Just Asking

How is "sugar-free" maple syrup made? Isn't there maple sugar in it?

Why do surveys, etc. ask for both state of residence and Zip Code? Isn't each Zip assigned to a specific area and aren't the numbers coded for those areas, including states?

What, really, is the difference between regular cane/beet sugar and high fructose corn sugar? Is there any, chemically, how our bodies metabolize them, etc.? Is the big concern that hfcs is cheap to make, driving down the cost of sugar, thereby becoming more used?

Does technology always mean progress, making things better or more efficient? Are workers more proficient with computers, in as much as they spend so much time at work with personal e-mails (and even maybe not-so-necessary work-related e-mails since they are so much easier and quicker to send out), surfing, and playing computer/video games? Are cell phones really necessary? For every life that is supposedly saved by cell phone calls in emergencies, how many are lost due to traffic accidents caused by driving callers? Is cooking a roast or turkey in the microwave, although quicker, than the oven really better? Where is that wonderful aroma that fills the house?

Why are the people we hold up as "heroes" today considered "heroes?" Very few of them actually are. In sports, Hollywood, etc., most of the "heroes" have actually led lives of ease. OK, some of them worked hard to get where they are. But a lot of people work hard. Did that NFL QB work any harder than my grandfather, who put backseats in Ford cars for 42 years? Did the Hollywood-type work harder than my father, who came home from work, had dinner, and then rushed out to work another four hours--and on at least one weekend day, too? Oh, and he still always found time to play catch, coach and/or attend our games, etc. Which of these "heroes" hasn't been pampered? They were identified early on as being big or fast or pretty or handsome or whatever it is that they have that most of us don't. Then, they were given college opportunities (note I didn't say "educations"), with better meals, better facilities, etc. than any of us could dream of. And, the pampering continued. Perhaps we should rethink our definition of "hero."