While watching television last week, a commercial came on advertising Sonic’s new “French” Croissant Hot Dogs.

“French?” I asked myself. “There’s nothing French about putting a hot dog in a croissant. That’s about as American as obesity and diabetes.”

That commercial was immediately followed by one for Taco Bell’s new “Captain Crunch Delights,” a fried ball of dough rolled around in Crunch Berry crumbs and filled with a cream cheese icing.

Horrified though I was, I went the next day and purchased some of the culinary concoction, which vaguely resembled what could charitably be described as an angry, red version of a Rocky Mountain oyster rolled around in cereal crumbs.

How far gone are we as a nation that “food” items like this are now nationally advertised as something that these companies believe we will want to go and get?

Items that used to be reserved for county fairs in the Midwestern states, kin to the fabled “Fried Kool-Aid” of the Iowa State Fair, are now mainstream.

KFC had its “Double Down,” an alleged sandwich that consisted of two deep fried chicken breasts filled with cheese-like product, bacon and an artery-clogging heavy duty mayonnaise based sauce.

Eating one of them leaves an indelible mark on your soul that will have to be answered for when you meet the Almighty.

Little Caesar’s gave us the “Bacon-Wrapped Pizza” with several feet of bacon wrapped around as a “crust” - my arteries hardened just looking at the commercial.

Pizza Hut has its new Hot Dog Stuffed Crust Pizza, which takes its normal pizza and creates a ring of 20-something bit sized “Pigs in a Blanket” style hot dog bites for patrons to enjoy.

Who asked for this? What made them think this was okay?

Did someone’s Cousin Merle, who’s so fat he’s actually fused to his couch cushions, come up with that one?

And now, Hardees has entered the fray with what it calls its “Most American” Burger - one of the chain’s Thickburgers topped with all the usual condiments as well as cut up pieces of hot dog and a sprinkling of potato chips.

Is this what America stands for now - calorie-laden creations that can only charitably be called “food.”

America used to lead the world in innovation.

We put man on the moon.

We cured polio.

Now, we lead in deaths due to heart disease and percentage of obese citizens.

And we keep getting fatter and fatter, as items like these get thrown into our slop troughs and we just keep eating.

I don’t claim to be the healthiest person in the world, and am somewhat portly myself, but even I know that eating this crap is only going to end up with me having to have a pig artery installed in my heart.

I beg you, dear readers, stay away from these items and make good, healthy choices with what you and your family are eating.

If we quit buying this crap, they’ll hopefully stop making it.

Cliff McCollum is managing editor of Gulf Coast Media. He can be reached at cliff@gulfcoastmedia.com.