot is required on all imports of fresh tomatoes.
(2) Inspection and certification by the Federal or Federal-State Inspection Service will be available and performed in accordance with the rules and regulations governing certification of fresh fruits, vegetables and other products (7 CFR part 51). Each lot shall be made available and accessible for inspection as provided therein. Cost of inspection and certification shall be borne by the applicant.
(3) Since the inspectors may not be stationed in the immediate vicinity of some smaller ports of
getalife
July 3rd, 2012
12:22 pm
Did congress cut farm subsidies?
weetamoe
July 3rd, 2012
12:23 pm
I have a garden full of heirloom tomatoes, started from seed in my sunroom, and I usually enjoy them, but by comparing Hanks to an heirloom you have ruined my appetite. And as far as Forrest Gump goes, I bet you would buy that for a dollar.
Quick
July 3rd, 2012
12:23 pm
Do it.
Thomas Heyward Jr.
July 3rd, 2012
12:23 pm
(4) Inspection certificates shall cover only the quantity of tomatoes that is being imported at a particular port of entry by a particular importer.
(5) Each inspection certificate issued with respect to any tomatoes to be imported into the United States shall set forth, among other things:
(i) The date and place of inspection;
(ii) The name of the shipper, or applicant;
(iii) The Customs entry number pertaining to the lot or shipment covered by the certificate;
(iv) The commodity inspected;
(v) The quantity of the commodity covered by the certificate;
(vi) The principal identifying marks on the containers;
(vii) The railroad car initials and number, the truck and trailer license number, the name of the vessel, or other identification of the shipment; and
(viii) The following statement, if the facts warrant: Meets import requirements of 7 U.S.C. 608e–1.
(g) Reconditioning prior to importation. Nothing contained in this part shall be deemed to preclude any importer from reconditioning prior to importation any shipment of tomatoes for the purpose of making it eligible for importation.
(h) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, Importation means release from custody of the United States Bureau of Customs. Cherry tomatoes means cerasiform types commonly referred to as “cherry tomatoes.” Pear shaped tomatoes means elongated types, commonly referred to as pear shaped or paste tomatoes and include San Marzano, Red Top and Roma varieties. Hydroponic tomatoes means tomatoes grown in solution without soil. Greenhouse tomatoes means tomatoes grown indoors. The terms relating to grade and size, as used herein, shall have the same meaning as when used in the U.S. Standards for Grades of Fresh Tomatoes (7 CFR 51.1855 through 51.1877).
(i) Exemptions. The grade, size, quality and maturity requirements of this section shall not apply to tomatoes for charity, relief, canning or pickling, but such tomatoes shall be subject to the safeguard provisions contained in §980.501. Processing includes canning and pickling.
[42 FR 55192, Oct. 14, 1977, as amended at 43 FR 3349, Jan. 25, 1978; 57 FR
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:23 pm
Doom — “And its not just corn itself but all the corn sugar that goes into so much else of the processessed sugar in all the crap in our food.”
That’s the main thing. My dad tells me that the corn we eat *is* sweeter by a significant percentage of sugar by mass per ear, but that the extra amount *per ear* is negligible. It’s the huge amount of HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) in processed foods that’s the real culprit.
We don’t drink a lot of Cokes, but my wife insists on getting the Mexican ones at Costco; they are made with cane sugar. I think they come in either 1.5- or 2-case lots of glass bottles. One flat will easily last us three months.
Jay
July 3rd, 2012
12:26 pm
For those curious, this is my Fourth of July column for tomorrow’s AJC. Doing a hard-news piece on that holiday just didn’t seem appropriate.
Logical Dude
July 3rd, 2012
12:26 pm
I like me some good tomatoes, but I also don’t mind Tom Cruise playing his normal character, because he can do that. I don’t see him going too far out of his range, except for maybe his character in Tropic Thunder.
But it’s good to know about those Tomatoes!!
(and as an aside, I think I was able to post on Kyle’s blog, since I saw my own comment. – I was busy enjoying a night out to be a part of whatever shenanigans happened)
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:27 pm
Oh, cool! Here’s some intersection between Scientology and tomatoes!
