{"id":95042,"date":"2013-07-11T01:44:25","date_gmt":"2013-07-10T20:14:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/?p=95042"},"modified":"2013-07-24T00:35:05","modified_gmt":"2013-07-23T19:05:05","slug":"sleep-walking-kind-beware-of-approvers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/index.php\/sleep-walking-kind-beware-of-approvers\/","title":{"rendered":"Sleep-Walking Kind: Beware Of Approvers"},"content":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Malinda Seneviratne<\/a><\/span>\u00a0–<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Malinda Seneviratne<\/p><\/div>\n

Transgressions are often accompanied by approval.\u00a0 Approval comes in the form of justification. It can also take the form of dismissal through trivializing, i.e. of the \u2018boys will be boys<\/a><\/span>\u2019 or \u2018he was not drunk, he was sleep-walking<\/a><\/span>\u2019 kind.<\/p>\n

The magnitude or otherwise should not however warrant dismissal and this is probably why the adage \u2018punishment should fit crime\u2019 came about.\u00a0 Serious transgressions require heavy punishment, petty thievery warrant exaction of minor retribution.<\/p>\n

We are talking \u2018approval\u2019 here.\u00a0 It is no secret that false and exaggerated claims, especially in a situation where the claimant\u2019s reputation is suspect, need to be buttressed by approval.\u00a0 Approval must come from entities that appear to be uncompromised, honorable, ethical and professional.\u00a0 This is why people who have some kind of \u2018scientific\u2019 badge are tagged to claim.<\/p>\n

It is no secret that companies pump large sums of money into \u2018research\u2019 where compromised \u2018scientists\u2019 come up with conclusions that back false claims.\u00a0 It is also no secret that certain drug companies dress up models with stethoscopes and physicians\u2019 overcoats when peddling medicines.\u00a0 The laws of the country are either inadequate or lack teeth to counter these unethical tactics of product and brand promotion.\u00a0 Celebrities are used as models and they are also used as approvers.\u00a0 For a price.\u00a0 Kumar Sangakkara<\/a><\/span>\u2019s heart may bleed for those suffering from Osteoporosis, but if that\u2019s the case, he should not accept a cent from Anlene, for example. Maybe he doesn\u2019t.\u00a0 Other do, though.<\/p>\n

Celebrities, in their ignorance, endorsing products is understandable.\u00a0 When professional bodies play \u2018approver\u2019 for a price it is a serious matter.<\/p>\n

A few years ago, the Heart Association prostituted its logo on a bran cracker product, claiming it was heart-healthy when there was no scientific evidence to support the contention.<\/p>\n

Then we have the Nutrition Society, whose name suggests it is a professional body, actively soliciting and receiving funding from sections of the food industry and thereafter offering apparently neutral views on issues that either endorse products by relevant companies or deflect or dilute criticism of the same.\u00a0 Rightfully, they should disclose \u2018interest\u2019 when expressing their punditry.<\/p>\n

Recently, a high-ranking official of the Medical Research Institute, offering voice and designation to a promotional CD put out by the world poultry industry, subtly recommends that chicken be consumed three times a week, after contending that myths about the ill effects of eating chicken contributes to malnourishment among children.\u00a0 No caveats are offered, for example about alternative sources of protein.\u00a0 The message is simply \u2018give your child chicken or risk stunting\u2019.<\/p>\n

It is widely known, also, that infant foods that are not absolutely necessary are prominently branded in hospitals, especially in and around maternity and children\u2019s wards, where unsuspecting mothers are persuaded to purchase the unnecessary.<\/p>\n

The truth is that the consumer is ill-equipped to critically assess claims made by corporate racketeers and advertising agencies that really don\u2019t give a damn.\u00a0 Add the frill that is approval by apparently impeccable authority and the battle is won (by the unethical) and lost (by the consumer).<\/p>\n

Whenever an uncompromised professional stands up and says \u2018no\u2019 or \u2018wrong\u2019 and points finger, it is not the relevant corporate entity that moves to sit him or her down.\u00a0 It is the approving \u2018authority\u2019 that actively moves to pooh-pooh, marginalize and vilify.\u00a0 That\u2019s necessary because bucks count, one has to conclude.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s put them all together.\u00a0 We have extremely rich companies eminently positioned to purchase political cover, \u2018experts\u2019 and worse \u2018expert bodies\u2019 ready to receive sponsorship and therefore ready to compromise, scientists up for purchase, and a consumer that is ill-informed.\u00a0 The consumer would be like a Kumar Sangakkara suffering from cramps, flu and a cold and carrying a groin injury facing up to Dale Steyn in full cry, or like a flu-ridden, ankle-twisted and wrist-sprained Lasith Malinga hobbling up to bowl to Chris Gayle.\u00a0 Who would bet on Sangakkara hitting a six? Who would bet on Gayle getting out?<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a positive here.\u00a0 A healthy Sangakkara would negotiate Steyn.\u00a0 A healthy Malinga can outwit Gayle.\u00a0 An informed consumer who knows his or her rights would give those in the business of hoodwinking a headache.\u00a0 A community of such consumers would knock them out.<\/p>\n

*Malinda Seneviratne is the Chief Editor of \u2018The Nation\u2019\u00a0and his articles can be found at\u00a0www.malindawords.blogspot.com<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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