Should local governments limit fast-food restaurants?

Sure, L.A. shhould ban fast food right after they get rid of the tax draining Illegal Aliens, and make smoking illegal totally. They didn't mention drugs, did they? Then maybe it will be safe there. You won't be victimized by illegals, get diseases, burn down properties, and get fat.

Well, you would still have to be afraid of the politicans.

No wonder the rest of the country thinks the people in California are crazy.

Point well taken, but does anyone know how much it cost the government a year for children alone suffering from obesity? Millions...I am not saying the government should control every aspect of our lives but obviously, what I have noticed is that people, especially in this country, refused to take responsibility for their actions...then the government has to use unconventional methods to rain things in.

CA is not shutting down fast food joints, its only limiting their infiltration for a year or two in poor communities so people can have some other healthy choice of foods...don't kill the experiment...one never truly know the outcome until tried...

I believe everyone, including parents, our community (grocers, supermarket, etc.) should be held accountable. Educating parents might be a good step [not only eating right in schools as the children has to go home to eat] in the right direction because if parents know what to feed their children and themselves, then we would not have generation upon generation of obesity issue which have only increased over in the past ten or so years. This has become an inheritance for poorer people. This country has more than enough healthy food but poor people will not buy it, not only due to financial factor. According to researched data, in most cases, obese children become obese adults. Seriously, fatty food is addictive...if you eat it long enough, healthy foods will not taste appealing.

In my neighborhood some supermarkets have made positive change in this direction because people asked for it, and yes it does cost more but as you can see, people should and need to eat less.

I do not believe, we should go around mistrusting every move the goverment makes just because they've made mistakes in the past, we are imperfect human beings...wherever there are people, there will be problems. The issue is, how do we as a nation make things better for each other. We could start by holding each other accountable so that the government does not have to force people to change by using unconventional means. By trial and error, we learn to make change in the right direction; so okay this is in the trial process give it a change. Do you all have any positive suggestion? Lets send these suggestion to our community leaders and local government and groups.

In NY, it is now mandatory to dislose calories and you would be surpised to know that a lot of people said they did not know they consumed so much calories in one day. For example, I did not know one doughnut had 380-400 calories. Yet for years, certain individuals fought against implementing this type of disclosure in NY. I believe its working, even if its one step at a time...peole seemed to be visual...that is why advertisements have been so successful and have such powerful influence on people.

Everyone (nation) has to help when there is a crisis [that is what is done during a crisis!] During my research on this subject [obesity], I found out it has now reached critical mass. Everyone needs to play a role, the question is what & how. Not just empty speculations. For every little that each of us do, if it helps one person that is a step in the right direction.

Point well taken, but does anyone know how much it cost the government a year for children alone suffering from obesity? Millions...I am not saying the government should control every aspect of our lives but obviously, what I have noticed is that people, especially in this country, refused to take responsibility for their actions...then the government has to use unconventional methods to rain things in.

Or the government could just stop paying for the programs that are impacted by obesity, removing the financial justification just as effectively. Do you trust government to fix this? They have in large part created the situation by funding cheap staple food production and building lots of roads and zoning completely unwalkable neighborhoods.

Thank you!! It's not by accident that 3/4th of our country is obeise. Nor is it by accident that fast food restaurants became prevailant when the baby boomers were growing up. Now just look at THEIR children. Hello?????????

Synger68, do you think it's possible that the fault lays with the people and not with the restaurant? When I was growing up, we ate together as a family and had healthy meals (I still do that to this day). However, it seems that more and more families are just "eating on the go" and the parents do not seem to care what, when or even IF their children eat. Maybe we need to take a look at family values instead of banning certain types of restaurants.

How can it be cheaper to eat at any resturant than to buy food and prepare it at home?

happy - i can name off quite a few restaurants that are cheaper than some food that can be fixed at home...

