Here are a few things Roy has been up to lately:
He now has six teeth. Four top and the two bottom.
He's figured out how to climb down off of the couch on his own, and is learning how to climb down stairs.
He loves to share. If I give him a cookie or offer him his sippy cup, he always insists I take a bite or a drink as well. ... or it could be he's making sure I haven't poisoned him. It's still cute.
He's developed a fascination with the silverware basket in the dishwasher. I have to prop something inside to force the lower rack to stay outwards or he won't leave the basket alone. And boy does it piss him off! He'll brace his chubby little baby fists against the lower rack, plant his feet, and push as hard as he can, making little weight-lifter grunts while he does it. You can see he's really putting his back into it. When he realizes he's not going to get that lower rack to budge, he starts yelling.
He no longer nurses to sleep. We walk him down for his naps, or if he's really tired, we can just put him in his crib and he'll roll over and go to sleep. He's down to just a morning nursing, and that will go away starting with our road trip to Lissa's.
And finally, last night he got a hold of a small peppermint patty. His reach has gotten a lot better lately, and we had him in his exersaucer while Russ was cleaning up downstairs. He'd started gnawing on the foil wrapper, so Russ decided it would be funny to just unwrap it and let him have at it. I came out of the office to find a baby sticky all over with bits of peppermint patty, with palms and face coated dark brown with chocolate, and not a recognizable lump of that piece of candy left anywhere else in sight. I had to give him a bath before he could eat his dinner - which he wouldn't finish since he'd had so much candy.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Not so Fat now!
Woo hoo! Remember how I said when I weaned Roy, I was going to buy a scale and drop all the extra baby-padding?
When the doctor weighed me at Roy's 9-month checkup, I was still over 150lbs. I finally got my scale, and weighed myself yesterday. Drum-roll please...
One hundred and thirty three pounds! Just twelve pounds to go, and I'll be back down to pre-baby size!
When the doctor weighed me at Roy's 9-month checkup, I was still over 150lbs. I finally got my scale, and weighed myself yesterday. Drum-roll please...
One hundred and thirty three pounds! Just twelve pounds to go, and I'll be back down to pre-baby size!
Friday, May 11, 2007
Woohoo
So, I've been on the verge of a nervous breakdown for the last three weeks or so trying to find D's replacement. Like seriously, I was a total wreck, completely enraged 24/7 and not pleasant to be around. Thankfully we found a new guy!! He liked us and we liked him and he actually wants to move in. Finally!
That is all.
That is all.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Just an Update
Me and Anna had a fantastic time visiting Lissa and Mike in FL. I will send out pictures to everyone later today :).
Also, we just went to see Christina Aguilera in concert. She is AWESOME!!!! I had soooo much fun!! Well, worth the $60.00 for the tickets.
I am in my last week of classes for this semester and am pretty busy, but I can't wait for it to be over with. Well, kind of over with anywho. I will get 1 week or so of no school before I start the Summer Semester. But, I will graduate next Spring, so I guess I don't mind a little pain and suffering for the next year, until that goal is achieved.
And...That is about it!!! CHEERS!!
Monday, April 23, 2007
Ad-Free City
São Paulo, Brazil has banned all forms of outdoor advertising in their city. No more billboards, neon signs, ads on taxi cabs, etc.
Here's the article about the ban.
This Boing Boing post has a link to a whole flickr set of images of São Paulo with the ban in effect.
I'd love to see some photos of the city in another year, once folks have had a chance to take the frame-work for the ads down as well. Free speech issues aside, from some of the pictures, I'd say you can already see an improvement.
Here's the article about the ban.
This Boing Boing post has a link to a whole flickr set of images of São Paulo with the ban in effect.
I'd love to see some photos of the city in another year, once folks have had a chance to take the frame-work for the ads down as well. Free speech issues aside, from some of the pictures, I'd say you can already see an improvement.
Time Flies...
And Roy keeps getting cuter!
He's standing on his own, as long as you don't make a big deal out of it. If you deign to notice his amazing balance and progress, he sits back down.... oh, and we got our driveway paved. Doesn't it make the house look nicer?
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Leave My Damn Posts Alone
Some people who seem to think of themselves as the Big Sister even though they're not the oldest, are getting just a wee bit full of themselves. If you don't like the way I categorize a blog, bitch in person. Don't go in and edit my posts to suit yourself. And if you're going to be rigid about labeling, then you'd also better put up a post explaining your arcane rules for how to decide what belongs to what.
UPDATE: this seems a little out of context when the post it references, along with every other post by the author suddenly disappears from the blog. Guess Alicia decided to take her toys and go home. Well, I'd say I'm sorry, but considering the vast majoriy of her posts were just bitching about how the rest of us posts, I'm really not. Way to show your remarkable powers of maturity, Alicia, and good-bye.
UPDATE 2: since it also seems that everyone's admin privileges have also been removed (except I never had any) I fear that the next step will be the blog being deleted. Just in case, I've gone ahead and created Bilby Sisters and issued invites. You're welcome to post whatever the hell you want, using whatever labels you want, however often you want on it. Cheers!
UPDATE: this seems a little out of context when the post it references, along with every other post by the author suddenly disappears from the blog. Guess Alicia decided to take her toys and go home. Well, I'd say I'm sorry, but considering the vast majoriy of her posts were just bitching about how the rest of us posts, I'm really not. Way to show your remarkable powers of maturity, Alicia, and good-bye.
UPDATE 2: since it also seems that everyone's admin privileges have also been removed (except I never had any) I fear that the next step will be the blog being deleted. Just in case, I've gone ahead and created Bilby Sisters and issued invites. You're welcome to post whatever the hell you want, using whatever labels you want, however often you want on it. Cheers!
Just a 'Horrible Coincidence'
As I'm sure all you cat and dog owners out there are aware of by now, Menu Foods issued a massive recall of their products after it was revealed that the wheat gluten in them was contaminated and killing off owner's pets.
Menu Foods issued their recall of the products about 3 weeks after they were first notified of the pet deaths.
As a 'horrible coincidence', the CEO for Menu Foods just happened to sell off half of his stock in the company three weeks before the recall was announced.
Just fascinating, eh?
Menu Foods issued their recall of the products about 3 weeks after they were first notified of the pet deaths.
As a 'horrible coincidence', the CEO for Menu Foods just happened to sell off half of his stock in the company three weeks before the recall was announced.
Just fascinating, eh?
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
What do you mean there's no fruit in Bubbletape?
I'm not sure this proves advertisers are deceptive or that people are just really fucking dumb.
I personally was not in the least bit surprised to discover that 'foods' like Lifesavers, and Airheads did not contain fruit. *rolls eyes at the idiots who did*
Note: I put foods in quotes because those aren't foods, they are candies.
I personally was not in the least bit surprised to discover that 'foods' like Lifesavers, and Airheads did not contain fruit. *rolls eyes at the idiots who did*
Note: I put foods in quotes because those aren't foods, they are candies.
