Fat chance

It's just a thought, but with all of this fuss over the use of trans fats and with Philadelphia and New York City actually banning the tasty stuff, it may be time to go back to basics. That's right: Animal fat. It's hard to get tastier than butter and lard -- in fact, they were the preferred fats for a lot of uses before trans fats were adopted as a "healthier" alternative.

Now, butter and lard aren't actually "healthy" in any absolute sense -- nothing is for that matter. In fact, they contain small amounts of trans fats themselves. But they are naturally occurring fats, which should help to insulate them against the sort of attacks leveled at artificially created trans fats.

So, back to the basics, I say. Bring back butter and lard.