“In the case of the E-Meter the voltage applied is between 1V and 5V, and the induced current in the order of fractions of a milliamp. According to Scientology doctrine, the resistance corresponds to the “mental mass and energy” of the subject’s mind, which change when the subject thinks of particular mental images (engrams).[8] Scientologists believe that the device has such sensitivity that Hubbard could use it to determine whether or not fruits can experience pain, as in his 1968 assertion that tomatoes “scream when sliced.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-meter
Adam
July 3rd, 2012
12:27 pm
JHM: What is the brand name of the Mexican ones? Or is it just Coca Cola, but from Mexico?
Jay
July 3rd, 2012
12:27 pm
Heyward, at this point you’re just spamming the blog.
Adam
July 3rd, 2012
12:29 pm
spamspamspamspam
spamspamspamspam
SPAMMITY SPAAAAMMMMMM
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:29 pm
wiccan
“There’s only two things that money can’t buy and that’s true love and home grown tomatoes!”
Yep, and I’ve got both. Now, a little money wouldn’t hurt…
They BOTH suck
July 3rd, 2012
12:30 pm
Jay
Will there be a WNM this week?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nhUlKYeUoE
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:31 pm
“Heyward, at this point you’re just spamming the blog.”
Tomatoes go good with Spam, though…
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:31 pm
Adam — “JHM: What is the brand name of the Mexican ones? Or is it just Coca Cola, but from Mexico?”
Right, they’re “Coca-Cola of Mexico” or something like that. You have to check the shelf tags to make sure you’re getting them, but they should be clearly marked.
They come in big flats with small glass bottles (maybe 12 ounces apiece?), and have heavy clear plastic shrinkwrap over the package so the bottles won’t slip around. You will want a knife or some scissors to puncture and remove that plastic when you get the flat home.
Just FYI, Mexican and Central American sodas can be GODAWFUL sweet IMO. The Coke seems to be a notable exception. And you can get Kosher Coke around Passover; that used to be the only way you could get cane-sugar Coke before the Mexican stuff started to become available.
Taipei Personality
July 3rd, 2012
12:31 pm
mmm…spam and tomatoes. well, maybe not so much!
JHM – methinks ol “Elron” maybe should have stayed on his meds…
2ruff
July 3rd, 2012
12:32 pm
just a simple Rotten tomato
Don’t support him or any of his movies in the last 15 years and will not ever again.
Rotten tomatoes need to get back on L Ron Hubbard’s “mother ship” and just go away
Kamchak ~ Thug from the Steppes
July 3rd, 2012
12:32 pm
Hiya, Midori!
Last night next door?
Insults, name-calling, threats of lawsuits, puffing out of chests…
Alpha male stuff.
Still, Kyle’s is pure as the driven snow compared to what the very same people did at CT’s
Thulsa Doom
July 3rd, 2012
12:33 pm
” It’s the huge amount of HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) in processed foods that’s the real culprit.”
Joe Mama,
No argument there. Probably a bigger culprit in our diabetes epidemic than anything else. This would be my beef with big agri is the high fructose content in all the crap out there.
n
July 3rd, 2012
12:33 pm
I have raised tomatoes, would Tom be a “Beef Steak” no. Would he be an “Early Girl” maybe, a “Cherry ” definitely not. There are a few more I can’t recall. Tomatoes take a lot of care, have to be in the sun, watered, weeded, Tom has grownup sort of wild,without enough cultivating. one more”plum”
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:34 pm
Then, of course, the bloggers could have their own…
http://www.festivalpig.com/la-tomatina-fiesta.html
They BOTH suck
July 3rd, 2012
12:34 pm
A TNM would be more fitting, since it is only one day holiday unless some have taken off for the rest of the week.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:35 pm
Whatever kind of tomato he would be, I wouldn’t use him to make a mater sammich!!
Rightwing Troll
July 3rd, 2012
12:35 pm
Speaking of tomatoes… I hate it that I missed the fun on Kyle’s blog last night… had some school work to catch up on and some kid duty to attend to…
Ain’t it funny how just plain rotten it gets when the “conservatives” come kicking in the door and shat all over everything???