Book Report - Kitty Takes a Holiday
I just finished Carrie Vaughn's latest, Kitty Takes a Holiday. The 3rd installment of the adventures of our favorite mis-named were-wolf finds her taking an extended leave of absence from her radio show, to get back to nature, work on her memoirs, and try to get her head back together after her recent kidnapping and outing as a were-wolf on national television. Unfortunately, Kitty doesn't need to go looking for trouble. As usual, it arrives on her doorstep, in the form of Cormac the bounty-hunter. This time he's got her lawyer Ben in the back of his jeep, and Ben is badly wounded from a were-wolf attack.
Add to the mix a string of gruesome livestock slaughters in the area, and suddenly Kitty has the law looking at her suspiciously. She's got writer's block, a badly wounded friend, a jealous bounty hunter, legal troubles, and to add insult to injury, a new supernatural talk-radio show has sprung up while she's away to steal her market-share. How is she going to get through it all?
I enjoyed Vaughn's third book as much as I did the first two. Things don't always work out in the way that Kitty or the reader wants, and I find it makes the stories more real for me. You don't know everything will work out all right in the end. You do know Kitty isn't going to suddenly be gifted with additional powers that make a miserable situation suddenly fixable. I'm looking forward to her next installment, coming out near the end of the year.
Add to the mix a string of gruesome livestock slaughters in the area, and suddenly Kitty has the law looking at her suspiciously. She's got writer's block, a badly wounded friend, a jealous bounty hunter, legal troubles, and to add insult to injury, a new supernatural talk-radio show has sprung up while she's away to steal her market-share. How is she going to get through it all?
I enjoyed Vaughn's third book as much as I did the first two. Things don't always work out in the way that Kitty or the reader wants, and I find it makes the stories more real for me. You don't know everything will work out all right in the end. You do know Kitty isn't going to suddenly be gifted with additional powers that make a miserable situation suddenly fixable. I'm looking forward to her next installment, coming out near the end of the year.
Monday, April 09, 2007
Big Mistake
This is the face of a baby that is going to be up until past 1am:
There are some disadvantages to feeding your child an all-natural diet. Namely, when you feed him a big fat honking piece of chocolate cake - one made with over a lb of chocolate in the frosting alone - it causes a reaction much like dousing an already lit grill with a gallon of gasoline. He sure did love his cake; after we swept up all the crumbs and dumped him in the tub, we estimate he ate at least half of the entire slice. But he isn't used to anywhere near that amount of sugar, and we had a little mini-cornholio for the next five and a half hours afterwards. I finally gave up and made Russ take over a little after midnight. He says Roy finally collapsed around 1am.
Happy Birthday, little buddy! We're not going to try that again for a whole 'nother year.
There are some disadvantages to feeding your child an all-natural diet. Namely, when you feed him a big fat honking piece of chocolate cake - one made with over a lb of chocolate in the frosting alone - it causes a reaction much like dousing an already lit grill with a gallon of gasoline. He sure did love his cake; after we swept up all the crumbs and dumped him in the tub, we estimate he ate at least half of the entire slice. But he isn't used to anywhere near that amount of sugar, and we had a little mini-cornholio for the next five and a half hours afterwards. I finally gave up and made Russ take over a little after midnight. He says Roy finally collapsed around 1am.
Happy Birthday, little buddy! We're not going to try that again for a whole 'nother year.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Great Moments in American Legislation
Once you've convinced the public that it is reasonable and necessary to register buyers of Sudafed, in the interest of reducing meth production, it's not that far a leap to try and apply it to other products as well.
I present to you HB1189, which would create a registry of baking soda buyers and put Arm & Hammer behind the counter. Because crack cocaine is made with baking soda. The danger of crack cocaine is sufficient to justify creating a register that would encompass nearly every single household in the state of Missouri, and give the police a pretext to visit and search your home if your baking soda purchases become suspicious.
I doubt the bill will actually pass, but it's a shot across the bow; a testing of the waters, if you will, to see just how much bullshit we're willing to put up with. We're willing to give up our names and addresses and risk a visit by the police in order to get our hands on cold medicine that has been legally available without a prescription for years. Why not require the same for any other mundane or beneficial item that can be turned to ill uses? Growing lights, and hydroponic systems for example. These are the primary tools of any small-time domestic marijuana producer. We should require anyone wishing to purchase such equipment to register with the state. Ditto purchasers of blotting paper or stamps. And chemistry sets. And pretty soon we're gonna realize it'd just be a whole lot easier if we could track every person's purchases and run through their records to look out for suspicious behavior. Just because Total Information Awareness was tabled due to public outcry during the Bush administration, doesn't mean it's gone for good. I bet Hilary could sell it.
I present to you HB1189, which would create a registry of baking soda buyers and put Arm & Hammer behind the counter. Because crack cocaine is made with baking soda. The danger of crack cocaine is sufficient to justify creating a register that would encompass nearly every single household in the state of Missouri, and give the police a pretext to visit and search your home if your baking soda purchases become suspicious.
I doubt the bill will actually pass, but it's a shot across the bow; a testing of the waters, if you will, to see just how much bullshit we're willing to put up with. We're willing to give up our names and addresses and risk a visit by the police in order to get our hands on cold medicine that has been legally available without a prescription for years. Why not require the same for any other mundane or beneficial item that can be turned to ill uses? Growing lights, and hydroponic systems for example. These are the primary tools of any small-time domestic marijuana producer. We should require anyone wishing to purchase such equipment to register with the state. Ditto purchasers of blotting paper or stamps. And chemistry sets. And pretty soon we're gonna realize it'd just be a whole lot easier if we could track every person's purchases and run through their records to look out for suspicious behavior. Just because Total Information Awareness was tabled due to public outcry during the Bush administration, doesn't mean it's gone for good. I bet Hilary could sell it.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Britain Turns Into San Angeles
Wow. Just when I think Britain can't get any sillier, they turn around and prove me wrong. Their pervasive public surveillance cameras aren't enough. Now, the cameras are going to start talking if they spot you engaging in uncivil behavior.
"You are fined one credit for a violation of the verbal morality statute."
"You are fined one credit for a violation of the verbal morality statute."
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Adventures In Slow-cooking
As you all know, I accidentally ended up with a very nice 7qt All-Clad slow-cooker, even though I've never had any interest in using one before. Well, after a few gentle nudges, and some not so subtle hints from Russ and I finally set the thing up and tried it out.
Yesterday morning after I got the coffee started, I rubbed a pork butt with 1 tsp hawaiian sea salt, and 1 tsp liquid smoke, and then put it in the slow-cooker for 12 hours on low. I turned it over once after about six hours. When it came out, it was fall-off-the-bone, and pull-apart-with-a-nudge-of-the-fork tender. I even saved the rest of the meat for leftovers, it was that good. I served it with baked plantains and steamed rice, with lime wedges on the side. And as hectic as my day was yesterday, if the meat hadn't already been taken care of, when I got off work we would have eaten out. Maybe slow-cookers aren't that bad after all. I'm going to try barbecued beef tomorrow.
