Bourdained!
Anthony Bourdain, international man of mystery and raconteur, is evidently involved in a feud with vegetarian author Jonathan Safran Foer. Apparently, while the two joined Larry King in a debate about meat production on Larry King, Bourdain’s line:
I think the standard practices of outfits like Cargill and some of the larger meat processors and grinders in this country are unconscionable and border on the criminal … I think certainly we could eat better in this country. It would probably not be a bad thing if we ate less meat
as repudiation a greenroom conversation about how "he was saying factory farming is the worst blight in America right now,”
Not quite clear what Foer expected, but the best part is that Mr. Bourdain showed up in the comment thread:
Disappointed?
Strangely enough, Mr. Foer’s comments to me immediately following the show were somewhat at odds with his account above. "I would have been afraid to say what you just said. They (the meat industry) are really litigious. They sued Oprah for less." Given the perception that I am an ally of all things meat, I would have imagined that Mr. Foer–like the representative of the industry that night–was surprised at my heartfelt anger, incredulity and disgust with the practices described in the Times account. Sure caught ol’ Larry off guard.
Instead, Mr. Foer is surprised that after a casual and brief conversation with Himself, I did not instantly convert to vegetarianism–somewhere between green room and studio.
I would suggest that perhaps he flatters himself.
