Fast Food vs. Planting Trees

By Mackenzie Miller

I feel like lately all I see are fast food ads. Seriously. At first, I thought I was crazy. Then, I thought I was hungry. But after my roommates reassured me that yes, billboards, radio stations and commercials are all blasting the same message – EAT! – I came to a new conclusion. Maybe it’s this “economic downturn” that has McDonald’s and Taco Bell so proud of their dollar menus.

I mean, its genius, really. People are stressing out about money right now. They’re mood is down because they can no longer afford the finer things in life. They’re staying in more, and likely watching T.V. for entertainment to save money. And then, a vision in grease appears: a juicy hamburger! Right on the screen – for only 99 cents!

Greasy, cheesy fried food makes people feel good, as does actually being able to afford the products from advertisements. What a nice remedy for the economy-blues! Cheap, and comforting – sounds like a win/win situation, right? Wrong!

Downing that super-sized meal may be the perfect pick-me-up, but the happiness it leaves fades after digestion. And then what do you have? (Besides a stomach ache and onion breath, that is.) Nothing. Not even your dollar.

I wish I could make a value menu for PWP. A tree, for a dollar? Sounds like a steal to me. Think about it: instead of an incompetent teenager asking you “if you want fries with that,” heartburn, and post-meal, caloric guilt, you could help save a village. Save an economy. Save the environment. Save lives!

As far as I’m concerned, that’s about the only thing a dollar can buy that will make ME feel better than devouring a plate of nachos ever could.