Today marks the first Friday of June and, subsequently, National Doughnut Day. Celebrated since 1938, the day was meant to mark summer's approach (88 degrees means the arrival Today marks the first Friday of June and, subsequently, National Doughnut Day. Celebrated since 1938, the day was meant to mark summer’s approach (88 degrees means the arrival of summer in my book) and was initially used to celebrate the women who served soliders doughnuts during World War I (because nothing spells appreciation like “doughnut”).
Does anybody else find dough fried in fat totally disgusting? As if the Americanized treat couldn’t get any nastier, we’ve covered it in sugar and stuffed it with cream. And just when I thought “Doughnut Day” couldn’t get any dumber, the Competitive Enterprise Institution put a political spin on it, encouraging American’s to eat not one, but two doughnuts; “one for yourself, and one as an act of patriotic civil disobedience” against the government’s growing involvement in the regulation of nutritional information.
Recent legislation has made it mandatory for restaurants to include caloric information on their menus, which has enraged many Americans. The FDA is also requesting restaurants and food manufacturers cut back on the level of salt added to processed foods. CEI, a “public interest group dedicated to free enterprise and limited government,” believes “that the best solutions come from people making their own choices in a free marketplace, rather than government intervention.” This is all fine and dandy. Really, I’m no communist. Eat what you want. However, I find it difficult to see any fault in releasing nutritional information to the public. The government isn’t telling you not to eat that McDonald’s Big Mac, they’re just providing you with enough information to make an educated decision, which may or may not be a slap in the face of the uneducated.
Despite the newfangled nutritional legislation, Krispy Kreme, who had suffered a dramatic loss in revenue after going public, managed to double their quarterly earnings from last year. Even though American’s are learning which foods make them fat, it seems many just don’t care. In fact, I’ve had countless customers nearly attack me with menus, faces red over my restaurant’s calorie counts, but their display of concern hardly ever prevents them from ordering differently than they would have otherwise. Ignorance is bliss, I suppose, and I guess most Americans would rather be totally fat than informed.
If you still find yourself craving a free, fried-in-fat treat, Dunkin’ Donuts is offering a free donut with any beverage purchase. Even better, Krispy Kreme is offering free donuts to any schmuck that walks into their store. You can even check the nutritional information for your favorite Dunkin‘ or
Krispy Kreme Doughnut.
June 04, 2010 at 4:14 pm, DoughnutDan said:
You need to loosen up. There is nothing wrong with a delicious doughnut once in a while.