The government needs to keep their *&%#!@ing nose out of people's private business!!!! This is all you politically correct Democrats that want government to be everyone's big &8%@ing brother, because you don't think people can think and choose for themselves, or take responsibility for their own actions--who even says that everybody wants to live until they're 80???--me, I want to be gone before I get old and useless!! The Republicans aren't much better--they want to sell the country out to big business interests and get into your private affairs through the Patriot Act--we're being sold down the river by both parties--I'm telling you, Big Brother totalitarian government is coming if we don't watch out!!! Everyday, it's creeping in on us, and catching most of us unaware.

If you just have $2.00 a day to live on you can buy two Big Macs. The $2.00 will only buy you a cup of coffee at Denney's or a sit down "healthy" restaurant.

You could buy a bag of dried beans and a bag of rice, and have food for days. The next day you could buy a container of oats, and have breakfast for days. The next day you could buy some apples and some onions and jazz up your dishes. The next day you have to get rice and beans again. Or, you could eat Big Macs and give yourself a heart attack.

I am someone who has gone from the poverty line to a median income and back a few times, in part due to various health problems unrelated to obesity. And for all people are saying "Well fast food is cheeper..." Really it's not, I mean perhaps if you live in an area where the Mickey D's is right outside your doorstep and the nearest grocer is ten miles away and you don't have a working refrigerator, stove or microwave, and you can't build a fire pit in your backyard, then the gas to drive to the store may make the fast food comparable in price and convience. But to be perfectly honest, when I am at my least wealthiest, fast food becomes banned from the household because we simply can't afford it. Oh sure you can pick up a 39 cent hamburg on Wednesdays, a rubbery unfilling piece of 'hopefully' meat and two squished buns coated in mustard and ketchup and it might take the edge off the hunger, but start adding the usual fries and a coke and the price tag just went up. So no, fast food is not cheeper, it's far easier yes, stop in, wait in line a few minutes and voila Food! no shopping, no preping, no cooking, just instant gratification, but it is more expensive.

When I have the least amount of money I actually eat the healthiest, fries are replaced with rice, porterhouse steaks are replaced with chicken, rich (salt-laden) gravys are replaced with vinger or other seasonings, salads lose their normal cheese, croutons, bacon bits, diced ham, and creamy dressings and are served up as simple dishes filled with whatever veggies I could find on sale and topped with some vinger and oil and a dash of salt and pepper. Soda that is drank by the case is traded out with iced or hot teas with some Kool-aid... well you get the idea. Going to the grocer every two weeks, clipping coupons, reading flyers and cooking at home, has always been and will always be the most economical choice no matter what size the family is and it generally is likewise a healthier choice. And let's not forget the greatest helper to economics in the kitchen...leftovers.... the best is leftover sandwiches, two pieces of bread and whatever meat is left over from the night before, a piece of lettuce, a slice of american cheese, and a smackling of mayo. Costs less than a $1.00 and you have a far heartier lunch than a Mickey D's burger.

And while it was mentioned before that looking at the 40's and 50's and the limited quanities of processed foods, well the poster was on the right track but there was a bit more to it. Neighborhoods were also set up differently, they were better suited to walking than driving, crime rates were much lower, drugs weren't as much of an issue nor was gang violence and every school had some form of P.E. each day, not to mention recess where there weren't many jungle gyms but just large open places where the kids could simply run around and have fun. Wendy's, McDonald's and I think Burger King as well were all around in the 1950's and many people ate there frequently, but they also had much more active lifestyles.

If the government wants to fight obesity, they truly should turn their attention back to physical education in the school system along with home economic courses that teach kids how to shop for, cook and eat well balanced meals, do their best to fix the justice system to lower the crime rates and open up more parks and ensure there is supervision and sidewalks for kids to get to them. But as they say, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink, unless citizens get involved in their communities and parents and kids alike push themselves away from their computers, video games, PDA, and steering wheels, the U.S. will forever be fighting against obesity.

Kellyb, you are so right. Businesses will go where they can make money. If businesses can get insurance and not have to worry about armed robberies and vandalism, they will do business anywhere.

