I don't like the "selling out" language a couple of people have used, but I
share in the disappointment.  Not to say that there's no room for disagreement
with the ideas presented in Neanderthin, but Dr. Cordain appears not to have
read Ray's book at all.

One concept that I believe is of utmost importance is that you should never
cheat.  (Or if you do cheat at least be prepared for the consequences -- intense
cravings and a relapse of allergies, bloatedness, etc).  For Cordain to, in
effect, RECOMMEND periodic cheating and downplay the consequences is wrong.  The
allowance of periodic cheating is standard operating procedure for the great
majority of quick fix diets out there -- and might be a good idea in those
contexts -- but it simply will not work when eating paleo.  As a matter of fact,
it might just be dangerous.

Another issue I have with the book may not go over so well with some folks on
this list.   Because we haven't fully given up the idea that dietary fat is bad,
we tend to overemphasize the need for lean meats.  It should be obvious that if
we could live healthily on pemmican, nothing more than dried meat mixed with a
generous portion of fat, that there's something wrong with our overemphasis on
keeping dietary fat low.  Fat is a good thing.  Your body will let you know when
it has had enough.  And It's important to remember that obesity is not a
function of fat or calorie intake.  It is nothing more than the body's defense
to the alien proteins found in non paleo foods.  We need to stop the ingrained
habit of looking at fat and calories, listen to our bodies, and simply ask if
the food we're about to eat would have been eaten by our paleolithic forbears.

Jim Swayze