Getting All Political.

The Chicken Fried Texan is not political. I accept all fried food-loving people, be they gravy on or off the meat folks, lovers of fried or fresh okra or deep-fried over pan fried CFS aficionados.
But, action to ban delicious trans fats from Texas eateries recently passed by the Texas Senate has pushed me into action! (see below article or read the legislation here).

Image borrowed from here.

Texas Senate OKs Bill Banning Trans Fat
By JANET ELLIOTT
Houston Chronicle
May 8, 2009

AUSTIN — Chicken-fried steak with zero trans fat? Are you kidding? Not at the Texas Legislature, they’re not. Under a bill passed Friday by the Senate, restaurants across the state would be banned from cooking with oil that contains trans fat. Many major fast-food chains and doughnut shops already have stopped using trans fat, said Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, sponsor of the measure. Trans fat raises LDL, the “bad cholesterol,” and lowers HDL, or “good cholesterol,” which can lead to clogged arteries and an increased risk of heart attack or stroke. It now heads to the House, where it has passed in committee, giving it healthy odds of making it through the full Legislature. New York and California have banned the substance, developed during World War II to extend the life of cooking oils by adding hydrogen. Large restaurant chains would have until Sept. 1, 2010, to comply; chains with fewer than 15 restaurants would have an extra year. Bakeries, grocery stores and nonprofits such as state fairs or rodeos would be exempt. Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, mocked the bill: “Is there a charge in the bill for assault with a deadly triglyceride?”

The legislation must now be passed by the Texas House of Representatives to become law. So, write, call or email your Texas House Member today to preserve our beloved fried vittles forever!

Fat lovers unite!

To paraphrase fellow Texan Lyndon Johnson, “we must either love [our fried goodness] or we must die.”