And where else does it start but California. You forgot to mention the fact that Americans are the only one's that pay for pharmaceutical research. Our drugs are so over priced it has some people deciding to eat or take there pills. Then they eat and go out and shoot up a church. Everything is OK to do in Californication but you got to look good!!

And where else does it start but California. You forgot to mention the fact that Americans are the only one's that pay for pharmaceutical research. Our drugs are so over priced it has some people deciding to eat or take there pills. Then they eat and go out and shoot up a church. Everything is OK to do in Californication but you got to look good!!

Don't hate on California... At least Californians have some interest in eating healthier, exercising and living longer... Yes, food prepared without grease and salt CAN taste good, believe it or not! And in terms of a place where a lot of people are consumed with image and appearance, Miami and New York are no better than California.

What I find amazing is the government is so concerned about healthy foods, however the drugs and gang crime that is totally out of control is not a matter of public health? The HEPC/ HIV/ etc. that go along with drug use, the shootings, stabbings, etc that go along with gang crime, which is part in parcel to the drugs.

No, those are criminal matters, not a matter of public health. STDs are a general public health issue and certainly not limited to drug users. The biggest killers in America are heart attacks and lung cancer - dwarfing all other forms of death. If you want to focus on violent death, the leading cause there is car accidents, which may rise to a level of public health concerns.

Wow! I've been asking people that same question for the past few years, I thought "Demolition Man" was fiction too, but looks like government is trying to push us that same direction. Anything bad for you is hence illegal...what's next, the thought police? Guess those science fiction writers weren't too far off their mark. All this interference because us "regular" folk can't possibly make our own decisions regarding our own health. Give me a break. Just insane.

That movie was crazy good; however I think that it is totally a matter of choice they should try to establish more health clubs, parks, and more programs promoting good health in the hood. You can eat health off of two bigs as well. 15 dollars a week can buy a loaf of bread, lunch meat, water, milk, etc. eating a sandwich is far better then eating a nasty greasy mcD burger.

OMG! I was thinking the exact same thing. When is Taco Bell going to take over? Did anyone else notice the smog in the background? I don't think obesity is the only thing they have to worry about! Big Brother has better things they should be dealing with. Getting our soldiers home, how prices are going up but the poor and middle class earnings are stagnate, drugs, teen pregnancy, people losing their homes because of greedy banks, et. Come on folks! Wake up!

Concerned Mom

Yep, I'm a big fan of the movie. My favorite line:

"I like to think; I like to read. I'm into freedom of speech and freedom of choice. I'm the kind of guy likes to sit in a greasy spoon and wonder - "Gee, should I have the T-bone steak or the jumbo rack of barbecued ribs with the side order of gravy fries?" I WANT high cholesterol. I wanna eat bacon and butter and BUCKETS of cheese, okay? I want to smoke a Cuban cigar the size of Cincinnati in the non-smoking section. I want to run through the streets naked with green Jell-o all over my body reading Playboy magazine. Why? Because I suddenly might feel the need to, okay, pal?"

It's called "freedom", people. Wake up and smell it, and if you don't like the smell, may I suggest moving to any of the several totalitarian socialist countries rather than messing with the freedom our founders fought and died for us to have*? I'm sure Kim Jong or Hugo Chavez would welcome your kind with open arms.

*Yes, the founders would be spinning in their graves if they knew how future generations pissed away their freedom falling for politicians' false promises of easy fixes to complex problems, if only they'll let the government grab just a little more power and violate the Constitution just a little more. Makes me sick too.

clb9150,
The gov't doing what it supposed to do?
Wow, I think you may have something there.

DOES ANYONE ELSE HERE THINK THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAS WAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYY TOO MUCH TIME ON THEIR HANDS AGAIN???????????

Diana,
Free healty school lunches?
Healthy, yes. Free, no,
Should be te parents job, not school taxpayers.
The problem would then be, the candy, cookies, etc theywould buy with the money they did not spend on lunch.

Nutrition education in the schools is a part of the problem. All the materials are donated by the egg council and the dairy council. They teach misinformation more than anything else.