Yesterday morning after I got the coffee started, I rubbed a pork butt with 1 tsp hawaiian sea salt, and 1 tsp liquid smoke, and then put it in the slow-cooker for 12 hours on low. I turned it over once after about six hours. When it came out, it was fall-off-the-bone, and pull-apart-with-a-nudge-of-the-fork tender. I even saved the rest of the meat for leftovers, it was that good. I served it with baked plantains and steamed rice, with lime wedges on the side. And as hectic as my day was yesterday, if the meat hadn't already been taken care of, when I got off work we would have eaten out. Maybe slow-cookers aren't that bad after all. I'm going to try barbecued beef tomorrow.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Tornadoes Ruin Lives
So, I have been planning a trip to San Diego for about three months now. I had pretty much every minute of my three day stay mapped out, and was ridiculously excited. When I landed, Leigh and I were going to get sushi on the beach, and then head to the House of Blues to see Lily Allen in concert. The next day was going to include another trip to the beach, a tour of the Palomar Observatory, maybe some hiking, and a visit to a tranny bar called Lips. Then Sunday we would go to the Annie Liebowitz exhibit (which doesn't hit DC until fall I think), a patisserie called Extraordinary Desserts, and then the Farmer's market to buy ingredients to cook a nice dinner. Sounds like fun right?
My flight was cancelled. The string of storms that have been pounding the Central states pretty much shut down DFW. They said they couldn't get me another flight until Sunday, and since I had already been standing in line for an hour and a half I just asked for a refund. So what does a girl do when she has time off work, and $300 worth of vacation money burning a hole in her pocket?
She makes a cake.
I don't have star shaped cookie cutters, and I thought that 2.5 cups of melted white chocolate was a bit too much for one layer, so I split the cake into 4 layers. I also omitted the amaretto liquer, because I was too lazy to go to the liquor store. I still think the end result was really fucking good.
My flight was cancelled. The string of storms that have been pounding the Central states pretty much shut down DFW. They said they couldn't get me another flight until Sunday, and since I had already been standing in line for an hour and a half I just asked for a refund. So what does a girl do when she has time off work, and $300 worth of vacation money burning a hole in her pocket?
She makes a cake.
I don't have star shaped cookie cutters, and I thought that 2.5 cups of melted white chocolate was a bit too much for one layer, so I split the cake into 4 layers. I also omitted the amaretto liquer, because I was too lazy to go to the liquor store. I still think the end result was really fucking good.
Monday, April 02, 2007
Dancing With The Stars
Have any of you seen the lineup for this season's Dancing With The Stars? It's an instant gotta-watch. Heather Mills is competing. She's only got one leg!
There's Ian Ziering, Billy Ray Cyrus, Laila Ali, Leeza Gibbons, Joey Fatone, Clyde Drexler (6'7"!), and a bunch of others as well, but Paul McCartney's ex-wife with her prosthetic leg makes it worth it, without anyone else in the lineup. I'm no fan of her politics, but she managed really good foxtrot and mambo routines, and there's such an added thrill to seeing her dance... will her fake leg fall off?
It's on tonight at 8pm, with the results show tomorrow at 9pm.
There's Ian Ziering, Billy Ray Cyrus, Laila Ali, Leeza Gibbons, Joey Fatone, Clyde Drexler (6'7"!), and a bunch of others as well, but Paul McCartney's ex-wife with her prosthetic leg makes it worth it, without anyone else in the lineup. I'm no fan of her politics, but she managed really good foxtrot and mambo routines, and there's such an added thrill to seeing her dance... will her fake leg fall off?
It's on tonight at 8pm, with the results show tomorrow at 9pm.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
The Great Soda Debate
Like chumming the water, Mom sends the following email to her daughters: An article on Reuters today about the strong positive link between sodas and type 2 diabetes. Even one a day, which is lower than national average can markedly increase your risks.
Of course, it has the expected result...(edited to decrease size, a teeny bit)
Livvy: :-D. Good thing I don't drink soft drinks. Never could stand the burning sensation of the bubbles!! Although...I don't know if all the candy I constantly eat helps any :(. THE CRAVINGS!!!
Celeste: Yeah, but note in particular the biggest point in the whole article, which wasn't really emphasized: The data reviewed by Brownell's team also show that higher intake of sugary sodas goes hand in hand with lower intake of milk, calcium and other essential nutrients, fruit and fiber, and higher intake of carbohydrates.
Don't worry about drinking the occasional soda. Make sure you're eating right, otherwise.
I wouldn't care about this stuff so much, except whenever anyone trumpets results like these, it goes hand in hand with a rush to ban something, or introduce more laws and regulations. Let's make selling soft drinks in school illegal! [...] At what point does it stop being the government's business what you do, and become your own, even if the choices you're making are considered dumb at the moment? People have a right to be unhealthy. We have a right to feed our kids corn puffs and trans fats if we want.
There's a certain segment of society that seems to think that if we just forced everyone to live a certain way, no one would die, and everyone would be slim and beautiful and we'd enter into a golden era of happy shiny people. Ain't gonna happen. Live on wheat bran and soy milk if you want to, you're still gonna die. [...]
Livvy: Yeah...YOU, the parents, have a right to feed your kids whatever you want, but that right is taken out of your hands when schools put soda machines in their lobbies, or let Chik-Filet's set up shop in their cafeterias. And I'm not saying that it's entirely the schools' fault, because if parents really didn't want their children to eat that crap, then just don't give them any money to buy it, or instill in them a strong sense of what qualifies as "good food" or "bad food" according to you.
It seems to me however, that a lot of stupid arguments would be put to rest if schools would just do away with these controversial things since it's completely unnecessary and extremely indulgent of them to have these types of food items available to kids anyways. Like you said Celeste, a school's only purpose is to educate, and if some parents are too damned lazy to pack a lunch for their children and would rather send them to school with some money to purchase a lunch, then that is fine, but the schools should only be providing what is necessary for a well balanced meal. [...]
I think that parents NEED to assert themselves and regain control of their kids lives and if that means limiting what the schools are allowed to "provide" to the kids, then so be it. If you want your kid to eat or drink whatever they want, then that's fine...give it to them yourself! It's not necessary for the schools to provide it to them. Not to mention that the simple act of providing easy access to these kinds of foods is in fact taking away the parents control over their kids.
Celeste: The right of a parent to direct their child's diet is NOT taken out of their hands by the availability of soft drinks or junk food in schools. To suggest that it is, is to also suggest that the rest of society needs to bow to your dietary whims, in order for you to control your offspring, and that sort of attitude leads to Britain considering banning pork in public schools, since the availability of it offends muslims. Do what vegetarian or mormon parents do. Tell your children they're not supposed to eat/drink that stuff. Because, if you're going to dictate that schools should only provide what is 'necessary' in terms of available food, there are going to be a whole lot of different competing factions telling you what they consider necessary and also what's harmful.
