“Parents Don’t Know What’s Best For Their Children”– You Must Read This!
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I came across two articles this week that really scared me regarding the direction of the American education system.
First, let me tell you about the little girl in North Carolina whose lunch was taken away from her because it was “unhealthy” and was given cafeteria food instead. What was so unhealthy about her lunch? The preschooler’s mother packed her a turkey and cheese sandwich, a banana, apple juice, and potato chips. Her lunch was inspected at school and “didn’t meet USDA requirements.” The child was given a tray of cafeteria food and ate only three nuggets off the tray. Her perfectly-good lunch was sent home… with a bill for the cafeteria lunch.
What on earth??? What is wrong with a turkey sandwich, fruit, juice, and chips? I think it’s pretty scary when society gets to the point of examining our children’s lunches and deciding that parents aren’t capable of packing their children’s food. I think that the girl’s lunch was perfectly fine! It’s not like she had a coke and a twinkie for lunch! Wouldn’t her turkey sandwich have been a lot more nutritious than the three processed nuggets she ate?
According to the following article, the state is allowed to come in at any time and make sure that schools are in compliance with USDA guidelines, which includes something as minute as the contents of a preschooler’s lunchbox. If the teacher feels that the child’s lunch doesn’t meet guidelines, they are required to supplement it. In some states, children are not allowed to bring lunch from home at all.
Check out this article: http://myfox8.com/2012/02/15/usda-meal-was-not-replaced-mom-was-never-charged/
More info: http://myfox8.com/2012/02/14/nc-preschooler-fed-nuggets-because-packed-lunch-wasnt-healthy/
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If you haven’t read the news at all in the past decade, you might think this is just fine and dandy. For those of you that do read the news and keep up on current events, you likely know how unhealthy cafeteria food really is. Dateline investigated the quality of public school cafeterias and found many of them to have serious violations. They commonly serve hamburgers, pizza, and chicken wings and food is often not kept at a healthy temperature (this leads to bacteria growth and consequently food poisoning).
There have been efforts to clean up school cafeterias, but it’s still not that great. We let our daughter buy lunch every Friday when she went to public kindergarten, and what did she choose? Pizza, tater tots, chocolate milk, and jello. I was unhappy with her choices, and even more so that this is what was offered.I’m sure there where also fruits and veggies, but how many children choose these over tater tots and jello? Is this school lunch more nutritious than something I could pack at home? Not a chance.
Here’s an article discussing this issue:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6430258/ns/dateline_nbc/t/how-safe-school-cafeteria-food/#.Tz1UyYem92A
Also, 50% of elementary schools still have vending machines that offer unhealthy snacks. 3/4ths of American schools serve entrees that exceed recommended levels of fat. A la carte lines brim with unhealthy treats. And the problem is the parents? I think not.
Education Nation (Photo credit: Gates Foundation)
To understand how school and state officials come to believe that they know best and have the right to dictate every detail of a child’s life, check out the following article:
Debbie Squires, associate director of the Michigan Elementary and Middle School Principals Association, explained to members of the House Education Committee why her association opposed allowing more cyber (or online) schools to operate in the state: “Educators go through education for a reason,” Squires said. “They are the people who know best about how to serve children. That’s not necessarily true of an individual resident. I’m not saying they don’t want the best for their children, but they may not know what actually is best from an education standpoint.”
When asked to clarify, she said “I said they may want what’s best for their child (but) they may not know.”
So… parents don’t know what is best for their children? Interesting. How did the human race survive for millenia if parents were so incapable of caring for their offspring? If cave parents didn’t know what was best for their children, they would have been eaten by predators. If our recent ancestors didn’t know what was best for their children, would they have survived the challenges of their time and grown to be successful, educated, and happy people (all without the government to spoon feed them a false sense of security)? No? If our ancestors had not been capable of rearing their young, you wouldn’t be here. Think about that.
What happened to this country? Wasn’t the United States founded on principles of freedom? Didn’t our ancestors leave Europe to escape the control their governments had on their lives? Didn’t our pioneer ancestors head west for freedom and unbounded opportunities? We’ve come a long way since then. Now, government intercedes into every aspect of our lives… right down to the contents of our children’s lunch sacks. Wake up, America, before the last of your liberties are gone. Our inalienable rights are being threatened. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, right? Your liberty is being taken away and you might not even know it.
