I think that's an accurate assessment. I have German and Japanese cameras and lenses. Both countries excel in their manufacture as they do their automobiles and other scientific products. These are not third world countries at all and their employees make a decent salary and have better benefits than we do, actually. I make no excuses for buying Italian pasta products, olive oils, Indian tea, Columbian coffee, or Mexican cocoas and vanillas. I get my stashes of curries from a British importer as well. I don't have a problem at all with imports from a society whose people expect to consume safe and quality products themselves. But Japanese cars and some German cars, one really couldn't call imports. They move their "export" operations to our country and employ our people and pay them a salary as good as, or usually better than they'd have with an American Company. A kink in our world trade at this point with China is that they do not allow "inspection" from outside purchasers. We are supposed to take their word for it that the products are what they are supposed to be and safe. The track records for safety are pretty evident as plastic has found its way into food supplies and lead into toys. There is also a pretty complicated (too long to go into explanations here) issue with currency rates between China and the rest of the world. IOW the playing fields are not level. You will also find that some of our natural resources are at risk now from policies of poor (or self, or no) inspection before crossing borders. One of the newer plagues arriving from Asia in their produced materials is the Emerald Ash borer. It very well may decimate our Eastern forests, affecting our timber and wood product industries to the tune of billions. There is a very large difference between trade isolationism and setting standards for equitable and safe trade. You can take it to the bank other countries have safeguards intact to protect their own working economies and farmers, but when we even think about doing it, the world calls a foul. I hope eventually this giant country evolves into the kind of trade partner who can benefit the world and its own people. But, I still think given it's social and political background of the last half century we should not expect an instant conversion to capitalism to be an overnight success, and let down our guards entirely. Didn't they execture one of their trade ministers for a putting their name in scandal not too long ago? Doesn't that bother anybody? The secrecy issue bothers me the most. As a business person, my files are an open book to many agencies and I am subject to inspections to insure to my government I operate in a safe manner and things are what I say they are. The kind of policies we have with this country puts them over every American producer who have to play by the rules. Expensive rules, btw.