And there's no reason to pass a law about it. School boards are mostly run by elected citizens in the community, and they're the ones who decide whether or not Pepsi gets to put a machine in the school. If they don't want to offer that crap, they're free to take it out. There doesn't need to be an order from the government telling them that they have to. But the revenues the sodas in those machines provide end up paying for a lot of stuff around the school, and that's one of the reasons they're there. Because most people don't object to their kid having an occasional can of soda and not selling it in the schools isn't going to prevent them bringing it in on their own. It's just going to prevent the school from taking a slice of the soda revenue pie. So if a community finds the sale of sodas in the school so offensive, there's an easy remedy for it already in place, and it's being done around the country already. [...]
Mom: Ahhh...and then there's also the FACT that the schools get enormous kickbacks from the companies who manage to 'place' drink machines in their schools. Dr. Pepper worked very very hard to obtain the contract for each and every district in the area. You see, they figured that a customer gained in youth was a customer for life. So there's a huge money factor involved. Even the marketing people that I was working with thought that it was extremely unethical, and that they were contributing to the obesity problem. Not enough to quit though. Heh. [...]
The point made in the article about how drinking soda replaces the consumption of other, healthier foods was very important and one to remember in meal planning for our children. Cudos to Celeste for doing such an awesome job with Roy in this area. Believe it or not, I knew mothers who were putting soda in their children's baby bottles at his age.
Livvy: It actually is taken out of their hands. There are some parents who do not allow such foods in their homes because they do not want their kids to eat it. Thus, they make it UNAVAILABLE to their children. When schools make it available to them, the control of those parents is taken away. Which is why I say, as far as schools systems are concerned, that a minimalist approach is the best approach. [...] And, furthermore in allowing these types of products to be available at schools are they not bowing to your dietary whims? And "whims" being the key word, because foods such as the ones on topic are completely unnecessary; there is no cultural, or religious reason for them being there, and they are unhealthy in that they have little or no nutritional value.
Celeste: You can rewrite your statement to say:
There are some parents who are vegetarians and do not allow meat and meat products in their homes because they do not want their kids to eat it. When schools make meat and meat products available to them, the control of those parents is taken away.
There are some parents who are orthodox jews, and do not allow their children to consume anything but kosher food. When schools make non-kosher options available to them, the control of those parents is taken away. [...]
Sodas are not served with lunch. You can't get a soda with a meal card. You have to have cash. If you don't want your kids drinking sodas, don't give them cash, but meal cards, or the equivalent, or pack their lunches and send them in with them. By allowing people who want to, and have the money, to purchase a soda, you aren't infringing on anyone's right. You can not demand that the rest of the world change just to suit how you want your child to be raised. If we do that, we'll end up with a society so restrictive that everything that isn't mandatory is prohibited. Again, if a particular school doesn't want a soda vendor contract, they're free to not have one. I just don't want a state or national level law banning it. [...]
Alicia: Don't know what school was like for you girls, but since I was getting up at 6AM and then commuting or in class until about 4PM most days (then usually doing homework or working until midnight -- not to mention getting shitty sleep every single night in a super uncomfortable back brace), I was certainly glad for the cherry coke in the morning and at lunch. I could barely stay awake in Calculus even with that and a caffeine pill. Can we at least give these kids a coffee station if we are taking out the soda machines? Coffee has very good for you anti-oxidants (and the helpful stay awake juice I know I needed in high school). Also the article does not indicate it causes diabetes.
By the way, I also heard a worm can crawl up in your brain and eat out the inside of your head if you eat sushi.
Orianna: But Celeste, letting the general public choose for themselves is what led to the 60% obesity rate in the country. We gave them McDonald's and despite how unhealthy it is, they 'et it all up. They clamor for their superpiggies dipped in chocolate and deep fried. Really they are just too stupid to be making any kind of intelligent informed decision for themselves. I say we make it easier on them to make the smart choice, by eliminating the poor choices.
Who's with me?
Livvy: Hmmm...you could be being sarcastic, but I am totally with you. Seems to me that the 60% of the population that became obese, got that way because they were too stupid to make decisions for themselves, and were just following the lead of corporate powerhouses like McDonalds anyways. So instead, let them follow the lead of smarter people, so that they can then make smarter decisions. [...]
Orianna: Sarcastic. I want my superpiggy an I want it NOW!!!
Celeste: Wow. Who'da thunk Livvy was a mini-authoritarian? The problem with the idea that smarter people should be in control and make our decisions for us, in order to protect the too-stupid general public is that if you get the people you want in power this go around, I can guarantee it ain't gonna last. It's why the constitution was written the way it was, and why our country is structured the way is. There are plenty of people like you who want to gut federalism out of the notion that there are people out there in the country who could benevolently rule in the best interests of the people, but history has shown that to be patently false. It's why we don't have a King. [...]
Yes, freedom is bad for some people. When you are free to make stupid choices, some people inevitably will jump at the chance. It's a fact of life, and I don't want my right to have a chocolate-covered super-piggy stuffed with a little-piggy taken away just because some asshole is going to decide that's all they want to eat day in and day out. Who said we had to save everyone? Or that we had to protect people from themselves? If people make bad enough choices, they die, hopefully before they've bred, or failing that, before they've had a chance to train their offspring to do the same. I'd rather let them, than prohibit the consumption of chocolate cake in a vain attempt to keep them slim.
Orianna: Fatness could actually work out to be a new breed of eugenics. Studies have shown that obese couples have difficulty getting pregnant. And before Lissa chimes in, it's not because they are mistaking fat rolls for certain other body parts.
Livvy: You are wrong about that Celeste. My high school's cafeteria did consist of fast food restaraunts...and if you wanted, your meal card could definitely buy you a soda to go with your lunch, despite the wishes of your parents. [...]
No...you are totally right. In fact, I think that we should do away with any kind of organized education entirely and just let kids--and parents even--do what they want to do. If you want your kid to have an education then you and only you should be in charge of that. The whole problem with public education anyways, is that people cannot come to a general decision of how it should be implemented and what should be taught. So do away with the whole institution and let people decide for themselves.
IN FACT, I am a personal advocate for the overthrow of society in general. Large societies such as ours never work and in the long run eventually fall apart. People need to get organized into small communities...like tribes...and live together that way. It's the only thing that has ever EVER worked for long periods of time and still survives today. It wasn't until people started crowding in, and the groups got larger and larger that things started to fall apart. TRIBES...that is the answer!! We need to think small people!!!
Celeste: Dude, I finally agree with you. ;) The country was just fine before the introduction of public schools, and federal interference in public schools didn't come about until the 70s thanks to that bastard Nixon. Noteworthy that when centralized control became the norm rather than the exception, that's when things really started to decline.
But I don't think we need to go so far as tribalism. The current state system works just fine if you let it. [...]
Orianna: While I agree that people should be given the freedom to make their own decisions about their diet; I also agree that kids don't fall into that category. Celeste's argument swings both ways, just eliminate the crap altogether and whatever it is you want your kid to eat, they can bring with them. If the fatties are free to have vending machines full of cheetos, then why aren't the health conscious free to have broccoli vendors? Pack your god damn lunch and stop expecting the government to raise your kids for you.
