Why Chik-fil-a is worse for America than gay marriage

“It is possible, I think, to say that... a Christian agriculture [is] formed upon the understanding that it is sinful for people to misuse or destroy what they did not make. The Creation is a unique, irreplaceable gift, therefore to be used with humility, respect, and skill.”
― Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture

“Eating at fast food outlets and other restaurants is simply a manifestation of the commodification of time coupled with the relatively low value many Americans have placed on the food they eat.”  - Andrew F. Smith

I've just returned from a blissful week in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where newspapers were scarce and the Internet even scarcer, so I'm just now learning that today is the day when Chick-fil-a supporters are supposed to flock to their local outlets and spend money, while opponents of the owner's views on "traditiona;l" marriage have apparently planned to picket and engage in what's euphemistically known as same-sex "public displays of affection." One of the many things I appreciate about living in America is that everyone has the right to express their opinion no matter how foolish or bigoted it might be, and I have the right to publicly disagree with those statements. The owner of Chick-fil-a has the right to open as many locations as he can responsibly afford, and I have the right not to give him even further opportunity to give money to groups that work against my self-interest by refusing to patronize his restaurants. Democracy and free speech: it's a good thing.

However, today's post is not about the current hullabaloo over gay marriage. As much as I think the "one man + one woman = biblical marriage" argument is a bit thin, I think the true danger of Chick-fil-a has not been addressed: Chick-fil-a is bad for America because it serves up heapin' helpins' of food that contributes. to the serious health problems that plague many Americans. I know, I know: Mickey D's and Burger King have a much wider reach, but Chick-fil-a is having it's day in the press, so I'm writing about them.

Consider this: a classic chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-a has 440 calories, 16 grams of fat (of which 4 gr. is saturated),  60 mgs. of cholesterol, and 1400 grams of sodium. Since a fast food sandwich is lonely by itself, let's throw in a small side of waffle fries and a small sweet tea. Here's the total nutritional damage from this nice little lunch:

830 calories

32 gr. fat

60 mg. cholesterol

1525 mg. sodium

 30 gr. sugar

An average adult woman consuming 1800-2000 calories per day will have used 50-75% of the recommended fat intake for an entire day while consuming nearly half the recommended calories needed to maintain healthy body weight. She has also consumed most of her recommended sodium intake (2300 mgs.) and 90% of the recommended amount of sugar. That's one meal, and the sugar and carb crash is going to be huge, leading to fatigue and loss of productivity. If the typical female consumer of fast food eats a meal at a Chick-fil-a restaurant only occasionally the damage is fairly insubstantial, but since 25% percent of Americans eat some type of fast food every day while 68% eat it once a week, chances are a meal like this is more than an occasional splurge. Obesity, along with its typical co-morbidities (Type II diabetes, hypertension, increased risk of stroke and heart disease) is running rampant through American society, so I raise the question: why do Christians who knowingly peddle food that shortens the lives of millions of people get a free pass while a couple of guys who've fallen in love and want to spend their lives together constitute such a freaking danger to American society? 

Now let's move away from the danger fast food poses to the individual and take a look at its effect on our land. Scripture commands us to be stewards of the good earth that God has given us, yet our dependence on fast food is creating havoc on our ecosystem because the requirements of industrial livestock production are simply unsustainable. This situation is dangerous for American society because the requirements of the fast food industry has meant that, as Michael Pollan describes it, the logic of nature has been overcome by the logic of human industry, and this imbalance is causing disruption up and down the food chain. If we look beyond the American landscape we find that in our never-ending quest for new fast-food sensations we have created ecological imbalances that will prove catastrophic for developing nations in the short term.  I don't know about anyone else, but I find this disregard for the planet and for humanity to be a lot more biblically problematic than same-sex marriage, but when I listen for a Christian critique of Chick-fil-a's complicity in harming the health of Americans and participation in an industry which undermines the ecosystem of a planet God created... hello? Bueller? Bueller?

So, all you Chick-fil-a defenders, please feel free to head on over to your local outlet and order up a Spicy Chicken Deluxe and enjoy! while doing your part to defend traditional marriage. It's a free country - God bless America! But don't kid yourself, because the meal you're eating is a lot more of a threat to you and your family than my girl-girl marriage to Miss Claire.