LORD HELP ME! I could have sent you to another site that speaks of the ills of imbibing the Aspartame in diet drinks. Mister man, don’t you see that I sent you to a site that says that the attacks on Aspartame are false?
In my article I used the words “it is said that” twice, “fama est” (it is said), “according to this study”, “everything you see on the Internet is not necessarily true”, and “has been reported”. The article in no way asserts that The Wild Coot thinks drinking diet drinks is harmful; drink on.
“With respect to monosodium glutamate, MSG, I stated categorically that I know of the destructive effects. I swore from the dock, although I did not mention the Bible or the Koran. I said no such thing about Aspartame. It probably does not affect certain people. Throwing the issue out to the public in furtherance of a wider debate was the intention.
For example, I could have steered you to another site, http:/rhondagessner.wordpress.com/2013/9/02/a-killer-in-your-fridge-sweet-poison-a-must-read/
Here the protagonist quotes examples from first-hand experience that for all intents and purposes are as true as allegations made on the other site.
To quote: “We found that some physicians, who believed that they had a patient with retinopathy, in fact, had symptoms caused by Aspartame. The Aspartame drives blood sugar out of control. Thus diabetics may suffer acute memory loss due to the fact that aspartic acid and phenylalanine are neurotoxic when taken without the other amino acids necessary for a good balance.
“Treating diabetes is all about balance. Especially with diabetics, Aspartame passes the blood/brain barrier and then deteriorates the neurons of the brain; causing various levels of brain damage, seizures, depression, manic depression, panic attacks, uncontrollable anger and rage. Consumption of Aspartame causes these same symptoms in non-diabetics as well.
“Documentation and observation also reveal that thousands of children diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have had complete turnarounds in their behaviour when these chemicals have been removed from their diet.”
Mister man has now not only resorted to the newspapers to debunk my article, but has written me a personal email in which the responsibility of my pen has been questioned. To be polite, I can only say “go back and reread the article and you may conclude that it opens debate and does not profess conclusions”.
Hey, and do not challenge my responsibility or that of the Editor of the NATION to whom I assiduously submit my articles for scrutiny prior to publishing them.
Another issue, sir, in my reply to your email. I said, “By the way, you did not comment on my assertion that we all come from an amoeba.”
The reference (and you seem to have unfortunately misinterpreted this also) is to previous articles exposed for serious debate. Hermaphrodites – 25/2/13, Why hermaphrodites – 6/5/13, Darwin Come Forth – 24/6/13.
You see, a newspaper not only publishes news but places provocative issues in the public domain for sensible debate. I do so with a little humour.
Now, about your consumption of diet drinks, I have no complaint. You may choose from the following ailments sooner or never: fibromyalgia symptoms, spasms, shooting pains, numbness in your legs, cramps, vertigo, dizziness, headaches, tinnitus, joint pain, unexplainable depression, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision, or memory loss. You probably have Aspartame poisoning!
Please note that you and Hugh Hefner may be the exception, but the old-time people always say that it is the last kiddie that kill the mother.
• Harry Russell is a banker; email quijote70@gmail.com
