Menu for P.O.W.s

Fads in food and fashion often reflect far less frivolous concerns, sometimes tastelessly, as with the craze for uniforms formerly belonging to G.I.s that swept Europe last year, and sometimes innocently, as with the current Sinomania attending the President's upcoming trip to China. More thought-provoking was a recent front-page article in the Washington Post's food section titled "Freeze-Dried Foods--Perfect for P.O.W.s."

Freeze-dried foods, the article chattily advises, should be bought by families of prisoners of war because they are tasty, nutritious and often weigh 90% less than their canned counterparts--an important plus, since Hanoi imposes a 6.6-lb. limit on gift boxes, which sometimes are returned by the North Vietnamese. The article goes on to list such treats as crunchy peanut butter powder, tuna salad, beef amandine and turkey tetrazzini with asparagus. It also lists the places--camping outfitters, sporting goods stores, health-food shops--where they can be bought.

However well-intentioned, there is something sad about working out freeze-dried menus for prisoners of war. Perhaps it is the realization of how completely the war pervades every aspect of American life; that, like it or not, there is nowhere to turn for a momentary respite, not even the pages of the food section.

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