GT
July 3rd, 2012
12:37 pm
Tom Cruise is not a good actor. His neurosis shows through his characters, he does not have the confidence of Hanks or the skill of Hoffman. And he is super short. Redman was short but he could act, still can, so can Dustin. Newman, Grant, Gable even Pitts could carry humor in their films, Cruise makes you feel like you are watching a insecure punk the whole movie.
Tom Cruise reminds me of Anderson Cooper. You watch and you go why. You see Brian Williams and you ask why double as much. Few people stick out as much as not belonging as these two.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:38 pm
“this is my Fourth of July column”
I MISS 4TH OF JULY!!!!
please have some bbq and watermelon for me …
JohnnyReb
July 3rd, 2012
12:38 pm
I shut down most of my political prejudices when it comes to music and films – otherwise, the choices become small. Both Cruise and Hanks are good actors. I know Cruise is a Scientologist; not sure of his political identifcation. Hanks on the otherhand has shown his political hand. Of course, if I had to choose between the two, it would be Cruise. And BTW, Misison 3 was a very, very good movie which did not do so well at the boxoffice partly because of the couch jumping thing, Brooke Shields comment, etc.
Back to vegetables, there is Obama, but I digress. My guess is, most who post here don’t understand why if they have a survival garden they must not use hybrid seeds.
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:40 pm
GT
@ 12:37
Do I sense an undercurrent in those comments? Hmmmmm…
Jay
July 3rd, 2012
12:41 pm
The “if two or more conservatives post the same story it must have come from Drudge” rule explains the multiple posts about GM, even if it does come on a day when GM announces June sales up 16 percent, pushing the stock up by more than a dollar a share.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:42 pm
JohnnyReb – “My guess is, most who post here don’t understand why if they have a survival garden they must not use hybrid seeds.”
yeah, because TROG TOO STOOPID TO UNNERSTAN HYBRID
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:43 pm
Doom — “No argument there. Probably a bigger culprit in our diabetes epidemic than anything else. This would be my beef with big agri is the high fructose content in all the crap out there.”
A few years ago, my dad told me that there was a *natural* diet sweetener waiting in the wings to be used, but that the food and medical industry would probably never let it happen. I can’t remember the name of it, but apparently, it is a *real* sugar, like glucose or fructose. But its chemical structure makes it impossible to break down in the body, so you’d get no caloric value from it. Problem is, anyone who consumed it would excrete a bunch of sugar in their urine, thereby making everyone who used it test positive for diabetes. Whoops!
He said that it was a well-kept secret among the agri-corps because they didn’t want people beating down their doors, demanding the new sweetener.
getalife
July 3rd, 2012
12:44 pm
“Doing a hard-news piece on that holiday just didn’t seem appropriate”
Now I get and agree.
Chin up Americans, the hard times are ending.
I am bullish on America on her birthday.
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:44 pm
IMAM
@ 12:41
Haven’t got my Breitbart memo yet.
stands for decibels
July 3rd, 2012
12:44 pm
Guess I’m in the “never could stand the smarmy brat” camp re: TC.
godless heathen
July 3rd, 2012
12:45 pm
Good post about the demise of the decent tomato outside the home garden. As to Tom Cruise, I could care less, but tomatoes are important to the survival of the species.
And don’t be fooled by them roadside stand or Farmer’s Market tomatoes. They share the genetics of the grocery store variety. In a moment of weakness, a year or so ago I bought some from a roadside stand – they looked so good! But they were as bland as a sheet of newsprint. As an experiment, I left one out on the counter. It sat there for over a month without changing in appearance.
I think the problem is that most citified Americans don’t know what a real tomato is supposed to taste like. If they did, I think the sales of them industrialized tomatoes (good term, Jay) would be so far in the tank that their sales would wither on the vine.
For years I have refused to buy grocery store tomatoes and I refuse them in the restaurants. RISE UP PEOPLE, and BOYCOTT THE INDUSTRIAL TOMATO. OCCUPY THE PRODUCE SECTION.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:47 pm
“Hanks, as an actor, hasn’t really put out anything worth a damn in the last ten years either.”
