Why is it so hard to drive past that giant “M” floating in the sky? I honestly ask myself this question every time I happen to be sitting in the drive-thru during that impromptu visit for a small fry and four-piece nugget. Lately, my outings have gotten a bit frequent. I’m pretty sure the tween who works the nightshift Monday through Friday knows me by name, order and license plate, but thankfully is just too shy to say something. Still, as I sit in the car with the smell of grease wafting in through the windows, I cannot come up with any answers. Which brings me to another question: how many others like me are out there? The startling facts I soon discovered left me bewildered and terribly concerned for the American population.
I’m not sure whether I would call it relieving or frightening to find that there are people like me out there – many people – one in four, to be exact. Twenty-five percent of Americans make a quick stop at a nearby fast food restaurant each day. McDonald’s international span feeds more than the entire population of Spain every 24 hours. With all of the television that Americans watch on a daily basis, it is no wonder why there are so many commercials directed towards spending your money on greasy food.
Have you ever seen a McDonald’s television commercial? If you’ve ever tuned into Thursday nights “Grey’s Anatomy” episode, chances are, an upbeat jingle and smiling kids are convincing you that a Happy Meal is what you need at that very moment. I will give that clown Ronald lots of credit for coming up with this child-friendly feast. Who doesn’t want a meal that is guaranteed to make you “happy”? For God’s sake, I’m 19 and am dying for a handful of McNuggets, salty fries and a toy!
What’s faster or easier than pulling up to a window, dropping about five dollars and being satisfied for hours? The convenience is not the only strategic part of fast food companies. Have you ever wondered what happened to proper utensils such as forks and knives? The rise of fast food paralleled the demise of those tools used for eating. An entire meal can now be consumed, with hands only, from behind a wheel while driving 65 miles per hour.
I can only speak for myself when I say that I am not one of the lucky few that have a money tree planted by daddy in the backyard. With this in mind, it is no surprise that for a large portion of high school I lived off of the “The Dollar Menu.” Items such as a sundae, double cheeseburger or small fry became were affordable and easy to grab to grab during that 15 minutes between classes. It is also intriguing to know that this year, over $100 billion will be spent on fast food. That’s more than what Americans spend on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos and recorded music combined. For a while I thought that wearing sunglasses 24/7 would block me from eyeing those bright, inviting fast food signs. However, all I needed to know were the facts. I will not allow myself to become a statistic of the frustrating reality of the fast food world – and neither should you!
Rose Mirandi can be reached at [email protected]