I have read everyone's opinion and you are all somewhat right about the government getting involved in this crises. Have anyone of you really seen the stats on obesity in this country? In my community alone, children and preteens and teens are suffering...from health problems that were once only attributed to old people. Something needs to be done and I don't believe CA is wrong about cutting back on fast food joints for a year or two [its liking removing alcohol from your home because is a family member weakness--we have to look out for each other and sometimes it might be in unconventional ways]. "Being part of the solution and not the problem." Since people: parents, community, business owners (who capitalize on people's weaknesses) etc. are not taking responsibility, then I believe the government has a right to since they are ultimately paying the costs; millions of dollars a year on children alone suffering with this health issues. Insurance cost have skyrocketed and most the monies that could be spent on fighting crime, is being diverted to cover, not even preventative measures but to cover the medical costs. The government might be interfering but we have to start somewhere and everyone has to be held accountable. Since it has become mandatory to disclose calories in NY, people have been paying attention including myself. Even though, we might be aware, seeing it in print has caused people think as to whether to eat two doughnuts & coffee (the two-for-one mentality) or just one (I was not aware 1 doughnut had 380-400 calories). So I believe education is key as some parents do not know what is beneficial for their children to eat and this knowledge is pass down from generation to generation. In most cases, children become what they eat...this is an inheritance especially for the poorer communities.

I agree, Mr. Schell. I have observed that urbanites insist on attacking with gusto the busybody issues (like smoking and obesity, which they think they can "fix" cosmetically, the way age is "fixed" with Botox and hair dye) to take their minds off the REAL issues they KNOW they can't fix.

Obesity and smoking aren't health issues in California; they're an aesthetic issue that offends the public sensibilities. If the residents of the San Andreas fault areas were truly concerned about their own and the public's health and safety, they'd be living somewhere else.

About fifteen years ago, I decided that California was no longer a place I even wanted to VISIT because it seems to be occupied by people who believe that appearance is the sole barometer of fitness to survive. :)

Concerned,
You are 98% correct.
Parents in many cases can not control their children and some just don't care.
Education would be good, but, some will not or can't learn.
Parents even let their children smoke and everybody now knows that is a direct pathway to poor health or death.
Good post.

Concerned, in response to your comment "Since it has become mandatory to disclose calories in NY, people have been paying attention including myself," this is not the same thing as legislating calories or fat out of existence. Yes, "we have to start somewhere," but INFORMING people is where it should end as well.

Believe me, if the poor of West LA can't get a Big Mac, then they'll buy Hamburger Helper and eat cheaply and easily at home.

"Everyone has to be held accountable" is right. To be held accountable for anything, one must first have the right to exercise free will and choice. This particular absurd LA proposal reflects the desire of urbanites to transfer personal accountability to the government, which seems to be in charge of creating a utopia where no one makes bad choices. So what are individuals accountable for?

No offense - but "Concerned" is an idiot akin to those who come up with these stupid "rules" that they then push into laws.

Want to control what people eat? Move back to 1950's Russia. Don't like how someone looks because YOU think they are too fat? Here's a clue - your neck swivels - look the other way.

As to those all up in arms over not being able to get your "free healthcare" because there are fat people out there...shut up and stop being stupid. First- free healthcare "ain't" free. Someone pays - and Canadians are finding out quick how bad government healthcare is. Second - if you think you need "free" healthcare on my dime - go get a job.

As to the government getting into all our business - next thing they will want is a camera in your bedroom to see if you are having sex correctly. Not that Washington would know - they all have their heads up their a$$es so far, they can't see $#!t.

Happy, you are 2% right. To "wipe out" child abuse, the people have decided that corrective disciplining of children is a very bad thing. The Take Home Nanny informs parents that, instead of ignoring children's bad behavior, one should spend several hours undergoing temper tantrums when you attempt to enforce a "time out." Once the child is exhausted by your refusal to give in to the temper tantrum, you are then supposed to spend 15 minutes explaining why the "time out" was necessary. I now understand why having more than one child could be extremely exhausting and why parents seem to be giving up on being ACCOUNTABLE for raising their children.