When will it be time to say, “Enough is enough?”
Related articles
- ABC, NBC Skip Food Police Confiscating Preschooler’s Dangerous Potato Chips (newsbusters.org)
- State employee replaced preschoolers “unhealthy” lunch with chicken nuggets (winteryknight.wordpress.com)
- Preschooler Forced to Eat Chicken Nuggets After Bag Lunch Fails State Inspection (outsidethebeltway.com)
- School forces preschooler to order cafeteria lunch because mom’s isn’t healthy enough (hotair.com)
- North Carolina – Schools Hired a “Lunch Inspector” to Inspect Our Children’s Lunches in Public Schools? (bonjupatten.com)
- Preschooler’s Homemade Turkey Sandwich Replaced With Nuggets (huffingtonpost.com)
- Preschooler’s Homemade Lunch Replaced With Nuggets (seedtosalad.wordpress.com)
- Liberty Alert: Protecting Preschoolers By Feeding Chicken Nuggets? (claimingliberty.wordpress.com)
- Your Nanny State Intrusion of the Day! (thedaleygator.wordpress.com)
- School Lunch Uproar in North Carolina Preschool (eatdrinkbetter.com)
- Nanny state report: NC school officials confiscate preschooler’s homemade lunch – The Daily Caller (gds44.wordpress.com)
- Wake Up Amrica! (wdednh.wordpress.com)
- Lunch Bags Inspected for Nutrition (neatorama.com)
- The Food Police Order Parents to Pay for Replacement Lunches (trutherator.wordpress.com)
- Government agents now searching sack lunches at schools (aboundingwellness.wordpress.com)
Considering some of the comments on a couple of the stories, I wanted to comment here. I went for a double degree in Elementary Education and Special Education. I spent 3/4 of my time just learning how to cover my butt legally, and 1/4 on how to teach children. They really do not focus on educating kids when you get certified, they teach you how to stay out of trouble–and to follow the rules. The Teachers hands are very tied in what they can and can not do…and if you have a child that is not middle ground, they will have a hard time succeeding in most schools. It’s about the money and the scores now–not the kids. As for socialization- they can NOT talk in the hall, in class, outside lining up, at lunch or in the bathrooms. Recess, PE and the Arts are all disappearing, and they expect young kids to act at least 3 years older than they are. Childhood is gone with 3 or more hours of homework after school, and then you have parents who overbook the child with so many activities that they hardly spend time with the child, or give the child time to be “bored” sparking creativity, imagination and social skills. Sad really…
*off soapbox*
February 16, 2012 at 3:03 pm
As a former public educator, I can agree that so much time is spent “covering yourself.” I was being observed by a person from the state and was criticized for turning out the lights when I used the overhead projector. She said it created a “movie theater environment.” I thought it reduced the glare on the screen. I was also instructed to not allow students to sit on the floor up front as it was too informal. I allowed this because many of my low income students needed glasses but could not afford them. I asked this inspector if she saw any disruptions or actual problems in my class. She responded that it was one of the best behaved classes she had observed that day. She had no reason for the changes that I was instructed to make, except that I wasn’t doing it the way I was supposed to. She probably would have passed out had she been there the day we built a “campfire” in the middle of the room, made s’mores, and read a mystery novel (my Friday reward for a week of good behavior and hard work during October).
February 17, 2012 at 11:19 am
I am sure you are aware of the initiative started by first lady Michelle Obama. She has taken a hands on approach to telling schools what is and what is not healthy. The guidelines are more strict and more expensive than ever. Gotta love that the government is now telling us what to eat. 1984. More relevant than ever! Great post. Thanks.
February 16, 2012 at 3:30 pm
Great post! I will definitely be sharing!! : ) we need to bring more attention to these horrible situations that arise in the system…and are probably ignored by most. Thank you for your insight!
February 16, 2012 at 4:16 pm
while I am all for the school making more money and me paying less property taxes, there is a separation b/t church and state so keeping that in mind, I will always tell the federal government to butt out of my life and the life of my kids. The school has no right to take the kid’s good healthy lunch away and give her unhealthy McNuggets or any nuggets and then send home a bill to her parents. I would have gone to that school and taken the principal and that “inspector” out for a talk.
February 17, 2012 at 8:51 pm
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