Satire is Dead- Long Live Jamie

“It was at that moment that satire died. There was nothing more to say after that.”

(The musical satirist Tom Lehrer, when Henry Kissinger, US Secretary of State who masterminded the illegal invasion of Cambodia, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973. Lehrer decided he could no longer perform.)

Thursday Dinner time- Jamie’s Ministry of Food – All Saints Square

 

I happened to be passing enemy HQ yesterday- and I was shocked.

I saw something so brazen, so ridiculous- it’s almost too much to take in.

A woman involved in the cooking lesson (I believe it was centre manager Lisa Taylor) was wearing an orange T-shirt. On closer inspection- I could see this was a Sainsbury’s T-shirt. On the back- was a slogan which proudly trumpeted that Sainsbury’s support Jamie’s Ministry of Food.

 

Are you fucking kidding me?

 

In the original press release for Ministry of Food- the key quote is:

 

“We spend over £2 billion a year on ready meals”.

 

The whole thing is sold on the need to get away from processed food and back to basics. Yet this enterprise is backed by one of the biggest pushers of ready meals in the country.

 

The early phase of the campaign also championed local produce. Paul Tingle appeared on the Radio Sheffield show and announced that he would be providing produce supplied by local farmers to use in the Ministry of Food. Now Sainsbury’s are in some way involved. Supermarkets are notorious for their profit first, everything else nowhere logistics operations. If you get a locally picked strawberry- it’s probably been dispatched via Aberdeen. Many small farmers claim that the dictatorial policies of the supermarket buyers squeeze them to near extinction. These days- the Man from Del Monte doesn’t say YES. The Man from Sainsbury, Tesco, ASDA says- do this, this and this- and if you don’t like making a penny a ton- eat your fucking strawberries.

All the local shops have been crushed- so don’t think you can go anywhere else. Which is another point. Jamie has said- it’s all about community. In the old days- there were communities round Rotherham. Places with local grocers; where your parents and grandparents could walk to with their shopping bags and buy fresh fruit and veg. How many quality local grocers are there now? How many sell decent produce? How many can compete with the monolithic supermarkets?

 

It’s all about community- sponsored by the people who helped to kill your community.

 

Jamie had to leave the BBC because he was blurring the line between his TV shows and Sainsbury’s ad’s. It looks like he may be up to his old tricks again.

 

I can’t believe that OFCOM will allow Sainsbury’s to be the lead sponsors of Ministry of Food, but that doesn’t matter. The power of suggestion is a mighty weapon. Subtle hints, complimentary adverts and the odd “accidental” T-shirt will do the trick.

 

Of course- some of you believe that the multi millionaire chef Jamie Oliver is trying to educate the people of Rotherham for altruistic reasons. It won’t be too much of a stretch for you to believe that J Sainsbury PLC, a public limited company with a duty to increase the wealth of shareholders, exists to promote healthy eating and help build communities. You must also believe that McDonalds sponsor football because their raison d’etre is the promotion of fitness through a healthy lifestyle.

 

One thing is for certain- if Sainsbury’s are enthusiastically on board – Ministry of Food is nothing more than a cheap entertainment show. To make any real difference would mean Jamie would have to bite the hand that feeds him. When he mildly criticised his paymasters in fowl dinners- he immediately issued a grovelling retraction.

This time, despite being the embodiment of everything he claims to oppose, Sainsbury’s are with him all the way. Proof that there is no substance to Jamie’s Ministry of Food.

 

Supermarket’s support Ministry of Food.

 

Is satire dead?
No Blackmail

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Sainsbury’s in Rotherham

Superstores 0

Their presence is limited to the understocked local stores they got when they took over the Jackson’s chain

Sainsbury’s Local Knowledge

Opening offer when opening refurbished Brecks store (Bearing in mind Rotherham has a large Muslim population)

Free bacon for all customers.