California County Bans Toys With Fast-Food Meals

[Obama 2012 1,714]

It's an odd law for sure - as if this is the best way to move forward on the issue of child obesity?

I have to say though it's really odd to see how many people are content with the 'bad parenting' catch all explanation for almost any problem in society. Most parents are not abusive, negligent or inappropriate.

I would also love to know how one would set about conducting a 'good parent' test. What criteria would one use for that?

Because parents are responsible for raising their kids.....

If a child eats too much ####### food and gets fat, it's not the fault of the child until they're old enough to fend for themselves.

Kids have their own personalities mind you, but it's a parents job to control that child when it's under their care. If the child wants fast food, tell them NO. It's not hard. Tell the little brat to shut up, if it won't beat its a$$ with a belt.

[mawilson 2,133]

did i just see mawilson approving of measures to protect kids?

Hey, I hate kids as much as the next guy, but I don't want them getting any bigger!

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

So you're just protecting your God-given right to space by constraining the use of space by others. Sounds totally mawilsonian.

[Heracles 417]

When the parents are idiots, it's the government's job to protect the kids.

Who is this and where the #### is Mark?

[mawilson 2,133]

So you're just protecting your God-given right to space by constraining the use of space by others. Sounds totally mawilsonian.

You got it!

[Peikko 1,575]

Because parents are responsible for raising their kids.....

If a child eats too much ####### food and gets fat, it's not the fault of the child until they're old enough to fend for themselves.

Kids have their own personalities mind you, but it's a parents job to control that child when it's under their care. If the child wants fast food, tell them NO. It's not hard. Tell the little brat to shut up, if it won't beat its a$ with a belt.

Right, it's not the fault of the child, but is it really so easy to simply say that all obese children are a product of parents who have no business being parents? How do you jump to that conclusion? How are you going to ensure that no child is born to a parent who will not allow it to become obese?

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

Idiots.

Nanny State government trying to intervene into people's lives anymore.

It's the PARENTS stupid, not the restaurants...

Mindless people want the government making all decisions.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Because parents are responsible for raising their kids.....

If a child eats too much ####### food and gets fat, it's not the fault of the child until they're old enough to fend for themselves.

Kids have their own personalities mind you, but it's a parents job to control that child when it's under their care. If the child wants fast food, tell them NO. It's not hard. Tell the little brat to shut up, if it won't beat its a$$ with a belt.

I agree with most of that but honestly, there's no need for any beating, least of all with a belt. All it takes is being firm with the kids. My daughter knows that when I say NO, it means NO. There's never any ambiguity about it nor has there ever been. She won't throw tantrums either because she knows that whenever she tried that all that does is earn her a time-out until she behaves acceptably. It's really not that hard. As a parent, you set the rules and as long as you make sure that you consistently stick with them, the child will respect and follow them.

[Peikko 1,575]

I agree with most of that but honestly, there's no need for any beating, least of all with a belt. All it takes is being firm with the kids. My daughter knows that when I say NO, it means NO. There's never any ambiguity about it nor has there ever been. She won't throw tantrums either because she knows that whenever she tried that all that does is earn her a time-out until she behaves acceptably. It's really not that hard. As a parent, you set the rules and as long as you make sure that you consistently stick with them, the child will respect and follow them.

How old is she? There comes a point when most children (not all, my brother never did it) will throw a fit even if they know that this will not have any effect on the outcome. The fit is a product of frustration, not an attempt to persuade. It can take a long time for children to learn to deal with frustration in an appropriate fashion. Of course it is worth it when you get to the other side, but it's not always a quick or easy road. I guess some parents themselves get frustrated at the process and hit their children - thus teaching the child that when you are frustrated a violent outburst is acceptable?

Anyway, I am still curious as to how one concludes that the parents of obese children are simply unfit to be parents? Also, if that is true, how can one determine before the event if a parent is going to be a parent who 'allows' their child to become obese in order to somehow prevent them from procreating, or perhaps teach them how to make better choices for their children, and maybe even themselves, particularly if as a society and on a personal level we do not wish government to have oversight on our behaviours?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

If they are going to do this, they should go the whole way and severely curtail/prohibit the advertising of junk food to kids.

