From the land of Nancy Pelosi and the sodomites comes a new assault on your freedom to choose what you want to feed your children.
San Francisco is taking aim at the Happy Meal. If you want the toy, you may have to skip the French fries. The city passed a law banning toys from fast food kids’ meals if they don’t meet minimum nutritional standards.
A McDonald’s cheeseburger, fries and soda with 640 calories, 210 of those from fat and 915 milligrams of sodium doesn’t qualify. There are too many calories and too much sodium in that meal.
Burger King’s hamburger, milk and fries, comes in at 580 calories, 190 calories from fat and 980 milligrams of sodium. It passes the calorie requirement, but the sodium is still too high.
Under the law, French fries, since they’re made from potatoes, technically qualify as a vegetable. The problem is when the French fries are combined with anything else on the menu, the sodium level is too high. Lettuce and tomatoes on a burger won’t work either. The law requires a half cup serving or more of fruit or a three-quarter cup serving of vegetables in a meal.
San Francisco is the first major city to approve such a ban. A similar law was passed in nearby Santa Clara County. The law bans toy giveaways in a kids meal unless it has 600 calories or less, contains a fruit or vegetables and has no more than 35 percent of calories from fat and 640 milligrams of sodium.
The new law has sparked heated debate between the “government will control your lives” socialists and those who say the government should butt out.
In a statement, McDonald’s said “Public opinion continues to be overwhelmingly against this misguided legislation. Parents tell us it’s their right and responsibility – not the government’s – to make their own decisions … We’ve added multiple options for parents to choose.”
The National Restaurant Association which opposed the measure, called the law “disappointing.” Executive Vice President of Policy and Government Affairs, Scott DeFife, in a statement said “Rather than focusing on real solutions to the problem of childhood obesity, the Board chose to push forward an unpopular and misguided ordinance that will likely do nothing to help address this problem.”
Now CSPI wants to take the San Francisco law a step further. This summer, it announced plans to sue McDonald’s to stop using toys in Happy Meals. This organization says parents can’t compete with the corporate fast food giants and Madison Avenue marketing campaigns that entice children with toys to eat unhealthy foods.
Can’t compete! Since when is raising a child competition? What kind of parents let their children dictate to them what they are going to eat?