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Pass the Salt-Police
No one will deny that we Puerto Ricans are proud of our culture and very proud of our cuisine. Much of our food contains – dare I say it: salt. It’s part of who we are, have been, and will be. The unique blend of salt and a variety of flavors in every Puerto Rican meal is to be savored and enjoyed. It’s hard to understand how any Puerto Rican would consider making a law to cast our food aside and recommend ways to punish restaurants that prepare and serve Puerto Rican dishes. A recently-introduced piece of legislation by Assemblyman Felix Ortiz would prohibit the use of salt in the preparation of restaurant food: “No owner or operator of a restaurant in this state shall use salt in any form in the preparation of any food for consumption by customers of such restaurant, including food prepared to be consumed on the premises of such restaurant or off of such premises.” The penalty for breaking this ‘law’ includes fines of up to $1,000 for each individual addition of salt by restaurant staff, whether before, during or after cooking. Should restaurants owners in New York City be fined $1,000.00 per plate for serving sofrito or habichuelas? Should they actually be fined for using Adobo or Sazon to season meals? The Center for Consumer Freedom, a nonprofit coalition supported by restaurants, food companies, and consumers that works together to promote personal responsibility and protect consumer choices had this reaction to Assemblyman Ortiz’s bill: “Forcing a restaurant to stop using salt is the equivalent of telling a carpenter to stop using nails or a barber to not use scissors.” Exactly. Assemblyman Ortiz, we have a budget to pass and some very difficult work to do in Albany. This does not include making legislation to eliminate salt or sending the salt police out to fine restaurant owners. A legislator’s job does not include designing ways to penalize hard working New Yorkers who prepare meals for families and individuals to enjoy. I suggest that Assemblyman Ortiz check his birth certificate and then join me for a bowl of asopao de pollo with a side order of tostones. Then he should lay this plan aside along with any plans he has to join the salt police for photo-ops when any salt ban goes into effect. If not, Bobby Flay may just have to step up to challenge Assemblyman Felix Ortiz to a Throw Down. The Assemblyman can make his arroz con gandules “sin sal” and Bobby Flay can use any traditional Puerto Rican recipe that has brought families and friends together for generations. Senator Reverend Ruben Diaz is the Chair of the New York State Senate Puerto Rican/Latino Caucus Anyone who would defend this should remember the words of Samuel Adams, "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen!" I was once younger and maybe more naive. I felt that government could and would make life better for the masses, that those elected to office were inherently wanting to better the lot of their fellow men. As I've grown older, I've become more pessimistic, maybe more realist, disillusioned, or maybe I've come to see that men, whether lay men or those entrusted to govern their fellow man, are selfish....or maybe just wanting of attention... Maybe a combination of all the aforementioned. It is with these thoughts in mind that I note that when I was younger, I disliked Ruben Diaz. Maybe from what I had seen, or what I had heard, read from the media, I don't know. Thanks to the internet, and seeing the senate sessions on television, my former opinions have changed and I have begun to, grudgingly, develop a measure of respect for Reverend Diaz. I may not agree with his opinion on every issue, but in regards to this one, I do not see how anyone could criticize his stand. In the last few years, those of you who live in New York City and own property have seen your property taxes go up four fold, you've seen your water bill go up the same, and have had the experience of your government officials tell you that using less water doesn't matter, that they'll raise the rates to meet a revenue goal. Those of you who rent have seen your rents go up because your landlord has to make up for the new expenses. Or you've seen less services. Less repairs, less heat, less hot water. You've seen Con Edison raise rates through the roof to make up for their added expenses in property taxes and corporate executive pay. You've seen more graffitti, less sanitation trucks, less snow removal in the outer boroughs, many more potholes, and no matter what they tell you, more crime. Those of you outside the city within the state have seen your property values fall precipituously while taxes have skyrocketed. With all the above problems, every day you see your newspapers report on how there is no consensus on a budget, there is a deficit, and elected officials crying to anyone, whether the federal government or other agency, that we need a bailout. It is with this in mind and in the current state of affairs that an Assemblyman (FELIX ORTIZ) decides to ban salt. "No owner or operator of a restaurant in this state shall use salt in any form in the preparation of any food for consumption by customers of such restaurant, including food prepared to be consumed on the premises of such restaurant or off of such premises.” MESSAGE TO THE ASSEMBLYMAN (FELIX ORTIZ): ALL THINGS IN EXCESS HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO BE BAD FOR YOU... Do we ban sugar next? Gasoline smells bad, lets ban it. How about the color black? What about wine? Not good for you. Pork? too much fat. Sunlight causes cancer. Ban it. Television? bad for your eyesight. Computers? those too. Ban them all. If you read too many books, your eyesight might go bad also. Ban those. That an assemblyman, an elected official, someone who is supposed to be elected to better the position of his fellow man, would propose such stupidity, such a dumb proposal, leaves me dumbfounded. Wanting of attention? or is there some other reason, maybe a lack of a contribution from a restaurant or salt company? Whatever it may be, it is a stupid idiotic proposal for the People of New York. When considered in light of all the REAL PROBLEMS that face this assemblyman's constituency, the People of the State of New York, YOU THE PEOPLE, must consider whether this guy (FELIX ORTIZ) deserves to be in Albany. We live in a supposed "free nation", I want to be able to make my own choices on what I should consume and how much of it. I don't need a freakin' politician to dictate how I should live my life. If he doesn't like salt then HE shouldn't consume it - period! The government has got to stop trying to steer our lives this way and that way. Based on this moronic and ridiculous pice of legislation it's quite obvious Assemblyman Felix Ortiz has way too much time on his hands or is simply unfit and utterly unqualified to hold this post. I agree with previous comments, when you take into account ALL of the things that are wrong in NYC - THIS IS WHAT HE INTENDS TO WASTE HIS TIME AND OUR TAXPAYER MONEY ON????
