The Problem with Government Subsidies by Amy Johnson Frkyholm
Amy Johnson Frykholm is the author of Rapture Culture: Left
Behind in Evangelical America.This article appeared in The
Christian Century, April 22, 2008, pp. 24-27. Copyright by the
Christian Century Foundation; used by permission. Current
articles and subscriptions information can be found at
www.christiancentury.org. This material was prepared for
Religion Online by Ted and Winnie Brock. A breakfast frequently
served at my sonís school--where over half the children receive
government-supported meals--consists of commercially produced
French toast sticks and syrup. The list of ingredients on the
package for this meal is as long as this paragraph. It includes
not only partially hydrogenated soybean oil and high fructose
corn syrup, but also more mystifying additives like gelatinized
wheat starch, calcium caseinate, lecithin, guar gum and
cellulose gum. The story of how these items arrive at a school
cafeteria and are designated as food is a long an