Classport - Baldwin Park

Observation: Baldwin Park is completely about uniformity. All the homes are the same style and same color. The stores blend in together and make a sleek downtown look. Most of the cars are expensive and there are plenty of lakes, rivers and parks.

Speculation: I think that Baldwin Park is here because there is a lot of space and it is also in a decent area.

Analysis: They obviously had the land to build this super sub-urb, so they went with it. It was a huge success and one of the prettiest "neighborhoods" I've ever been in.

Evaluation: The neighborhood is here because of space, and because they wanted to make a neighborhood out of a defunct military college.

Questions

Q: Why is Baldwin Park located where it is?
A: A lot of space to put it on (former Naval Training Center) and we wanted to "turn a defunct military college into a sustainable, traditional neighborhood that would complement the surrounding community."

Q: What kind of people are you looking to attract to your neighborhood?
A: We are seeking "urban dwellers seeking a new home in an old, established area of town and suburbanites seeking to escape long commutes."

Q: What are your cheapest houses? Your most expensive?
A: Our cheapest houses are in the low $200,000; our most expensive houses can be over $5,000,000.


The main differences between my neighborhood and this neighborhood are: My neighborhood is very open, while Baldwin Park is an enclosed community that is pretty much self supportive. My neighborhood is very inexpensive compared to the houses in Baldwin Park. All around, Baldwin Park is much better than my neighborhood.

Chapter 10, "Global Realization"

4 In what ways might there be a connection between the obesity rate in America and the fast food industry? Obesity is directly related to the rate of fast food consumption, as the fast food industry grew, so did the obesity in America. Obesity is twice as high today, compared to the 60's, and nothing genetically changed in Americans. The reason obesity is climbing so high is the fact the us Americans do not want to wait for an expensive, healthy meal. We want a cheap, big portioned meal. Maybe the fast food restaurants should lower their portions, reduce the fat and calories, and maybe make it a little more expensive. It is worth it.

5 Why is obesity a problem for American society as a whole? America has the highest obesity rate of all the countries. 1/2 of all American adults and 1/4 of our children are 30 pounds over their healthy weight (they are obese.) Obesity is second to smoking as a cause of mortality in Americans. (Come on, if it is threatening our lives why don't we cut back?) 280,000 Americans die each year due to obesity. Children are now dying from heart attacks, which used to only happen to middle aged adults and above. Children get 1/4 of their total vegetable consumption from french fries.

7 What did London Greenpeace do to protest McDonald's and what was McDonald's response? The London Greenpeace protested any new creation of McDonald's and the fought with violence. They tore down the golden arches and McDonald's had no choice but to close down their stores in London.


Obesity is definitely a problem in America, and pretty much any country accepting McDonald's and other fast food industries. We need to change something before Wall-E comes to life. Unfortunately, our race has failed to change its ways, EVER, until it becomes a serious problem. This time, we really need to change BEFORE the effects of our arrogance start to take a toll.

Chapter 1, "The Founding Fathers"

1 What restaurant chain did Carl Karcher start? Carl Karcher started Carl's Jr; Which eventually led to CKE, his big organization. Carl got fired once from CKE, but he soon regained control. CKE also joined with Green Burrito and made tons of money to try and pay off Carl's debt.

3 What was the "Speedee Service System" and how was it different from what other fast food restaurants were doing? In the "Speedee Service System" the workers all had one job. They would do that one job over, and over again. It made an assembly line, just like a factory, and the burgers were fast. They only sold hamburgers and cheeseburgers at the time and you could only have ketchup, mustard, onions and two pickles on your sandwich. No substitutions were allowed.

5 What were some of the other fast food restaurants that were inspired by McDonald's approach to food service? Most of the fast food restaurants were inspired by the McDonald brothers new, revolutionary idea. Some of the restaurants inspired were Carl's Jr, Sandy's, Carol's, Henry's, Winky's, Mr 15, Burger Chefs and Burger Queen. These are only a few examples of the restaurants inspired by the McDonald's revolutionary ideas on the fast food mania.


This chapter was really interesting! I learned a lot about how the fast food industry was created and i learned about Carl's Jr. Maybe I'll pick up a Carl's Jr burger, just to help his debt.

Chapter 9, "What's in the Meat"

1 Compared to several decades ago, how common are food-related illnesses today? Today, more than 200,000 people are sicken from food borne disease each day. 900 hospitalized, and 14 die. (That's insane! Compared to decades ago, that is an incredible increase. Why are we doing this to ourselves?)