Livvy: YES!!...Children do not fall into that category...and I do believe I mentioned at least twice, that I am not for the eradication of "junk" foods entirely...just in our school systems.
Although, ideally we would all resort to a tribal type of life and educate our children on our own terms.
Alicia: If soda's so dangerous it can't be in schools where younglings can get their hands on it, then it should be age restricted like porn, ciggies, and sudafed.
Livvy: Uhmm...you are a soda junkie and I believe that anything you say will advocate the consumption of soda. You are like the people on the street that go..."just one sip junior. You'll like it. It feels good...yeah...feel those bubbles...mmm" And all the while your eyes are glazing over and your voice is getting more and more high pitched and breathy, your tongue lolling out of your mouth...etc...
Celeste: But of course, soda isn't so dangerous. Soda on it's own is fine. Soda in conjunction with a poor diet high in carbs and low in fruits/vegetables, is bad for you. You can achieve the exact same bad effect as drinking a soda a day by consuming anything else containing an equivalent amount of high fructose corn syrup, which is in practically everything you haven't made yourself. And as Lissa pointed out, there are times when a soda is a damn boon.
There's lots of stuff available - in school and out - that's unhealthy. It's available because it's enjoyable or useful, and the average person has no trouble managing their life in conjunction with its use. That there are people out there who will abuse it is no excuse to make it illegal. People abuse sugar, sex, cigarettes, alcohol, coffee, human kindness, animals, cough syrup....
... in fact it's people like you who are the reason I have to give my drivers license and sign in a damn register just to get some fucking cold medicine. Because someone out there might buy a whole shitload of it and use it in their meth lab, I get to be treated like a common criminal, and the cops get to waste their time paying a visit to a family of 5 out in Arizona that was unlucky enough to all come down with the flu at the same time. Buying more than 3 packs of cold medicine in a month is suspicous, don't you know. We need to send the cops out, just for their own good. Guess they should feel grateful it wasn't a SWAT team, at least.
Alicia: Ha ha, or BATF. They would have just fire bombed their house and called it a day.
Livvy: Uhm...there are many alternative cold medicines to choose from if you are feeling ill. You do not have to purchase products containing sudephedrine you know. But, you are right. Let's do away with school nurses because kids should know how to prescribe THEIR medicine to THEMSELVES. In fact, there should be no reason for doctors or the like at all, screw just talking about schools. And all drugs currently only available by prescription should instead be sold over the counter. I mean, who has the right to stop us from using whatever we want whenever we want. And we are all certainly intelligent to know how to read a label so that we know what to take, for whatever ailments we are currently having, and how much to take, and all the side effects that can occur to go along with it. In fact, we do not need to have food or medicine regulated at all. Let anyone who wants to, manufacture, and make it, and sell it to whoever they want to. Let them do the testing on it, and create their own labels for it. People know better. I agree with you...let people do whatever the hell they want. Screw stupid laws and regulations. Whatever makes us happy should be the norm.
Celeste: Sudephedrine remains an over-the-counter drug available without a prescription. Its possible use in domestic meth production is the only reason such restrictions are now in place. So the fact that some people might abuse it, much like some children might get fat from drinking soda, suddenly justifies the ridiculous restrictions now in place? Let's keep in mind that, placing sudephedrine behind the counter has had NO impact on the availability or price of meth, much like banning the sale of soda in the schools will have NO impact on the availability of soda to children. In fact, it's quite likely that if you do ban it, a tidy little black-market of children with more lenient parents will spring up, selling soda to other students on the sly. We had kids in high school that would run to McD's for you and get you lunch for a price, too.
Being reluctant to ban or mandate things because of a sudden perceived harm, does not equate me with wishing for total anarchy or a society with no rules. Nice straw-man there. We banned silicon implants because of a sudden perceived harm, cost an industry billions of dollars, only to turn around recently and like Emily Litella say, "Never mind." We were encouraged to use margarine because it was supposed to be healthier for you than real butter... until the latest trans fats freak-out. I'm just arguing for a little more trust in common sense. The average life-span of Americans has increased steadily for decades - we're not doing that bad, no need to panic.
Livvy: Either way you put it, I am still standing by my argument, that if parents want their kids to eat whatever they want, then the parents should be providing it to them; not the schools.
It is because of people like you that there are so many idiotic law suits about how "my kid is obese and it's the schools' faults," "I am obese and it is McDonald's fault," "I went through a windshield because I don't meet the size restrictions on my seatbelt, so it's the car manufacturers fault for not taking into consideration the vast number of obese people that are the product of our nation." You advocate having people take responsibility for their own actions, but you forget that most people don't take responsibility for their own actions. And it is usually those same irresponsible people--the ones complaining on how it's not their fault that they are sick, it's someone else's--that are usually the reason why there are groups like MADD, TRUTH, etc.. out there. Would activist groups like MADD and TRUTH have considered these things problems if the people you support hadn't somehow managed to turn it into a problem? Doubtful. But it is the ignorance and poor judgment of these "obese" individuals that brought it to the attention of others...and guess what? Now these idiotic issues are dominating public opinion, such as should vending machines full of cheetos and cokes be allowed in schools?
Orianna: tee hee
Livvy: OMG...I want Nick to have that shirt :-D!!! Sooooo funny.
Celeste: I agree, if parents want their kids to eat whatever they want, they should be providing it. I just disagree that it's such a travesty if a school has a soda machine as well. I think it's up to the schools, and if the parents have such a problem with it, they can let the school know. Most folks don't, though, because soda isn't that bad for you. Nor is Chick-filet. It's when eaten in excess and to the exclusion of other things that it becomes a problem.
How does taking away even more of a person's choices do anything to enhance freedom or personal responsibility? It's because of people like you - the ones who insist we need to DO something, that society has a responsibility to take care of you and protect you from your own stupidity - that we get these lawsuits, not me. Once you freak out and ban, or try to ban something, you've just provided the evidence needed for a speculative lawyer to start filing. And the existence of societal leeches like MADD (alcohol) and TRUTH (tobacco) has absolutely no bearing on how much of a problem there really is with obesity.
And I think the reason these sorts of issues make headlines these days is because as a society we have it so damn good we can worry about crap like this, rather than spending our time actually worrying about how to put food on a table and a roof over our heads. No where else on earth are the rich people starving and the poor people too fat. I count myself lucky to live in such a country.
Orianna: You both need to stop with the name calling. Let's be realistic, it's not because of people like Livvy that schools are banning sodas. Livvy is not litigious, she just wants the best for people. It is not because of people like Celeste that there are so many idiotic lawsuits, she is not lobbying on capitol hill to protect the fatties. Be more constructive in how you couch your arguments, instead of lobbing personal attacks.
Livvy: Nick would die if he ate Chick Filet. Just one tiny little bite...and he'd keel over...dead. Just like that. Like that stupid tylenol story you hear in Elementary school. Fluke allergic reactions. But if you feel like you NEED a soda to stay awake during the school day, or even a cup of coffee...then bring one in from home. Anywho, I can't believe you'd advocate the selling of POISONOUS foods to children Celeste. Seems so unlike you.