This dish, Tacchino Tonnato, is more of a summery dish, but it is simply the best turkey breast I've ever eaten. It's Julia Child's adaptation of the classic roast-veal-in-tuna-sauce, vitello tonnato, in which she substitutes turkey breast for the hard to find and expensive veal roast. (Turkey breast is much cheaper and more tender, and it works very well.) You may wish to save this recipe for next summer. This really is ideal for hot weather, especially for a luncheon for several people. You make the entire recipe a day or two in advance: the day of the luncheon, all you have to do is take the dish out of the fridge and, if desired, decorate it a bit. You can serve this dish with a salad, or make sandwiches with it, or just eat it plain. Delicious. If you don't like capers, leave them out; it'll still taste great. I'm reproducing the recipe exactly as Julia has it, but I would note that when I made it I found that the Dijon mustard tended to overpower the other ingredients; even though she calls for 2 to 3 tablespoons, I'd start with only 1 tablespoon and add a little more if needed. (I know it takes chutzpah to overrule Julia, but there you have it.) While it calls for poached turkey breast (and her directions for poaching a turkey breast follows the sauce recipe) if you just want to try out the sauce, you can 'cheat' and go to the deli and get several slices of precooked turkey breast and use that. (I've done that; works great, although it ends up costing about three times as much as poaching a turkey breast on your own.) She makes the point that you don't serve it as sliced turkey with a sauce on the side; you need to smear each slice with the sauce and let the slices absorb the flavors for a day or two. You can make the sauce in either a blender or a food processor. If you have a food processor, though, the sauce is extremely easy to make. In fact, my Cuisinart has a push-tube with a hole in it that is designed to drip oil at just the right speed for emulsifying with the other ingredients. Don't be intimidated by the recipe--for the most part, you dump everything in the processor and let it do the work. If you can make mayonnaise in the blender or the food processor, you can easily make this recipe. Tacchino Tonnato from Julia Child's The Way to Cook (Cold Sliced turkey breast in tuna and anchovy sauce) For 8 or more servings 1 - 7 oz tin (1 cup) tuna packed in water, drained 1 - 2oz tin of flat fillets of anchovies packed in olive oil, drained One-fourth cup capers, squeezed dry The grated peel of one half lemon 2 to 3 tbsp Dijon-type prepared mustard (you may wish to start with just one and add more if needed) 1 large clove of garlic, pureed, then mashed to a very fine paste with one-fourth tsp salt 4 egg yolks 1 to 1 1/2 cups or more virgin olive oil Drops of lemon juice Salt and freshly ground white pepper One 6-pound poached turkey breast (recipe follows this one) or 16 to 20 generous but thin slices of cooked turkey breast Decorations: 1/3 cup capers, drained; coarsely chopped parsley; lemon wedges The sauce. Puree the tuna, anchovies, capers, lemon peel, mustard and garlic paste in the machine, then add the egg yolks and puree several seconds, until the mixture has thickened. Finally, with the motor running, start adding the oil in a very thin stream of droplets, and continue without pause until three-fourths of a cup of oil has gone in and the sauce has thickened into a heavy cream. It will not be as thick as mayonnaise, but should hold itself in creamy suspension. Process in one-half cup more of oil, depending on how thick a sauce you wish to have. Season carefully to taste with lemon juice, salt and pepper; the sauce should have character, but should not be too strong in taste or it will kill off the turkey. Slicing the turkey. If you are using a poached turkey breast, discard the skin. Carefully remove in one piece the whole side of each breast from the carcass. Cut the meat at a slant crosswise (across the grain) into elegant slices less than 1/8 inch thick. Assembling. Spoon a layer of sauce in the bottom of a serving platter, and arrange the turkey on top, spreading each slice with a coating of sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours before serving. Serving. Let the platter sit at room temperature for 20 minutes to take off the chill. Meanwhile sprinkle on the capers and parsley, and decorate with lemon wedges. Poached Turkey Breast Set up a 6-pound bone-in breast of turkey breast up in a kettle just large enough to hold it comfortably, surround it with 1 cup each of chopped carrots, onions and celery, and a large herb bouquet. Pour in 2 cups of chicken broth, 1 cup of dry white French vermouth or dry white wine, and enough water to cover the breast by 1/2 inch. Bring to the simmer on top of the stove; skim off the gray scum, which will continue to rise for several minutes. Salt lightly, then cover the pot loosely and maintain at the bare simmer for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, adding a little boiling water if the liquid evaporates to expose the turkey. It's done when a meat thermometer, pushed in to the thickest part of the meat near the shoulder (but not touching bone) reads 162 to 165 F. Let the turkey cool in its broth for at least 30 minutes. Refrigerate uncovered; when chilled, remove the turkey to a covered container.

This one, called Swiss Bliss, is excellent. I've made it many times. I got it from a slowcooker group, and it is also posted on southernfood@about.com. 2 to 4 pound beef pot roast (lean chuck or bottom round) 1 envelope onion soup mix 1 can (4 oz) sliced mushrooms, drained (I use fresh) 1/2 medium green pepper, sliced 1 can (20-oz) tomatoes, drained and chopped, reserving liquid salt and pepper to taste 1 tablespoon steak sauce 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes PREPARATION: Place beef roast in crockpot and sprinkle with the onion soup mix. Add mushrooms, green pepper slices, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Combine remaining ingredients and add enough water to make 1 1/2 cups of liquid. Pour over meat and vegetables, and sprinkle with parsley flakes. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours. I usually take the lid off and turn the pot to high for about an hour before serving to thicken the juice.

There are so many very very simple things that will allow you to get a meal on the table 20 minutes after you get home. If you don't want to do the long slow cook thing....there are a million things you can do with a piced of meat and a fry pan and 10 minutes, from chicken breast, to thighs, tpo fish filet to minute steak, hamburger....eggs etc. do you know anyone who would walk you through a few meals....like a sautéed chicken breast a potato baked in the micro and some mixed greens sprinkled with balsamic and a little olive oil? Things like hamburger browned in a pan, a can of pinto beans drained and a can of rotel....add some tortilla chips A bag of shredded lettuce, some browned hamburger a can of rotel and shredded cheese on a tortilla. Times when I have been super busy and had a husband and kids to feed, we lived on steaks, chops, fish filets and hot dogs. And if you really don't want to cook there are lost of frozen ready to eat foods that are lots better than a TV dinner. Check out Trader Jo's I know one woman who doesn't cook and she lives on fruit, yogurt, frozen cooked and shelled shrimp, rice cakes, bagged greens and bottled salad dressing and good artesan bread.