2 How has the centralization of food production influenced the spread of food-related illnesses? Because we get most of our beef from just a few companies, if one of them get infected with E. coli, then that could be more than 1/4 of our meat supply infected. This centralization of food production causes the spreading of bacteria to be mass effective.

5 What was the first national hamburger chain & what did it do to try to change the image of the hamburger? The first national hamburger chain was White Castle. They tried to change the image of the hamburger by placing the grill in view of the costumers, boasting that the meat was delivered fresh twice a day, and their name indicated purity. The company even went so far as to sponsor an experiment where a med student lived 13 weeks only on hamburgers and water.

Chapter 8, "The Most Dangerous Job"

1 How does the injury rate in meat packing compare with the injury rate in other occupations? The injuries in meat packing are nearly 3 times higher than in most factories. Almost 1/3 of the workers in a meat packing industry will suffer an injury or illness beyond basic first aid. (That is insane! Imagine if 1/3 of the teachers in our school had an injury once a year!)

2 What kinds of injuries do workers in meat packing plants typically suffer? The injuries in the meat packing plants are typically lacerations (stabbings of themselves of their fellow workers.) The workers also suffer from back and shoulder problems. (Fun job!)

3 What is the impact on workers of speeding up the line in meatpacking plants? When the lines are sped up, the workers must rush to not fall behind. This means they are more likely to stab themselves, cut off a finger or one of a nearby worker. Some slaughter houses slaughter up to 400 cattle an hour. (... wow.)

4 Why don't more workers complain about safety conditions in the plants? Because most of the workers are not part of a union, (usually because they are illegal immigrants) they would easily be fired if they spoke out. The immigrants make much more money in the meat packing job than anything they could do in their own country. They fear of losing their job.


This chapter was huge shocker. I couldn't believe the story told at the end of the chapter. How some company could do that to somebody is just beyond my understanding. These meat packing industries treat their workers like animals and the OSHA should really go inside the factories and not just look at the injury list (which is a big lie.)

Chapter 7, "Cogs in the Great Machine"

1 What changes did IBP introduce to the meat packing industry? IBP (Iowa Beef Packing) introduced many changes to the meat packing industry. The meat packing industry at that time was a middle class job, well paid and was considered a decent job to have. It also took a lot of skill. IBP used assembly lines so that workers wouldn't have to be very skilled, thus cutting the wages by 50%. IBP also had its own meat grinder so it made even more money.

3 What were the links between IBP and organized crime? Butchers in New York boycotted and blocked IBP's boxed beef from sale. In order to solve this, the mob offered "help" for 5% commission on every 10 pounds of beef sold in New York. The mob bribed the butchers and IBP began shipping to New York. Later, the mob and IBP were convicted of bribery and had to pay a fine.

7 Where do meat packing companies go to recruit new employees? What is the “new industrial migrant?” The meat packing companies go to Mexico and Guatemala to recruit new employees. The migrants are payed a lot more than they are in their home country and usually eventually return home after they save up money. 1/4 of all workers in the meat packing industry are illegal immigrants. The companies also hire homeless from around the country.


This chapter wasn't much of a shocker. However, i did not know that the meat packing industry was ever a middle class job. It just seems impossible!

Chapter 6, "On the Range"

1) What are some of the problems facing cattle ranchers? Cattle ranchers these days face an enormous amount of problems. Most of them become bankrupt because they don't make money off of selling their cattle, or they might even lose money. The rising land prices, and the roller-coaster beef prices also contributes. Because of the fast food industry and the use of the meat packing industry, ranchers are constantly pressured into selling their land.

2) What impact has the consolidation of the meat packing industry had on cattle ranchers? Big fast food industries are seeking uniformity, unlike how they used to operate they no longer buy meat from local farmers. They now buy from a select 5 or 6 meat packing industries, so their food tastes identical. This is giving the cattle ranchers very little income. The meat packing industry sets the price for cattle, while making sure the ranchers get the lowest price. This leaves many of the ranchers selling their land to the big industries. "The top 4 meat packing industries slaughter 84% of the nations' cattle."

4) What was the impact of the Chicken McNugget on the poultry industry? The Chicken McNugget turned chicken into something easily eaten in the car. "It turned chicken farmers into little more than surfs." More and more poultry was being consumed, and not in the whole form (as was the usual before the McNugget) but as strips and nuggets. Many fast food restaurants now offered chicken at their restaurant, which many thought was healthier than the hamburgers... (WRONG!)


This chapter went into detail on how horrible our once beloved farmers are treated. Their prices for their cattle are determined by the big-shot industries, which are not very high. The farmer is becoming an extinct species.