Celeste: Well Nick knows Chick-filet is poisonous to him, right? You aren't suggesting he's too dumb to avoid eating food he knows he's allergic to are you? I'm not advocating selling it to Nick, but if people who won't die from it want to eat it, I don't see the problem there. And I'm sure it's an ingredient in their food, not the franchise itself that's so dangerous to him, so the same thing could happen whether Chick-filet was on campus or not.
Livvy: Well, obviously Nick is a genius and would not make such a stupid mistake as to kill himself....well, maybe I cannot say that...there was that one time when he ate the banana walnut muffin, and the other time where he ate the sandwich with pesto sauce, and the other time where he ate the green beans almondine, and these are just the times I am privy to....sooo, I guess, if a genius like Nick can make those mistakes.....and yeah, this thread has probably run its course I think ;).
Of course, it has the expected result...(edited to decrease size, a teeny bit)
Livvy: :-D. Good thing I don't drink soft drinks. Never could stand the burning sensation of the bubbles!! Although...I don't know if all the candy I constantly eat helps any :(. THE CRAVINGS!!!
Celeste: Yeah, but note in particular the biggest point in the whole article, which wasn't really emphasized: The data reviewed by Brownell's team also show that higher intake of sugary sodas goes hand in hand with lower intake of milk, calcium and other essential nutrients, fruit and fiber, and higher intake of carbohydrates.
Don't worry about drinking the occasional soda. Make sure you're eating right, otherwise.
I wouldn't care about this stuff so much, except whenever anyone trumpets results like these, it goes hand in hand with a rush to ban something, or introduce more laws and regulations. Let's make selling soft drinks in school illegal! [...] At what point does it stop being the government's business what you do, and become your own, even if the choices you're making are considered dumb at the moment? People have a right to be unhealthy. We have a right to feed our kids corn puffs and trans fats if we want.
There's a certain segment of society that seems to think that if we just forced everyone to live a certain way, no one would die, and everyone would be slim and beautiful and we'd enter into a golden era of happy shiny people. Ain't gonna happen. Live on wheat bran and soy milk if you want to, you're still gonna die. [...]
Livvy: Yeah...YOU, the parents, have a right to feed your kids whatever you want, but that right is taken out of your hands when schools put soda machines in their lobbies, or let Chik-Filet's set up shop in their cafeterias. And I'm not saying that it's entirely the schools' fault, because if parents really didn't want their children to eat that crap, then just don't give them any money to buy it, or instill in them a strong sense of what qualifies as "good food" or "bad food" according to you.
It seems to me however, that a lot of stupid arguments would be put to rest if schools would just do away with these controversial things since it's completely unnecessary and extremely indulgent of them to have these types of food items available to kids anyways. Like you said Celeste, a school's only purpose is to educate, and if some parents are too damned lazy to pack a lunch for their children and would rather send them to school with some money to purchase a lunch, then that is fine, but the schools should only be providing what is necessary for a well balanced meal. [...]
I think that parents NEED to assert themselves and regain control of their kids lives and if that means limiting what the schools are allowed to "provide" to the kids, then so be it. If you want your kid to eat or drink whatever they want, then that's fine...give it to them yourself! It's not necessary for the schools to provide it to them. Not to mention that the simple act of providing easy access to these kinds of foods is in fact taking away the parents control over their kids.
Celeste: The right of a parent to direct their child's diet is NOT taken out of their hands by the availability of soft drinks or junk food in schools. To suggest that it is, is to also suggest that the rest of society needs to bow to your dietary whims, in order for you to control your offspring, and that sort of attitude leads to Britain considering banning pork in public schools, since the availability of it offends muslims. Do what vegetarian or mormon parents do. Tell your children they're not supposed to eat/drink that stuff. Because, if you're going to dictate that schools should only provide what is 'necessary' in terms of available food, there are going to be a whole lot of different competing factions telling you what they consider necessary and also what's harmful.
And there's no reason to pass a law about it. School boards are mostly run by elected citizens in the community, and they're the ones who decide whether or not Pepsi gets to put a machine in the school. If they don't want to offer that crap, they're free to take it out. There doesn't need to be an order from the government telling them that they have to. But the revenues the sodas in those machines provide end up paying for a lot of stuff around the school, and that's one of the reasons they're there. Because most people don't object to their kid having an occasional can of soda and not selling it in the schools isn't going to prevent them bringing it in on their own. It's just going to prevent the school from taking a slice of the soda revenue pie. So if a community finds the sale of sodas in the school so offensive, there's an easy remedy for it already in place, and it's being done around the country already. [...]
Mom: Ahhh...and then there's also the FACT that the schools get enormous kickbacks from the companies who manage to 'place' drink machines in their schools. Dr. Pepper worked very very hard to obtain the contract for each and every district in the area. You see, they figured that a customer gained in youth was a customer for life. So there's a huge money factor involved. Even the marketing people that I was working with thought that it was extremely unethical, and that they were contributing to the obesity problem. Not enough to quit though. Heh. [...]
The point made in the article about how drinking soda replaces the consumption of other, healthier foods was very important and one to remember in meal planning for our children. Cudos to Celeste for doing such an awesome job with Roy in this area. Believe it or not, I knew mothers who were putting soda in their children's baby bottles at his age.
Livvy: It actually is taken out of their hands. There are some parents who do not allow such foods in their homes because they do not want their kids to eat it. Thus, they make it UNAVAILABLE to their children. When schools make it available to them, the control of those parents is taken away. Which is why I say, as far as schools systems are concerned, that a minimalist approach is the best approach. [...] And, furthermore in allowing these types of products to be available at schools are they not bowing to your dietary whims? And "whims" being the key word, because foods such as the ones on topic are completely unnecessary; there is no cultural, or religious reason for them being there, and they are unhealthy in that they have little or no nutritional value.
Celeste: You can rewrite your statement to say:
There are some parents who are vegetarians and do not allow meat and meat products in their homes because they do not want their kids to eat it. When schools make meat and meat products available to them, the control of those parents is taken away.
There are some parents who are orthodox jews, and do not allow their children to consume anything but kosher food. When schools make non-kosher options available to them, the control of those parents is taken away. [...]
Sodas are not served with lunch. You can't get a soda with a meal card. You have to have cash. If you don't want your kids drinking sodas, don't give them cash, but meal cards, or the equivalent, or pack their lunches and send them in with them. By allowing people who want to, and have the money, to purchase a soda, you aren't infringing on anyone's right. You can not demand that the rest of the world change just to suit how you want your child to be raised. If we do that, we'll end up with a society so restrictive that everything that isn't mandatory is prohibited. Again, if a particular school doesn't want a soda vendor contract, they're free to not have one. I just don't want a state or national level law banning it. [...]