In my day, you got the child's attention immediately by spanking him/her. Once you had their attention, you spent 2 minutes explaining why you spanked them...which focuses on what they originally did wrong, not why a temper tantrum is inappropriate.

Happy, under your plan, people should have to take a test before they are allowed to have children. The government will issue a license for this (and charge for it, of course).

the problem with obesity ISN'T from people going to fast food places or being too stupid...etc...it IS from family values going down the drain and becoming almost non-existant!

KNJ, I try to avoid the term "family values" because the meaning of that term has changed from what it meant when I was growing up. "Family values" used to mean those values that parents passed on to their children to aid the children in their future survival. It taught young children very early on that if the child doesn't learn to exercise self-discipline, Life will do the disciplining. That's what "family values" used to mean.

The chronically poor (the ones that "will always be with us") are lacking in self-discipline and do not pass on self-discipline to their children. Unfortunately for the middle class, "family values" have begun to mean not being "mean" to your kids. So, since parents don't want to be mean to their kids and discipline them, and they know that Life will discipline their kids because they haven't as parents, they are now looking for the GOVERNMENT to control their behavior and their kid's behavior.

Asking the government to substitute LAWS to counteract a population's lack of self-discipline is a recipe for national disaster.

After carefully reading the article, it appears that the "ban" would apply to new fast food restaurants so that they could attract healtheir alternatives including grocery stores and fruit & vegetable stands. Existing restaurants would not be affected. No jobs would be lost and this would be a temporary measure. If the problem is that people do not have access to healthy choices then I think it is perfectly acceptable for the government to intervene and to try to attract them. It is a traditional responsibility of local government to attract or provide desired services for its residents. This is part of city planning. Maybe they feel the "ban" would be a cheaper alternative to offering tax incentives.

I think they should spend a little more time defining their mission. "Fast food" is not by definition unhealthy, take Subway for example or that chain at the mall that sell fruit smoothies. They also need to outline other ways to attract farm stands and grocery stores. There is no excuse for Californians not to have access to inexpensive locally grown fruit & vegetables. Where I live, in Upstate NY, the local Home Depot allows local farmers to sell produce out of the back of pickup trucks on Friday afternoons.

A limited number of fast food restaurants is a benefit to a poor community. As a working single mother with children involved in extracurricular activities, I often served fast food as a suplement to family dinners. Notice I said supplement. Buger + Fries + Soft drink is more expensive than a home cooked meal and much less nutritious, but a bag of 89 cent burgers or tacos brought home and served with milk, applesauce and baby carrots is a quick, economical and reasonably healthy meal and a $5 footlong sub from Subway stuffed with vegetables can serve 4 small children when paired with a bag of lowfat low salt tortilla chips and healthy salsa from the grocery store.

Concerned, this continual government intervention is leading us to a communist or socialist country if we allow it to continue. This whole debate over fast food is ridiculous to begin with. Fast food is not causing obesity. Perhaps you should look at the entire picture of this country instead of the shallow, attempted quick fix of something. Our health issues are not coming just from obesity. There are many people out there that have lived a healthy lifestyle all their lives who are dying from cancer of one form or another. Our environment is filled with horrible things that are making normally healthy people sick. Our food is being raised with pesicides and steroids. Do you know why athletes use steroids? To bulk up. If your meat and eggs have come from steroid raised animals, it is in what you consume. You are going to bulk up from it. Pesticides which are a poison used on vegetable plants. Fertilizer put in the ground for crops. Pollution and chemicals in the air from manufacturing, automobiles, etc. How many times have we heard of healthy people just dropping from a heartattack? How about all these skinny people that are constantly sickly. Our bodies are just not made to consume or breathe in any of these things without consequences of some kind. The government has better issues to deal with that are far more serious that are creating an unhealthy lifestyle. What about the water you drink from your tap? Don't think for a minute that it is free of chemicals. A lot of water is treated with chlorine, which is used to bleach clothes and purify swimming pools. Still there are many substances that still remain in your water. And I would like to know why the poor are being pinpointed in this debate as well. There are many people out there who have plenty of finances that are just as obese. So maybe we should just have the government control the entire food chain and only give us what amount and kind of food that will make everyone "fit" on a daily basis. This problem has existed for a long, long time - it is only because someone got a wild-hair to do a study on it that has brought obesity out in the open more today. There was a time in our history that if women were obese, it was a stigma as to how wealthy one was. Today, somehow, thinness is linked with wealth and all people who are obese are poor!!! Maybe we should just let people live their lives and quit being so judgmental about each other.

