Wow. Just the first two graphs of this New York Times story are pretty shocking.

"Sometimes, government inspectors responsible for examining slaughterhouse cattle for mad cow disease and other ills are so short-staffed that they find themselves peering down from catwalks at hundreds of animals at once, looking for such telltale signs as droopy ears, stumbling gait and facial paralysis.

The ranks of inspectors are so thin that slaughterhouse workers often figure out when ''surprise'' visits are about to take place, and make sure they are on their best behavior."