Comments on: Grand Engineering Challenge of Our Era: A Non-Lethal Hot Dog

By: Columbus Jobs

Columbus Jobs — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 20:28:40 +0000

The hot dog is the most American food I can think of! Why change that?

By: Another Adam

Another Adam — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 20:37:18 +0000

Sometimes we need to look at the risk vs rewards. I don’t see anything actionable in the AAP statement. Take just the hot dog for instance. According to the statement, “Approximately 66 to 77 children younger than 10 years of age die from choking on food each year in the United States.” If hot dogs account for 17 percent of these deaths that is 13 children a year. While these deaths are tragic for the families, the numbers are not high enough to warrant a complete overhaul of food processing plants. Compare that to the 1,000 children in the same age group that die each year in car accidents even though they are properly restrained. There are literally bigger problems than the shape of hot dogs.

By: carol

carol — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:31:36 +0000

I quarter them the long way and then chop them up.

Knew a guy from college who was eating them when he was by himself and he died by choking to death, so not just for kids are they are a problem.

Also as far as regular hotdogs, I don’t buy them. There are healthy choices. For example, Trader Joes makes turkey dogs which are low fat, and have no nitrates, soy, junk, etc. I buy these and they taste great. Then I use whole wheat bread or eat them without bread.

By: Anon

Anon — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 04:52:40 +0000

Put it in a blender. Problem solved.

By: April

April — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 02:17:48 +0000

I don’t believe this. They’ve already invented it; it’s called CHEWING, you stupid f***s.

[Moderator's note: Edited the cuss word.]

By: Brian Too

Brian Too — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:21:02 +0000

One wonders whether this has any value in the real world.

Why does a child get a hot dog section lodged in their throat? Because they didn’t chew.

Redesign the hot dog into ANY shape conceivable. What happens? Children will get the mystery meat lodged in their throats, because they didn’t chew.

The only way to avoid this, that I can see, is to feed kids micro-mini hot dogs, like those cocktail weenies. The kids will still wolf down the mystery meat. However I think you’ll find that micro-mini hot dogs lose a lot of their appeal to children because you don’t have the fun shape and the all-in-one, dog in a bun packaging anymore.

Perhaps you could make an unconsolidated meat paste in a tube and market it as space dogs for astronauts??

By: Novathecat

Novathecat — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 23:53:38 +0000

Redesign hotdogs? We already have bologna. That should be good enough for paranoid and clueless parents.

By: Femme Fatale

Femme Fatale — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 23:05:07 +0000

Wow, just wow. The Common Sense Fairy would like to place the blame on the parents who don’t cut up the larger-than-windpipe-sized hot dogs for their very small children. Seriously, we need to reconsider which people should be in charge of the health and safety of their own children.