Support the Traditional Definition of Vegetables!

Forget the "dangers" of same-sex marriage: there is a much greater threat to traditional American values: the creeping danger posed by re-defining pizza and french fries as "vegetables" in our school lunch program. The traditional definition of vegetables can help lead us to a future where we are happier, healthier, and big agri-business lobbyists aren't changing the meanings of our words.

The United States Department of Agriculture, in accordance with congressional direction in the bipartisan Child Nutrition Act, proposed updating school lunch nutrition standards. These revisions are based on recommendations by the Institute of Medicine within the National Academy of Sciences. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has stressed the need for these revisions as an effort to curb childhood obesity and reduce future health care costs. After pressure from lobbyists representing large food conglomerates, Congress has weakened these standards.

It is shameful that we are poised to intervene to make sure that pizza continues to count as a vegetable and that we protect the privileged status of French fries on the lunch tray.

FACT: According to Congress, 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce equals ½ cup of vegetables, thus allowing pizza to be counted as a serving of vegetables in school lunches.

The problem we have in front of us is the institution of vegetables has been weakened in this country, and the effort to redefine it on this vast social experiment that we have going on, redefining vegetables differently than it has ever been defined by mankind before, this effort of this vast social experiment the early data that we see from other places, harms the institution of the family, the raising of the next generation...

FACT: One in three children under the age of 18 will develop Type II Diabetes within their lifetime, with the rate of childhood obesity doubling since 1980.

...and it is harmful to the future of the Republic.

FACT: Our military highlights that a growing number of our young people are too fat to fight, with only one in four meeting the fitness requirements for military service.

 

Follow Rep. Earl Blumenauer on Twitter: www.twitter.com/repblumenauer

Comments

[TRex86]

02:39 PM on 11/18/2011

"A Capitalist will sell you the rope you use to hang him."
N. Lenin

At what point does the almighty dollar supersede the health of our children? Ketchup is a vegetable? Pizza is a vegetable? French fries comprise the vast majority of vegetable intake of most Americans. Salt, grease, and carbos--the new healthy food groups. Adios preventive health care; hello diabetes and obesity.

Do our penurious Republican legislators have a clue as to the future costs of childhood type II diabetes? Try 30% of GDP spent on health care. When those kids go blind, get kidney failure and the other complications of advanced diabetes I suppose they'll decide that death panels are a good idea after all.

[Lynda Groom]

02:05 PM on 11/18/2011

I tried to contact my congressional representative regarding this nonsense. He was unavailable...out trying to raise more money for reelection. Vote all of them out next November. We are the 99% and it is our children, or grandchildren in my case, that pay the price for their self-puffing fantasies. Pathetic!

[schrodster]

02:03 PM on 11/18/2011

Too fat to fight is the only positive in this story.