Susan: I never said that fast food was the only problem but it sure does not help and limiting them in certain communities is not a bad idea at all. Inactivity is also a major contributing factor. I also believe that education is the key and parents should be held accountable for their children's health. If your child is obese, don't keep feeding them the same foods...get help.

I have done an extensive research on childhood obesity. Not adults, and its alarming...you would have to take a look at the many reports done by credible sources to even fathom the extent of obesity and the damage to children. You are talking about adults: they certainly can and should eat what they want...but no country should have to spend so much money because people are so selfish ("I will eat what I want and how much I want and no one dictate to me") and a burden to tax payers.

People need to pay attention to constructive criticism; just because society thought that it was okay to be big at one point, does not take away from the fact that obesity comes with serious health problems which have now escalated into a crises for children as well as adults. The real problem is that something should have been done a long ago so people could be aware of the dangers.

It puzzles me. Probably because the government was busy building more hospitals to house people thereby bleeding medicaid dry.

I don't disagree that obesity is a problem, I simply don't feel the government has any right to intervene. They already stick their noses into too many of peoples freedom rights. I also do not have any faith in all the studies that are done today either, even if someone may be credible. They start these studies and all of a sudden all health issues are caused by whatever they are studying. Everything under the sun not long ago was causing cancer - just one example. I honestly don't know how there are any survivors on this earth today with some of the studies they have done - if they were all truth, our ancestors should have died off before any of us existed! Limiting fast food restaurants in some communities is not going to solve the problem anyway. People will still get what they want. The most sensible method to reach the majority of the people is to let their doctors educate them, as well as schools educate the children. Those are the two best places to reach the most people quickly and at the same time not make people feel like the government is trying to control everyones lives. If it is a health issue and insurance issue, then obviously there is a doctor involved. Children are very impressionable and a health education class would reach them. We already have drug classes in the schools so that children are reached about those dangers. It will help the majority, but the problem will never completely go away just as the many other problems in society. In this way, if there are parents out there that are either uneducated or just careless, both children and parents will become educated. Government passing another law isn't the answer - it is just one more law that won't be enforced on a daily basis.

What do you think the government is doing here? They are actually just not approving permits to build new fast food restaurants for a year. That is a zoning matter, and completely in their purview. They are not closing existing stores or telling people not to go.

I am afraid you are off base about doctors. Doctors get almost no training in nutrition in medical school. I know more about nutrition studies than my doctor. Doctors are trained in how to fight disease and heal injuries, they are not well trained in how to keep a healthy person healthy.

As for schools... most of the nutritional material in schools is donated by the egg council and the dairy council. As such, it is predictably biased.

I am afraid that if you want to learn more about nutrition and fitness, the only way is to go out and do some research on your own, and read some books.

KNJ, I try to avoid the term "family values"

Oh, yes, and it will get you in trouble if uttered in the 'wrong' place . . .

LOL

I'm astonished that I'm seeing this.

LOL That's funny!! This is how folks behave when you try to establish something positive in their lives that may just be worth it in the long run.

Sugar - what I said is funny isn't it..........it has some truth in it or it would'nt have 'hit" your funny bone.

