Burger: Then and Now

So far, "Fast Food Nation," is an incredibly interesting and slightly disturbing story of how the multi-million dollar industry of fast food chains made evolved over time. Originally a job for hard-working entrepenuers like Carl Karcher who bought a small hot dog stand in California and slowly expanded. As the fast food industry began to catch on as a way to make quick money, buisness pioneers such as the McDonalds brothers began perfecting the art of "Good food, fast." I think its interesting how the fast food industry really came up off the automobile industry, how with the rising stock of one product and fuel the growth of another. The stories behind such infamous fast food chains like "Taco Bell," "Dunkin' Donuts," "Wendy's," "Domino's," and "Kentucky Fried Chicken," are amazing in the sense of how many buisness ventures these pioneers were into. Its incredible that an industry, birthed by the blue collar farmer or salesman, had become an industry formatted and mass produced as if food was being assembled in the same factories you buy your family Ford. I was also unaware at how close Fast Food was to never becoming an established industry during the "Arab oil embargo of 1973," due to rise in oil cost, a decrease in automobile sales and use, resulting in a decrease in people driving to these new "drive thru" restaurants. On one hand, men like Carl Karcher and the McDonald brother's made it possible for the average American family to feed his entire family on a budget. On the other hand, they are partly responsible for the health risks that accompany regular fast food consumpsion.