Road to Perdition was BRILLIANT (I’ve always said I thought he’d be a great bad guy) – that juuuuuust makes it in under the wire for “last 10 years”
Didn’t see Joe Wilson’s War, but heard it was brilliant.
frankly, just for producing Band of Brothers, I think he walks on water.
td
July 3rd, 2012
12:47 pm
Jay
July 3rd, 2012
12:41 pm
And the Drudge report is somehow bad?
getalife
July 3rd, 2012
12:49 pm
“GM announces June sales up 16 percent, pushing the stock up by more than a dollar a share.”
Thank you Jay.
drudge justs positive negative stories but Americans need to see good news too like Pakistan reopened supply routes and are working with us again.
I blame Hillary Clinton.
stands for decibels
July 3rd, 2012
12:49 pm
…although I’m one of those oddballs who found Forrest Gump to be a pointless, occasionally offensive exercise in the wussiest kind of revisionist history imaginable, and who wonders why so many find it charming.
But Tom Hanks himself, as an actor, is pretty much can’t-miss. I will sit and watch That Thing You Do! for the seventh or eighth time given half a chance.
Texas Gravy
July 3rd, 2012
12:49 pm
UK, that was Charlie Wilson’s War
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:49 pm
Hanks is what they used to call “a working actor.” I haven’t much cared for his vehicles, but he’s still a good, solid actor.
Pizzaman
July 3rd, 2012
12:49 pm
I can’t imagine Cruise as Forrest. I can’t imagine Hanks as Maverick. Nuff said!
Joe Hussein Mama
July 3rd, 2012
12:50 pm
USinUK — “frankly, just for producing Band of Brothers, I think he walks on water.”
I read it before the miniseries was made, and I enjoyed the miniseries, but I take a really dim view of plagiarism. And when someone is accused of it, as Stephen Ambrose was, I take note of how they respond to the accusation. For his part, Ambrose chose to blame his research staff.
It is for that reason that I have never bought another Ambrose book, and why I don’t plan to buy BoB on DVD.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:50 pm
“And the Drudge report is somehow bad?”
yeah. “somehow”
classic.
Keep Up the Good Fight!
July 3rd, 2012
12:50 pm
Wow, seems to be a lot of cons dissing BIG AG….. perhaps big corporate capitalism does have some shortcomings.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:51 pm
Texas –
– thanks for the catch – Joe Wilson’s War was entirely different !!
JohnnyReb
July 3rd, 2012
12:51 pm
GM, GM, GM
The only things wrong Obama did with GM is put the unions ahead of secured bond holders, and, well, give the company to the unions.
Then there is the big tax break; the lies about having paid back the money, etc., etc.
Other than all those completely unacceptable actions, he did quite well.
Soothsayer
July 3rd, 2012
12:52 pm
Well, I thank timid tomatoes get squashed. Give me a good rhubarb!
Fred ™
July 3rd, 2012
12:52 pm
Jay
July 3rd, 2012
12:26 pm
For those curious, this is my Fourth of July column for tomorrow’s AJC. Doing a hard-news piece on that holiday just didn’t seem appropriate.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Oh I get it. And Tom Cruise tried to act in the movie “The Fourth of July.”
If you saw Risky business you saw the extent of his “acting’ ability. He has played every character the same way since then. Good catch on the tomato thing, but probably to esoteric for most…….
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:52 pm
JHM – I’m not familiar with the charges of plagiarism – all I know is that the mini-series is outstanding. Even if the personal details have been cribbed from someone else, the facts behind them – and the men that fought in Easy Company – is still true.
josef
July 3rd, 2012
12:52 pm
SFD
As for Forrest Gump…I still haven’t made up my mind on it, but my initial reaction was very similar to yours and I still lean that direction…I keep trying to lay aside my own think skin when it comes to such, but it’s not easy…especially when we’ve got “Slingblade” to compare it to…
getalife
July 3rd, 2012
12:52 pm
posts not positive.
Sorry.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
July 3rd, 2012
12:53 pm
“I will sit and watch That Thing You Do! for the seventh or eighth time given half a chance.”
yay!! someone else who loves that movie!! one of my favorites