Alicia: Don't know what school was like for you girls, but since I was getting up at 6AM and then commuting or in class until about 4PM most days (then usually doing homework or working until midnight -- not to mention getting shitty sleep every single night in a super uncomfortable back brace), I was certainly glad for the cherry coke in the morning and at lunch. I could barely stay awake in Calculus even with that and a caffeine pill. Can we at least give these kids a coffee station if we are taking out the soda machines? Coffee has very good for you anti-oxidants (and the helpful stay awake juice I know I needed in high school). Also the article does not indicate it causes diabetes.
By the way, I also heard a worm can crawl up in your brain and eat out the inside of your head if you eat sushi.
Orianna: But Celeste, letting the general public choose for themselves is what led to the 60% obesity rate in the country. We gave them McDonald's and despite how unhealthy it is, they 'et it all up. They clamor for their superpiggies dipped in chocolate and deep fried. Really they are just too stupid to be making any kind of intelligent informed decision for themselves. I say we make it easier on them to make the smart choice, by eliminating the poor choices.
Who's with me?
Livvy: Hmmm...you could be being sarcastic, but I am totally with you. Seems to me that the 60% of the population that became obese, got that way because they were too stupid to make decisions for themselves, and were just following the lead of corporate powerhouses like McDonalds anyways. So instead, let them follow the lead of smarter people, so that they can then make smarter decisions. [...]
Orianna: Sarcastic. I want my superpiggy an I want it NOW!!!
Celeste: Wow. Who'da thunk Livvy was a mini-authoritarian? The problem with the idea that smarter people should be in control and make our decisions for us, in order to protect the too-stupid general public is that if you get the people you want in power this go around, I can guarantee it ain't gonna last. It's why the constitution was written the way it was, and why our country is structured the way is. There are plenty of people like you who want to gut federalism out of the notion that there are people out there in the country who could benevolently rule in the best interests of the people, but history has shown that to be patently false. It's why we don't have a King. [...]
Yes, freedom is bad for some people. When you are free to make stupid choices, some people inevitably will jump at the chance. It's a fact of life, and I don't want my right to have a chocolate-covered super-piggy stuffed with a little-piggy taken away just because some asshole is going to decide that's all they want to eat day in and day out. Who said we had to save everyone? Or that we had to protect people from themselves? If people make bad enough choices, they die, hopefully before they've bred, or failing that, before they've had a chance to train their offspring to do the same. I'd rather let them, than prohibit the consumption of chocolate cake in a vain attempt to keep them slim.
Orianna: Fatness could actually work out to be a new breed of eugenics. Studies have shown that obese couples have difficulty getting pregnant. And before Lissa chimes in, it's not because they are mistaking fat rolls for certain other body parts.
Livvy: You are wrong about that Celeste. My high school's cafeteria did consist of fast food restaraunts...and if you wanted, your meal card could definitely buy you a soda to go with your lunch, despite the wishes of your parents. [...]
No...you are totally right. In fact, I think that we should do away with any kind of organized education entirely and just let kids--and parents even--do what they want to do. If you want your kid to have an education then you and only you should be in charge of that. The whole problem with public education anyways, is that people cannot come to a general decision of how it should be implemented and what should be taught. So do away with the whole institution and let people decide for themselves.
IN FACT, I am a personal advocate for the overthrow of society in general. Large societies such as ours never work and in the long run eventually fall apart. People need to get organized into small communities...like tribes...and live together that way. It's the only thing that has ever EVER worked for long periods of time and still survives today. It wasn't until people started crowding in, and the groups got larger and larger that things started to fall apart. TRIBES...that is the answer!! We need to think small people!!!
Celeste: Dude, I finally agree with you. ;) The country was just fine before the introduction of public schools, and federal interference in public schools didn't come about until the 70s thanks to that bastard Nixon. Noteworthy that when centralized control became the norm rather than the exception, that's when things really started to decline.
But I don't think we need to go so far as tribalism. The current state system works just fine if you let it. [...]
Orianna: While I agree that people should be given the freedom to make their own decisions about their diet; I also agree that kids don't fall into that category. Celeste's argument swings both ways, just eliminate the crap altogether and whatever it is you want your kid to eat, they can bring with them. If the fatties are free to have vending machines full of cheetos, then why aren't the health conscious free to have broccoli vendors? Pack your god damn lunch and stop expecting the government to raise your kids for you.
Livvy: YES!!...Children do not fall into that category...and I do believe I mentioned at least twice, that I am not for the eradication of "junk" foods entirely...just in our school systems.
Although, ideally we would all resort to a tribal type of life and educate our children on our own terms.
Alicia: If soda's so dangerous it can't be in schools where younglings can get their hands on it, then it should be age restricted like porn, ciggies, and sudafed.
Livvy: Uhmm...you are a soda junkie and I believe that anything you say will advocate the consumption of soda. You are like the people on the street that go..."just one sip junior. You'll like it. It feels good...yeah...feel those bubbles...mmm" And all the while your eyes are glazing over and your voice is getting more and more high pitched and breathy, your tongue lolling out of your mouth...etc...
Celeste: But of course, soda isn't so dangerous. Soda on it's own is fine. Soda in conjunction with a poor diet high in carbs and low in fruits/vegetables, is bad for you. You can achieve the exact same bad effect as drinking a soda a day by consuming anything else containing an equivalent amount of high fructose corn syrup, which is in practically everything you haven't made yourself. And as Lissa pointed out, there are times when a soda is a damn boon.
There's lots of stuff available - in school and out - that's unhealthy. It's available because it's enjoyable or useful, and the average person has no trouble managing their life in conjunction with its use. That there are people out there who will abuse it is no excuse to make it illegal. People abuse sugar, sex, cigarettes, alcohol, coffee, human kindness, animals, cough syrup....
... in fact it's people like you who are the reason I have to give my drivers license and sign in a damn register just to get some fucking cold medicine. Because someone out there might buy a whole shitload of it and use it in their meth lab, I get to be treated like a common criminal, and the cops get to waste their time paying a visit to a family of 5 out in Arizona that was unlucky enough to all come down with the flu at the same time. Buying more than 3 packs of cold medicine in a month is suspicous, don't you know. We need to send the cops out, just for their own good. Guess they should feel grateful it wasn't a SWAT team, at least.
Alicia: Ha ha, or BATF. They would have just fire bombed their house and called it a day.
Livvy: Uhm...there are many alternative cold medicines to choose from if you are feeling ill. You do not have to purchase products containing sudephedrine you know. But, you are right. Let's do away with school nurses because kids should know how to prescribe THEIR medicine to THEMSELVES. In fact, there should be no reason for doctors or the like at all, screw just talking about schools. And all drugs currently only available by prescription should instead be sold over the counter. I mean, who has the right to stop us from using whatever we want whenever we want. And we are all certainly intelligent to know how to read a label so that we know what to take, for whatever ailments we are currently having, and how much to take, and all the side effects that can occur to go along with it. In fact, we do not need to have food or medicine regulated at all. Let anyone who wants to, manufacture, and make it, and sell it to whoever they want to. Let them do the testing on it, and create their own labels for it. People know better. I agree with you...let people do whatever the hell they want. Screw stupid laws and regulations. Whatever makes us happy should be the norm.
