Why the obsession with KFC?

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Watching an online post from a KFC location in Jamaica, the excitement over the fried chicken seemed surreal. The roadblock because of people joining long lines to perhaps get the once in a lifetime ‘brawta’ or, just to be among the crowd of customers who were able to walk away with a box of the KFC proudly in hand.

Someone wrote a letter the other day discounting ackee and salt fish as a natural dish, since its ingredients were imported and generally unhealthy. Actually, one man with beaming eyes, who was interviewed at the KFC promotion said, “Kentucky Fried Chicken is the national dish, not ackee and salt fish.”

Kentucky Fried Chicken as the name suggests, started in Corbin, Kentucky, US, which makes it an imported taste. Fried chicken is also not a healthy food for those with high or bad cholesterol levels, which research has claimed can lead to build-up of plaque in the arteries, leading to hypertension and a compromised heart function.

But, when the seasoned king of chickens is flying in the air, there is no place around for killjoy health news. If there is no pleasure in eating, what’s the purpose of eating, many will ask. And, in the end, it seems to boil down to taste over nutrition and crispness over health consciousness. But, if Texas-based Church’s Fried Chicken were to challenge KFC, would there be a stampede?

HOMER SYLVESTER