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<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Joe Rogain, heir to the hair-growing-chemical fortune, promoted “scientific research” funded by a group called “Moms Across America” indicating that Girl Scout cookies contain heavy metals and toxins:<\/p>\n
“100% of the cookies tested contained aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury and that 13 cookies were positive for high levels of glyphosate” (a herbicide).” (source<\/a>)<\/p>\n “The study wasn’t published in a scientific journal, was not peer-reviewed and used a small sample size.<\/strong>… It also compared heavy metals and glyphosate levels not to U.S. Food and Drug Administration food safety standards, but rather to water safety limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency, which aren’t applicable to food.” (source<\/a>)<\/p>\n “”a 66 lb. child would need to consume approximately 9,000 cookies daily<\/strong> to approach the EPA’s chronic reference dose.” (source<\/a>)<\/p>\n It was not peer-reviewed.<\/strong> Why does that matter?<\/p>\n Is the research wrong? No.<\/p>\n But all cookies contain similar toxins, even homemade cookies made with commercial ingredients.<\/strong> It’s part of modern agriculture. Actually, it’s likely that 99% of the food you can buy have similar toxins at similar levels in them.<\/p>\n Peer review<\/strong> would have required the authors of the study to compare the measured amounts to regulations on food (and not water). Also, to indicate that all cookies and almost all food products have these kinds of toxins. \u00a0Government regulations are set at amounts that other research has shown has a low-enough risk. Producers don’t work to go below those amounts.<\/p>\n So why the Girl Scouts? This is how you weaponize “scientific research.” And what peer-review is meant to undermine.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Some possible reasons to target the Girl Scouts:<\/p>\n 1. <\/span>Targeting a Well-Known, High-Profile Brand for Maximum Publicity<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n \u2022 Girl Scout cookies are iconic and widely consumed, especially by children, making them an easy target for fear-based activism.<\/p>\n \u2022 The annual cookie sales generate massive public attention, giving MAA a prime opportunity to insert itself into a national conversation.<\/p>\n 2. <\/span>Tapping into Conservative Distrust of Girl Scouts<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n \u2022 While MAA presents itself as non-partisan, its concerns (anti-GMO, anti-corporate food production) often align with right-wing populist themes<\/b><\/span>.<\/p>\n \u2022 Many conservative groups have long had issues with Girl Scouts\u2019 progressive stances<\/b><\/span>\u2014on LGBTQ+ inclusion, feminism, and partnerships with organizations like Planned Parenthood.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Boy Scouts split over LGBTQ+ inclusion<\/b><\/span> and the rise of alternative conservative scouting groups (like Trail Life USA) suggest a culture war element at play.<\/p>\n \u2022 Conservative commentators and activists have, in the past, encouraged boycotts of Girl Scout cookies<\/b><\/span> for ideological reasons.<\/p>\n 3. <\/span>Discrediting \u201cBig Food\u201d While Avoiding Direct Fights with Major Corporations<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n \u2022 If MAA attacked <\/span>Nabisco (Oreos) or Nestl\u00e9<\/b>, they would face <\/span>legal and PR pushback from powerful corporate entities<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n \u2022 Girl Scouts, as a non-profit, are an easier target<\/b><\/span>\u2014they lack the resources to fight back effectively while still having name recognition.<\/p>\n \u2022 This allows MAA to spread fear about food safety in a way that is harder to debunk<\/b><\/span>, since Girl Scouts rely on outsourced production.<\/p>\n 4. <\/span>Playing to an Audience That Responds to \u201cToxic Kids\u2019 Foods\u201d Messaging<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n \u2022 Fear of \u201chidden toxins in children\u2019s foods\u201d<\/b><\/span> is a hallmark of pseudoscientific health activism<\/b><\/span>, much like past panics over vaccines, GMOs, and artificial sweeteners.<\/p>\n \u2022 The framing of this campaign\u2014\u201cpoison in children\u2019s cookies!\u201d<\/b><\/span>\u2014is classic fearmongering<\/b><\/span>, designed to appeal to parents who distrust the food industry and government regulations.<\/p>\n 5. <\/span>Opportunism and Fundraising<\/b><\/b><\/p>\n \u2022 Advocacy groups like MAA thrive on viral fear campaigns<\/b><\/span>, which drive donations and media attention.<\/p>\n \u2022 A lawsuit against Girl Scouts<\/b><\/span> (even if it fails) boosts their credibility among their followers<\/b><\/span> as \u201cfighting the system\u201d and can be used for future fundraising.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Joe Rogain, heir to the hair-growing-chemical fortune, promoted “scientific research” funded by a group called “Moms Across America” indicating that Girl Scout cookies contain heavy metals and toxins: “100% of the cookies tested contained aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury Continue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":138,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3360","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-environmental-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3360","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/138"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3360"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3360\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3373,"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3360\/revisions\/3373"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3360"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3360"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.owu.edu\/envs110-198-498\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3360"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n