That wasn't the least bit funny actually. Because we all know people in the ghetto roit over burgers all the time!!!

have either of you ever spent time in south central?

at least when they riot they'll burn a few calories along w/their neighborhood.

seriously folks, companies are already able to not hire smokers, it's just a matter of time and they'll be able to discriminate against obese people claiming they cost too much in health benefits.

Areukidding,
If I have a business that costs me more for reasons like high premiums, lost days,etc I would not hire smokers or obese people either. I would be in business to make money, not shore up employment. It is not however the business of gov't to tell me who I have to hire or what their lifestyle is as long as it's not illegal.

Wonderful...........go ahead and ban fast food and watch these folks riot and burn the surrounding area down!

Now, that was a seriously ignorant remark. For your information, As a trend more and more young, college-educated Caucasians buying homes in some South L.A. neighborhoods, and I don't think they would appreciate your denigrating their home that way.

Well said Robert!
These idiots have too much time on their hands!!!

why jump on Ahhhnold? he's the gov, not on la's council.

Even the poor once in awhile like a change, thou if you are getting fat off these foods then maybe they arent as poor as they say they are. Either way with the prices going as they are it isnt easy affording eating healthy.

In reality, junk food is way more affordable then healthy food in most cases. I love fish, do I buy it? No it is way to expensive so we get other meats instead. Fruits are way up and even vegetables are going up.

If the governement is going to start stepping up and doing this I really think that they should just shut them all down along with all the tobacco companies, but guess what never happen as they make big bucks there, so it isnt really our health they are worried about. Heck lets all go back to the old times and do our own gardening and trading for goods.

In many poor areas, there aren't grocery stores. There are corner stores that offer very little fresh produce, and fattening foods are often cheaper than healthy ones. And it's hard to buy in quantity if you have to take the bus to get to the grocery store.

Colin, I get what you are saying but it's still an individual responsibility. I have family members who are vegetarians but are still 100 lbs overweight. No Fast Food...No Soda. They just refill their plates. It's all about pushing away from the table and as a society, we are known for indulging.

I propose companies, including the government, base insurance rates on how overweight employees are along with whether they smoke and drink. Make it hurt where it really counts. Make city/state/federal government officials tow the line in regards to health.

But, if you can find a way for the government to regulate appetite, I'll be willing to talk.

colin rice,
Interesting moniker. I wonder how you came to it.
Are you Republican?
I like it.

Colin - you are a bonehead.

What do you consider fat? Someone who perhaps is 20 pounds overweight? 30? 40? Why? Because they aren't as attractive as you want to look at? Those are not people who need "help controlling themselves".

What about those at 200#'s overweight? 300? Those folks are the ones who need help. Many of them aren't poor or asking you or anyone else to pay for their medical care. Many work alongside each of us. HeII some are in my family. It is sad, yet sometimes not from eating MKey Dee's.

this is to "colin rice"----you would be TOTALLY SHOCKED to find out just how many people KNOW what they are DOING TO THEMSELVES..................

Gumbo,
You mean donuts are fast food?

What the general public has to lose is far greater than a few pounds, it is their freedom of choice. Nutrition should be the choice in a free society not a forced solution. Let a group of people tell you what you can and cannot eat and it won't be long till we have a nation of Sheep-le instead of People.

common sensepolitics
I'm afraid we are well on the way to having a bunch of sheep.

cc
Things that do not require the work of preparing and cooking real food.

i DEFINITELY agree with cc-397053...i want to know why the government isn't controlling what the people on foodstamps are eating??????????????? that is ridiculous that they can buy that garbage..........

synger,
It's cheaper to shop, cook and eat at home.

I agree with Msbuffy, but she believes government should provide jobs, which is nonsense. Government is like a cancer expanding its reach getting into everything. Government will expand like that red globulous creature"the Blob", sucking up everything in this path to protect itself. If everybody worked for government, where would the revenue stream come from? it would have to tax it self!! Having opened a small business in LA county, I understand why nobody wants to do business here. The workman's compensation insurance ,basically a tax,will drive most business out of the state, if I could I would move out.. most definitely. Finally I hope the citizens will vote next year and get these fascists out of our lives