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In Season 2 the Big Bad is defeated because, on the one hand, Spike does think his love for Drusilla is more important than the fate of the world (and so he is willing to betray her and work against her plans because of his own feelings of jealousy) and, on the other hand, Buffy does not think her love for Angel is more important than the fate of the world (and so she is able to send Angel to hell even after his soul is restored).  This illustrates one of the key themes of the second season: the idea that romantic love should not be something that you allow to control you, however tempting that might be and however much it might hurt not to.  While Angelus and the Judge both argue that ‘passion’ is what makes us who we are, the show itself suggests that to allow yourself to be ruled by passion is to become something not quite fully human.

We are talking about a true "Lettuce Monarchy." CEO Bruce Taylor is the grandson of Thomas Church, a mid-century "Lettuce King." This single family has controlled the U.S. packaged salad market for nearly a century through Taylor Farms & Fresh Express, operating a direct, tightly locked supply network with massive fast-food juggernauts like McDonald's & Chipotle. They use this corporate exclusivity to control exactly what agricultural data makes it to the public, shielding a multi-billion-dollar brand from legal accountability.

But behind that clean retail label is a massive history of exploitation, severe safety violations, & corporate cover-ups.

It starts with their "Permanent Temp Trick." The company uses third-party agencies like Slingshot Connections & Abel Mendoza, Inc. to keep assembly-line workers classified as "temporary" for up to 15 years, systematically denying them benefits, job security, & raises. When confronted with these massive federal civil rights violations, Bruce Taylor famously went on record defending this temp-agency pipeline, claiming those thousands of laborers have plenty of federal protections.

When they aren't exploiting the temp loophole, they are looking elsewhere. They’ve partnered with state transitional prison labor programs, notably in Arizona, to use incarcerated individuals to sort & pack salad kits for national grocery chains.

Even worse is how they treat the vulnerable workers they do hire. Between 2019 & 2023, two HR managers at their Automated Harvesting LLC subsidiary orchestrated a massive internal $3 Million Visa Fraud Scheme. The duo generated & cashed over 1,800 fraudulent checks totaling more than $3 million, intentionally stealing the identities of vulnerable Mexican migrant workers who had already returned home on expired visas. Following a deep district attorney investigation, both employees finally pleaded no contest to felony embezzlement in June 2026.

The disregard for human life inside their facilities is staggering. In late 2025, federal OSHA hit Taylor Farms New Jersey with a massive $1.12 million fatality fine after a worker was killed cleaning machinery. Inspectors uncovered 16 "willful & repeated" safety violations regarding hazardous machinery maintenance, proving that corporate leadership completely bypassed basic, legally mandated workplace safety protocols & intentionally neglected "lockout/tagout" rules—which cut power to heavy equipment during cleaning.

Then there is the Tracy, CA chemical spill cover-up at Taylor Farms Pacific. Plant managers tried to hide a toxic chlorine gas leak that hospitalized 20 people. Instead of evacuating, managers passed out cheap paper dust masks & ordered staff to keep working on the line. Workers had to bypass management entirely just to call 911.

When workers tried to unionize after that terrifying spill, management engaged in extreme retaliation to kill the effort. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) had to step in after finding the branch illegally spied on workers, fired organizers, & hired high-priced anti-union consulting firms to threaten immigrant employees with ICE if they tried to unionize. Bruce Taylor publicly labeled the national Teamsters Union campaigns "frivolous" & claimed it was all a smear tactic.

The discrimination inside is deeply systemic. A massive federal civil rights lawsuit detailed that upper management deliberately forced African American employees into entirely separate break areas. Company leadership was caught systematically burying internal racism & discrimination complaints, leaving workers completely isolated until they finally banded together for a massive 70-page class-action lawsuit.

The public is kept completely in the dark about the dangers. Taylor Farms was tied to major multi-state E. coli outbreaks in 2025 where federal regulators at the FDA & CDC identified Taylor Farms romaine lettuce as the source—but actively hid the company's identity from the public.

How do they get away with it? Bruce Taylor acts as a political puppet master. He pours tens of thousands of dollars into highly calculated local political action committees—like the "Protect Salinas" PAC—to sway California city council elections. Local watchdog groups have flagged his financial contributions as direct attempts to capture local governments & block regulations on agricultural land use & labor.

On top of that, Taylor sits on heavily funded national agricultural boards & trade association PACs—like the Western Growers Association—to heavily lobby congress against strict federal worker-safety laws.

House Democrats grill Vought over DOGE’s CFPB Data Drives

“Do you even know the extent of the data held by the CFPB that Elon Musk and anyone else associated with DOGE had access to?” the California Democrat asked. “Do you have a record of all the data that was accessed? Have you done any investigation into whether CFPB’s data is secure? Yes or no.”

“Congresswoman, we had a Department of Government Efficiency, it’s something we’re very proud of …” Vought said before Waters reclaimed her time and followed up with additional yes-or-no questions that the Office of Management and Budget director didn’t answer.