[Obama 2012 1,714]

I agree with most of that but honestly, there's no need for any beating, least of all with a belt. All it takes is being firm with the kids. My daughter knows that when I say NO, it means NO. There's never any ambiguity about it nor has there ever been. She won't throw tantrums either because she knows that whenever she tried that all that does is earn her a time-out until she behaves acceptably. It's really not that hard. As a parent, you set the rules and as long as you make sure that you consistently stick with them, the child will respect and follow them.

Every child is inherently different. Some can understand from being stern, others will not understand just words or care much about time-outs. For some the idea of pain from an object works much more efficiently. It's all about personality. Not every child needs to be spanked, but some do just as some don't.

[Peikko 1,575]

If they are going to do this, they should go the whole way and severely curtail/prohibit the advertising of junk food to kids.

They should go a better way and ensure that quality, nutritious meals are available in schools. Not only that, but that only nutritionally sound choices are available, that nutrition and cooking are encouraged and taught to all children and that children are made aware of just how important it is to eat balanced diets. If children get quality meals most days, the odd burger isn't going to have an adverse effect.

[Peikko 1,575]

Every child is inherently different. Some can understand from being stern, others will not understand just words or care much about time-outs. For some the idea of pain from an object works much more efficiently. It's all about personality. Not every child needs to be spanked, but some do just as some don't.

You are an idiot if you think inflicting pain actually allows someone to learn appropriate behaviour. All it has the potential to teach is that at some point it is acceptable to resort to violence if you are frustrated and unable to cope. Brilliant!

[Obama 2012 1,714]

They should go a better way and ensure that quality, nutritious meals are available in schools. Not only that, but that only nutritionally sound choices are available, that nutrition and cooking are encouraged and taught to all children and that children are made aware of just how important it is to eat balanced diets. If children get quality meals most days, the odd burger isn't going to have an adverse effect.

It's not just that though... Excercise plays a HUGE role in this too. There are many schools now days that no longer have recess or no longer have long enough lunches for kids to play outside and burn energy... Then you have parents who want to throw their kids in front of the TV/computer when they get home rather than sending them outside to play in the neighborhood.

When I was growing up, we had chicken fingers, fried steaks, hamburgers, pizza, chili dogs, etcc.. all the normal junk food. BUT we had the excercise to go with it. It was very rare to see kids that were overweight as compared to the kids now days.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

How old is she? There comes a point when most children (not all, my brother never did it) will throw a fit even if they know that this will not have any effect on the outcome. The fit is a product of frustration, not an attempt to persuade. It can take a long time for children to learn to deal with frustration in an appropriate fashion. Of course it is worth it when you get to the other side, but it's not always a quick or easy road. I guess some parents themselves get frustrated at the process and hit their children - thus teaching the child that when you are frustrated a violent outburst is acceptable?

Anyway, I am still curious as to how one concludes that the parents of obese children are simply unfit to be parents? Also, if that is true, how can one determine before the event if a parent is going to be a parent who 'allows' their child to become obese in order to somehow prevent them from procreating, or perhaps teach them how to make better choices for their children, and maybe even themselves, particularly if as a society and on a personal level we do not wish government to have oversight on our behaviours?

She's only inching towards 4 but has none of the bratty behaviors one often observes with toddlers. And yes, I do realize that parenting a teen is a different ballgame. That said, I believe that instilling a sense of direction, discipline and respect starting at a very young age is a rather important foundation for a healthy parent - child relationship.

As for the obesity issue: sure it's the parent's fault. I'm not sure I follow the line of argument that people would have to pass some 'fit-to-be-parent' test in order to procreate. That's not exactly the issue here. The issue is that the responsibility of raising children properly - part of which most certainly is to ensure healthy nutrition - lies solely with the parents.