As end times near, Glenn Beck peddles ‘food insurance’ kits

[mod mom]

As end times near, Glenn Beck peddles ‘food insurance’ kits

In spring 2008, Wall Street was mired in crisis, food prices were rising briskly, and gas was selling near all-time highs. I noted that a bit of Chuck Norris-style "The end is nigh!"-ism seemed to be creeping into popular culture, which prompted me to write a blog post called, "More than peak oil or financial crash, I fear angry men armed to the teeth."

My point was that in hard times, the real path to survival isn't private caches of guns, ammo, and canned food. It's robust public institutions, diverse and plentiful food sources, and vibrant communities.

Predictably, my musings inspired some backlash. After carefully mulling my arguments, a writer on a blog called Notes from the Bunker concluded, "Still and all, the article makes me wanna go over there and kick the guy in the ‘nads." Back in the comments section of Grist, a reader cheerfully predicted that "Tom will die, and probably be eaten by all the people in his commune that don't know how to provide for themselves outside of going down to the local store that 'magically' restocks itself every day."

Well, so far I have survived, and even avoided physical attacks from angry survivalists. I innocently assumed that the doomer strain in pop culture subsided with Wall Street's revival and the easing of gas prices. But now I find that survivalism is more mainstream than ever -- Glenn Beck is evidently flogging it on his Fox News show, which commands some 2 million viewers.

-snip

http://www.grist.org/article/food-2010-11-11-as-end-times-near-glenn-beck-peddles-food-insurance

What an F-ing charlatan!

[Marr]

1. The image of Glenn Beck holding a small backpack full of dried food, and offering it for $200...

...it sums him up perfectly. He's a televangelist without a church. Just a huckster, out to fleece a bunch of morons.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. and to think that he is breathing air that could be used to sustain an actual human being!!!!!

He, Palin...the whole lot of them are GRIFTERS to the bone!!! Lowlife scam artists out to make the quick buck....no matter who it may injure...and in Palin's case..that includes her own family. Preying on the frightened and the ignorant. It is hard to believe that what they are doing in even legal..

[The Doctor.]

12. Or perhaps a type of mold with more aesthetic value?

Really, anything.

[BrklynLiberal]

15. Right! At least a mold might produce something valuable...like penicillin..

[Speck Tater]

3. What? God can fix global warming but He can't feed his flock?

These hypocrites don't know what to believe. One minute it's "God will take care of everything" and the next it's "we have to take care of ourselves", which is humanism, pure and simple.

[Initech]

4. The only thing Beck is qualified to sell is snake oil.

[haifa lootin]

7. And even people with no squeaky snakes will buy it.

:eyes:

:shrug:

[Initech]

11. If only PT Barnum were alive to see the Fox News era....

[Mojorabbit]

5. I grew up with parents who always kept a large

emergency suupply of food that was rotated. We were a large family and that supply kept us fed in some hard times.
I do it to this day. I could live a year on what I have in my pantry.I don't see a thing wrong with it. I however, do not like people like him ramping up people's fear to make a profit. I think if the shit hit the fan it would take a community working together to get by as it always has in the past and why I am a member of my local transition movement and slow food movement. No man is an island no matter how well armed. Glenn Beck is an idiot.

[KillCapitalism]

6. Fearmongering to make a $

That's all Glenn Beck is about.

I do keep about a two week supply of emergency food, water, and supplies in case of disaster. I live in an earthquake zone so I think it's a good idea to be prepared. I'm definitely not going to rely on FEMA, we saw how effective they were in New Orleans.

[Dappleganger]

10. Good move...

we're in FL (hurricanes) so we don't mess around, either.

[Dappleganger]

9. We used to do that back when we lived in the country...

but then again we grew and shared all of our own veggies, went in with other families to share a cow, did regular canning. We got through one of our major layoffs that way (over 6 months worth of food stocked up). At least we had a large enough pantry and cellar--couldn't do that in this home, no space to put anything and no basement. We did it because that's just how people in that area put up food (strong mennonite area, lots of small farms).

But Glenn Beck is only driving up fear--I should invest in aluminum stocks with all the tinfoil hats he's pushing.

[PBS Poll-435]

8. Better than his constant peddling of GOLD!

:P

[NuclearDem]

13. Don't sell all the food Glenn!

You'll need it for the years you'll be spending in the bunkers hiding from the communist apocalypse!

[Boudica the Lyoness]

14. This is a Mormon thing

I knew a Woman who was a Mormon and they had to keep a years worth of food in storage or something like that. She tried to push it on me. She also tried to get me to give her all the names of my ancestors so they could turn them into Mormons. Glenn Beck is a Mormon and I think storing food is part of their religion.

http://www.suite101.com/content/an-lds-guide-to-beginning-food-storage-a97822

[mmonk]

16. Manure in a box?