Interesting post. A lot of states are dealing with this same thing. http://thestatecolumn.com/states/newyork.php It's completely illegal to stop restaurants to add salt in their foods,instead it's better to find an altenative solution.
It is impingement of highest order or a vintage type. We must unite and raise our voice to stop this legislation. The government should come out with ulternate solutions. Hope good sense prevails. thanks for the information.
You do know that the priest wanted to be arrested? You do know it was his second time being arrested at Notre Dame for not having permission to protest. You do know that it was his intention to be arrested? You do know that in order to protest at Notre Dame he needed permission to protest on Notre Dame property? testking 70-647 just like students and staff need permission. You do know priests are not given special considerations. On one hand I can agree that many restaurants add WAY too much salt to food, but outright banning it is ridiculous. Inform people about the salt issue, don't force them to do anything. - Steven @
In 2000, Assemblyman Ortiz achieved passage of the nation’s first law to ban the use of hand held cell phones while driving a motor vehicle. This law has saved the lives of hundreds of New Yorkers and has since been replicated by other states. Assemblyman Ortiz continues to respond to requests for help from families of accident victims and legislators in states that have not yet passed this law. yes i would say this is definately on the very stupid side, politicians these days are coming up with the most ludicrous things, Now personally I don't eat much salt, and really don't miss it. But to ban it from restraunts is just rediculous
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This is absurd to ban restaurants for putting salt on the food. I don't think I would even bother to go to eat in that restaurant without salt. It is not going to taste good at all. Now days what have politic have come to? They are trying to stop what we are eating. Where is our freedom to choose? I really don't like being forced to do things. Anna @
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Wow, that's incredible.. It would be interesting to see how they could put this into effect, monitor the places and enforce it. Would this mean that chefs would be using higher salt content foods to get around the legislation? (I actually saw something similar on a Dinner Impossible a while back - they used foods using higher salt level - soy sauce etc - as they had a condition of not adding/using salt)
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I am a very proud Puerto Rican and the proposed salt ban has nothing to do with our culture.
There is no good reason why restaurants add such an incredible amount of salt to food. It is bad for us, and like so many other things in some of our traditional recipes, salt is helping us to an early grave.
Maybe we should go back to lard instead of cooking oil?
I am not for the salt ban, as I think it will be harder to enforce and manage than the transfat ban or the calorie counts. Lower sodium foods have begun to pop up in our supermarkets and soon I hope restaurant menus will advertise lower salt dishes. Perhaps a better piece of legislation is to include salt and fat contents on menus along with recommended daily allowances (which I admit is easier said than done).
But to attack someone's sense of culture because of this is disgusting, ridiculous, petty, and just plain stupid. All things that we have come to expect from Senator Ruben Diaz. This article is no surprise at all, in fact the only surprise is that Diaz didn't link the proposed salt ban to gay marriage. Then again, the senator can be slow at times, so give him a few days and he'll find a way.
In the meantime, I hope restaurants start dropping the salt content, not just latin american restaurants. KFC is one of the worst because the extra salt actually stings your lips because there is so much of it. Some McDonalds don't serve fries with salt added. Others do the opposite and give you salt with a few fries added, with big salt crystals gleaming off the oily surface. Burger King, Wendys, etc. are all the same. Diners make homemade soups that often are over-salted. Asian restaurants (especially the bullet-proof Chinese takeouts) are some of the most notorious for adding too much salt. Soul food restaurants aren't much better.
I love latin american food. But when I cook it I use olive or canola oil, not lard like my grandparents used. I trim the fat off my meats. I think about the nutritional content of each dish. And I go real easy with the salt, and instead use a number of herbs and spices that are easily found in Puerto Rico. It wasn't a hard transition to make, and I didn't wait until my doctor told me I was gonna die if I didn't do it.
Back to the idiotic post: The senator should take a good look at high blood pressure and heart disease in his own district before writing such incredibly stupid posts like this. His constituents should see him for the hack he is. I mean really, what the hell does salt have to do with being a Puerto Rican? I'd rather ease up on the salt and be around to be a senior citizen.