W5- Our Fast Food Nation

America wants things fast. The faster the better. From cars to information, everything just keeps getting faster. Just look at the internet, seemingly everyone has faster internet, dial up is dead it just simply isn't fast enough. The internet shows more proof or the addiction to speed and convenience. Twitter, Facebook and even e-mail are great examples of the faster the better outlook. People no longer have to wait for the newspaper, mail, the evening news or even go to a news website to get the breaking news, it just comes to America's phones. 

The way Americans fill their stomachs is no different. Fast food restaurants like McDonalds are conveniently placed everywhere you look and you are rarely more than ten minutes away from one. But not only are they close at all times, you don't even have to get out of your car to get your food. Even when you go inside you can get your food within five minutes. That means that pretty much no matter where you are you are no more than fifteen minutes away from a rather cheap meal. Another important factor that leads to America's addiction to fast food is it takes no work. You don't have to prepare any food for your family, you can simply stop by a fast food restaurant. Because more women are working now than ever home-cooked meals are becoming more and more rare. Which, makes fast food all the more important for families.

Another factor is that Americans are driving more, traveling more and always in a hurry when they are doing it. If your family is headed to a extracurricular event, or even on vacation it is quicker and easier to stop by a fast food place on the way than it is to cook a meal and bring it along. If you are a businessperson hurrying between meetings it is hard to find time to plan out a meal, sometimes you just have to squeeze meals in whenever you can.

As a college student and part-time worker, squeezing in meals is a major factor in my life. I eat at fast food joints way more often than I would like, but when rushing between classes, work and sleeping I have to settle for whatever I can get.