Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Should be required reading
High praises for Mr. Schlosser's well-researched and fascinating revelations of the underbelly of the fast food industry. What he has ultimately revealed is the utter contempt that big businesses have for those who have given them their fortunes, evidenced by the dispicable work conditions suffered by employees and the disregard for the quality of their products and even basic safety of their consumers. The fast food industry has contributed to the homogenization of the world through its promotion of standardized (albeit tainted) products. Amazingly too, the very persons who extoll the virtues of the free American system have chosen to squelch the freedoms of employees who attempt to organize (and unionize) in efforts of expressing grievances, exposing unsafe work conditions, and correcting injustices. Equally shocking are the author's assertions that the fast food industry has engaged in massive advertising campaigns directed at young children, filling television screens with images of smiling clowns and contributing to an alarming rise in obesity in our youth as they convince them to indulge in a fatty and potentially harmful diet. This book makes one ashamed to continue to support an industry that so vehemently fights for their right to perpetuate and promote profit at such a cost. Read this eye-opening book, and tell a friend. Let your voice and disapproval be known, or we will continue to pay the price.
Rating: - Riveting, frightening : should be school compulsory reading
This book is outstanding and a must read.1) It is extremely well researched and thorough - I have actually compared some of the data with other sources ; they match. 2) It is more than just about fast foods. It is about the society we have built: its dangers, its plagues, its hazards, and the people who damage it because their only concern is their short term selfish gain. The author explains at great length the perversion of a system which was originally created by people who where not part of the money-establishment : self made men with no or little education, hard workers with sound values who believed they could add value.
Then he shows how through time this system, this industry has become corrupt by progressively shifting too much power into the hands of a very few (food processors...) helped in their craziness by greedy politicians (congressmen...). We are becoming a nation of obese and we are increasingly exposed to various food hazards largely thanks to the lies and the evil of large corporations that will stop at nothing to increase their profits and eliminate competitors (examples given in the book: not only the McDonalds of the world but the food esp meat processing & packing industry). This is also a telling story of how our country is no better than some of the worst third world countries in dealing with its labor force : false records, no job security, inhumane working conditions, huge rate of accidents, systematic policy of hiring migrant workers because they cannot defend themselves, they cannot join unions, no medical insurance...and so forth. Some readers may get upset by the numerous references made to shady deals and corruption explicitly mentioning the GOP. Let's face the facts : in the Midwest Republicans have been in charge for decades and that they tried by every means to cling to that power is not a real surprise (it may have turned out differently in another industry and part of the country). What is more surprising is the inability of the Federal Gvt to introduce and enforce the simplest of measures. I was taken aback by the complete lack of regulations in this industry and as a result the hazards that we, who live in this country, are faced with. With all the talk from the USDA... I was stunned to see that they turn their head away at such major issues. Beyond the fast food industry this book is also about the country we want : do we really aspire to the creation of these huge irresponsible corporations even if it means the death of all other businesses, if it means corruption and corrupt governments, if it means that people get poorer and poorer while a handful get insanely rich. The author explains convincingly how the consolidation everywhere in these industries has led to a complete and desastrous change in the society : reliance on immigrants, death of the farmers, destruction of the local communities, the spreading of crime everywhere and a foolish sprawling of cities in every direction... Read this book. It should be compulsory reading in elementary, middle and high schools to protect our children who are being exposed to the lies of Burger King, McDonalds...every day : our children are the people the fast food industry is preying on the most because they don't know better, they have no idea what happens behind the scenes. Read it and act on it if you don't want to live in a country where people die and get permanently sick and disabled because of the foolishness of a few. Buy a copy and send it to our president and our congressmen. If they don't know they have to know. If they do know then it is time they realize we know too and we want them to make the system change.
Rating: - A Real Eye-Opener
I have not made one fast-food purchase sine I read Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation. That is how much this book affected me. I did not like fast food much anyway, and reading this book gave me all the reason I needed to give it up entirely. Its hard to believe that my absence will be noticed, but I am encouraged by the anecdote Schlosser gives of the McLibel trial: two London Greenpeace members taking on the corporate juggernaut of McDonald's in a libel suit, and winning. Schlosser's detailed history of fast food and its effect on America is a compelling and enlightening view of our culture. Detailed accounts are given of the base disdain that the major fast food giants have for the workers that contribute to their success, as well as the selfishness of high-ranking officials that keeps simple improvements from being made throughout the industry. The rise of fast food is a phenomenon that has massive effects on a global scale; there is no doubt future generations will be studying it in history and sociology classes, and Fast Food Nation will be a key text.
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