The more I blog, the more I find myself philosophically aligned with concepts such as local, unprocessed, eco-friendly and small producer/small business.

At the same time, when I spend significant time researching the science behind the sticky issues we address, I often come down defending “big ag”, “corporate” and “government” based on my findings.

Sometimes, the same person that decries the lack of scientific data behind cloning, irradiation and other FDA rulings will take herbal supplements with many ingredients which have not been studied in a scientific manner.  I know producers who grow GMO crops, yet only buy non-rBST milk and talk of the “hormones and antibiotics” in our milk supply.

I know people who want more labels on our food to identify how it is produced, yet they are opposed to the USDA imposing mandatory animal identification, which would be required to implement such labels for meat, milk and poultry products.

I’ve seen cases where both sides of an issue cite the same study to support their own viewpoint.  When that happens, how do you know what to believe?

Here’s how I balance my brain and my gut when I’m evaluating media on an issue:

• Is there fear involved?
• Are both viewpoints represented?
• Is the author or group’s passion so great that everything seems black and white?
• What is the level of defensiveness and aggression in the piece?

The fact of the matter is, science is expensive.  Non-corporate sponsorship (government and private) is a small component of total research dollars, so much research has at least somne corporate money behind it.  When one delves deeply into peer-reviewed research, the data can usually be trusted.  Sometimes, even when the science is sound, the conclusions drawn are biased.  Unfortunately, research into alternative, non-mainstream and low-tech production practices tends not to get funded, so the research projects are often small, poorly designed or not adequately controlled to draw good conclusions.

The bottom line is that most issues are NOT clear-cut, and we all have to make the best, most informed decisions we can.