The State Food Police: Creating Jobs the Government Way

Item: A preschool student at West Hoke Elementary School in North Carolina ended up eating three chicken nuggets for lunch because a state inspector declared that the 4-year-old's lunch wasn't nutritious enough. Mom had packed a turkey and cheese sandwich, a banana, potato chips, and apple juice.

The lunch didn’t meet USDA guidelines because government standards place chicken nuggets above turkey and cheese. Fine. We expect such wisdom from the government. But some of us would like to know what business it is of the State to police kids' lunch boxes. Do they have nothing better to do?

None dare call it Fascism, so let’s just be nice and call it overreach. Let’s see what this “overreach” means.

First, it presumes that the USDA, the State of North Carolina, and school administrators have veto power over a parent’s judgment. If the authorities believe that three deep-fired sodium saturated chicken nuggets are more nutritious than a turkey and cheese sandwich, they are certainly entitled to that opinion. But that opinion does not give them carte blanche to pump that processed hunk of grease into the kid’s system. The schools can’t give the child an aspirin without mom’s say so, but mandating high cholesterol junk food is okay? And then to tell the child that it’s the mom who isn’t providing a healthy lunch?

Think this through with me. The USDA’s guidelines call for one serving of meat, one grain, a dairy, and two servings of fruit and vegetables even if the food is brought from home. Let’s just say that four-year old Susie is lactose intolerant, so mom leaves out the dairy. The state food police give her a carton of milk and tell her it’s good for her. Being four years old, she drinks it. Susie gets sick, but guidelines have been met. They went by the book, so just move along, folks. Nothing to see here.

Or suppose Susie’s family is vegetarian. Guidelines say Susie has to be offered processed chicken nuggets whether mom and dad find it disgusting or not. Or suppose she's Jewish, and the meat of the day to substitute for a turkey sandwich is pork hot dogs. Sadly, as we have learned from recent battles between the Catholic Church and the administration, matters of religion and conscience no longer command the respect of the government. Big Brother knows best! Such governmental attempts to override the parental prerogative in matters of religious practice and teaching are happening already. Why should we be surprised that school lunches are not exempt?

My temperament is not to be of the alarmist sort. But when I see multiple heavy-handed intrusions into private matters, I am convinced more fully that Mr. Obama meant it four years ago when he promised to fundamentally transform America. If you think this is as America should be, vote for the incumbent administration, and then be prepared take a long drink from the cup of her abominations.

Link: Child's Homemade Lunch Replaced With Nuggets