Celeste: Sudephedrine remains an over-the-counter drug available without a prescription. Its possible use in domestic meth production is the only reason such restrictions are now in place. So the fact that some people might abuse it, much like some children might get fat from drinking soda, suddenly justifies the ridiculous restrictions now in place? Let's keep in mind that, placing sudephedrine behind the counter has had NO impact on the availability or price of meth, much like banning the sale of soda in the schools will have NO impact on the availability of soda to children. In fact, it's quite likely that if you do ban it, a tidy little black-market of children with more lenient parents will spring up, selling soda to other students on the sly. We had kids in high school that would run to McD's for you and get you lunch for a price, too.
Being reluctant to ban or mandate things because of a sudden perceived harm, does not equate me with wishing for total anarchy or a society with no rules. Nice straw-man there. We banned silicon implants because of a sudden perceived harm, cost an industry billions of dollars, only to turn around recently and like Emily Litella say, "Never mind." We were encouraged to use margarine because it was supposed to be healthier for you than real butter... until the latest trans fats freak-out. I'm just arguing for a little more trust in common sense. The average life-span of Americans has increased steadily for decades - we're not doing that bad, no need to panic.
Livvy: Either way you put it, I am still standing by my argument, that if parents want their kids to eat whatever they want, then the parents should be providing it to them; not the schools.
It is because of people like you that there are so many idiotic law suits about how "my kid is obese and it's the schools' faults," "I am obese and it is McDonald's fault," "I went through a windshield because I don't meet the size restrictions on my seatbelt, so it's the car manufacturers fault for not taking into consideration the vast number of obese people that are the product of our nation." You advocate having people take responsibility for their own actions, but you forget that most people don't take responsibility for their own actions. And it is usually those same irresponsible people--the ones complaining on how it's not their fault that they are sick, it's someone else's--that are usually the reason why there are groups like MADD, TRUTH, etc.. out there. Would activist groups like MADD and TRUTH have considered these things problems if the people you support hadn't somehow managed to turn it into a problem? Doubtful. But it is the ignorance and poor judgment of these "obese" individuals that brought it to the attention of others...and guess what? Now these idiotic issues are dominating public opinion, such as should vending machines full of cheetos and cokes be allowed in schools?
Orianna: tee hee
Livvy: OMG...I want Nick to have that shirt :-D!!! Sooooo funny.
Celeste: I agree, if parents want their kids to eat whatever they want, they should be providing it. I just disagree that it's such a travesty if a school has a soda machine as well. I think it's up to the schools, and if the parents have such a problem with it, they can let the school know. Most folks don't, though, because soda isn't that bad for you. Nor is Chick-filet. It's when eaten in excess and to the exclusion of other things that it becomes a problem.
How does taking away even more of a person's choices do anything to enhance freedom or personal responsibility? It's because of people like you - the ones who insist we need to DO something, that society has a responsibility to take care of you and protect you from your own stupidity - that we get these lawsuits, not me. Once you freak out and ban, or try to ban something, you've just provided the evidence needed for a speculative lawyer to start filing. And the existence of societal leeches like MADD (alcohol) and TRUTH (tobacco) has absolutely no bearing on how much of a problem there really is with obesity.
And I think the reason these sorts of issues make headlines these days is because as a society we have it so damn good we can worry about crap like this, rather than spending our time actually worrying about how to put food on a table and a roof over our heads. No where else on earth are the rich people starving and the poor people too fat. I count myself lucky to live in such a country.
Orianna: You both need to stop with the name calling. Let's be realistic, it's not because of people like Livvy that schools are banning sodas. Livvy is not litigious, she just wants the best for people. It is not because of people like Celeste that there are so many idiotic lawsuits, she is not lobbying on capitol hill to protect the fatties. Be more constructive in how you couch your arguments, instead of lobbing personal attacks.
Livvy: Nick would die if he ate Chick Filet. Just one tiny little bite...and he'd keel over...dead. Just like that. Like that stupid tylenol story you hear in Elementary school. Fluke allergic reactions. But if you feel like you NEED a soda to stay awake during the school day, or even a cup of coffee...then bring one in from home. Anywho, I can't believe you'd advocate the selling of POISONOUS foods to children Celeste. Seems so unlike you.
Celeste: Well Nick knows Chick-filet is poisonous to him, right? You aren't suggesting he's too dumb to avoid eating food he knows he's allergic to are you? I'm not advocating selling it to Nick, but if people who won't die from it want to eat it, I don't see the problem there. And I'm sure it's an ingredient in their food, not the franchise itself that's so dangerous to him, so the same thing could happen whether Chick-filet was on campus or not.
Livvy: Well, obviously Nick is a genius and would not make such a stupid mistake as to kill himself....well, maybe I cannot say that...there was that one time when he ate the banana walnut muffin, and the other time where he ate the sandwich with pesto sauce, and the other time where he ate the green beans almondine, and these are just the times I am privy to....sooo, I guess, if a genius like Nick can make those mistakes.....and yeah, this thread has probably run its course I think ;).
Sooooo anywho...It's been fun Celeste, Anna, Lissa, Mom :). I do love to argue!! But now I am off to class...where I will probably make a totally worthwhile dinner out of vending machine products!
Orianna: Just for fun . . . .
it's Chick-Fil-A
Orianna: Just for fun . . . .
it's Chick-Fil-A
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
The Long Way Home
So.... has everyone gotten and read their copies of Buffy: Season Eight, Issue #1? I'm dying to say something but don't wanna spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.... Cheese!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Book Report - For A Few Demons More
There wasn't really much to say about this one because I don't want to give any of it away, but it freaking rocked. It was so damn good it was an act of will to put the book down. It's the sort of tale where when you get to the last 30 pages or so, you start to feel bad because it's going to end soon, but you console yourself with knowing that you can just turn back to page one and start over again. I'd offer to loan it out, but that's exactly what I'm going to do. Totally worth hardcover price, and I think her absolute best yet.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Precocious
I have a tendency to let Roy wander off while we're upstairs and I'm in the kitchen. As long as he's not near the stairs, and the bathroom doors are closed, I'm not too worried about him. He normally spends his time chasing his roll-a-rounds or one of the cats.
But yesterday, while I was busy preparing the boy's lunch - I caught the sound of Roy giggling coming from the back of the house. So I paused my puree-ing, and followed the sweet sounds of a happy baby....
to find Roy, standing at our dresser, with the second drawer up half pulled out, and some of Russ' t-shirts pulled over the edge of the drawer. Roy is bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet, giggling like mad over his discovery: daddy's cache o' girlie mags.
That kid is too clever by half.
But yesterday, while I was busy preparing the boy's lunch - I caught the sound of Roy giggling coming from the back of the house. So I paused my puree-ing, and followed the sweet sounds of a happy baby....
to find Roy, standing at our dresser, with the second drawer up half pulled out, and some of Russ' t-shirts pulled over the edge of the drawer. Roy is bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet, giggling like mad over his discovery: daddy's cache o' girlie mags.
That kid is too clever by half.
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