Food is a central activity of mankind and one of the single most significant trademarks of a culture.
Mark KurlanskyJudging foods without regard to price is a rich mans game, and yet poor people can be gourmets able to discern a good potato from a bad one.
Mark KurlanskyMan wants to see nature and evolution as separate from human activities. There is a natural world, and there is man. But man also belongs to the natural world. If he is a ferocious predator, that too is part of evolution. If cod and haddock and other species cannot survive because man kills them, something more adaptable will take their place. Nature, the ultimate pragmatist, doggedly searches for something that works. But as the cockroach demonstrates, what works best in nature does not always appeal to us.
Mark KurlanskyIf ever there was a fish made to endure, it is the Atlantic cod... But it has among its predators - man, an openmouthed species greedier than cod.
Mark KurlanskyIn every age, people are certain that only the things they have deemed valuable have true value. The search for love and the search for wealth are always the two best stories. But while a love story is timeless, the story of a quest for wealth, given enough time, will always seem like the vain pursuit of a mirage.
Mark Kurlansky