Bureaucrats Transforming Schools into “Sweet-Free Zones”

"Yes" is not in nanny state food cops' limited vocabulary.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that the St. Paul school district will make all public schools “sweet-free zones” by the end of the school year. Opponents of the plan say “there is little proof such policies work” and that “it’s a school’s role to teach — not force — students to eat healthy.”

The school district’s unproven and experimental anti-obesity crusade is being fueled by “a series of state and federal grants, the largest of which will end this school year.”

Agree or disagree with St. Paul Public Schools’ crusade to rid all “sweet, sticky, fat-laden [and] salty treats” from kids’ lunchboxes and cafeteria trays?

Contact Superintendent Valeria S. Silva if you think parents, not bureaucrats, should determine what’s best for their own children to consume in school cafeterias:

Email Superintendent Silva: supt.silva@spps.org

2010’s Most Notorious Nanny State Ninnies

Michelle Malkin just released her “Big Nannies of the Year” list and Reason.tv recently held its annual red carpet ‘awards gala.’ Find out who made the cut and let us know if a notorious nanny state nincompoop has been overlooked.

Overzealous Cop Busts Mom for Allowing Kid to Walk to School Alone

Just another shining example of nanny state bureaucrats telling parents how to raise their own children ... and, using the long arm of the law to force them to comply.

A police officer in Utah recently cited the mother of a kindergartner with “misdemeanor child neglect” because she allows him to walk to and from school without adult supervision. Nevermind the fact that bureaucrats’ recent spending cuts eliminated bus service for five-year-old Noah Talbot.

Rosella Talbot, a mother of six, said Noah is typically accompanied on his morning walk to school by one of his older brothers. Noah’s kindergarten class lets out early, but he has been provided by his mother with strict instructions that they practiced together for walking alone and wears a bright orange safety vest to ensure his visibility at intersections.

When a police officer recently witnessed one of the rare instances of Noah walking to school alone, he was put in the back of the squad car and driven back home to his mother.

Talbot said she informed the police officer about the safety routine she taught Noah and how she “rode a bike with her son the mile-long distance from school for more than two weeks, showing him the best route to take and the obstacles to avoid,” but was still issued a citation for “misdemeanor child neglect” because the officer did not agree with her parenting decision.

“I am not a neglectful parent, thank you very much,” she told the Deseret News. “I have just done everything I could possibly do.”

The South Jordan School District, by law, does not provide bus service for students who live less than a mile and a half from their school. A budget shortfall this year forced bureaucrats to eliminate so-called “hazardous routes,” leaving countless youngsters to navigate these dangerous streets on their own or with adult supervision, if available.

“These are some serious charges. … I can’t be a Girl Scout leader,” Talbot said. “I can’t work at a day care … I am just so frustrated.”

Talbot’s attorney is expected to enter a not guilty plea during a hearing on Jan. 5.

Agree or disagree with the police officer citing Rosella Talbot with misdemeanor child neglect because he doesn’t agree with her parenting decision? Contact Police Chief Lindsay Shepherd and let him know how you feel.

Email Chief Shepherd: lshepherd@sjc.utah.gov

Pro-Christmas Activist Wages War Against School District Grinches

"The Grinch that Stole Christmas isn't just a book and movie," says Brannon. "In many public schools, Christmas as we know it has been eradicated; erased – gone – eliminated."

When a public school district in Maine informed parents last month that “West African chants” would replace traditional ‘holiday’ songs during its annual “Winter General Music Festival,” one concerned father felt compelled to steal Christmas back from the Grinch.

According to Matthew Brannon, Maine School Administrative District #75 (MSAD 75) recently revised its ‘Holiday Policy‘ with the intent to promote “diversity” and “inclusiveness.” As a result, he says, the school board has “marginalize[d] our values.”

In an urgent effort to inform fellow parents “about what the [G]rinchs in our school system are doing to steal Christmas from our children – and to do something about it,” Brannon launched StolenChristmas.org. “Their policy requires diversity. To them that means every culture except American,” he says.

Thanks to Brannon’s wrestling with district administrators, ‘Jingle Bells’ was sung by children during the recent ‘music festival,’ but he noted that it was “such a last minute addition it never made it into the printed program. The kids had spent weeks practicing their African chants.”

Despite the district’s attempt to appease and, perhaps, silence a vocal and outraged Brannon with a single non-controversial holiday song, he remains committed to ensuring that “teaching and celebrating our traditional holidays” is not erased from the blackboard, silenced in the choir or eliminated from discussion in the classroom. He’s even proposed a revision to the already revised ‘Holiday Policy’ and is hoping district administrators will consider it during a future meeting.

“If this effort to marginalize our values angers you as much as it angers me, help me reverse this trend,” Brannon says. “Contact the MSAD 75 Superintendent of Schools, contact the Principals, contact the school board members. Let them know how you feel about their lack-of-Christmas Holiday Policy and demand that it be changed.”

If you share Brannon’s sentiments — “I’M MAD AS HELL about it and I’m not going to take it anymore” — contact MSAD 75 officials and let them know there’s more than one parent who will not tolerate the systematic eradication of Christmas by big government bureaucrats.

No Child Left with a Bare Behind Act of 2010

Saggy pants might be outlawed in some cities, but this Halloween costume is perfectly legal in all 50 states.

Thanks to the generosity of a city commissioner in Albany, Ga., some school children will now be able to prevent their pants from falling down. The rest will have to buy their own belts or risk getting slapped with fines of up to $200.

Dougherty County Commissioner Jack Stone announced to the local media Monday that he donated 100 belts to students at Turner Elementary School. Unfortunately, more than 300 students reportedly told their teachers that they do not own any belts, thus leaving more than 200 of them helpless to keep their pants at waist level.

Stone’s charity work was performed as a follow-up act to the city’s new ordinance banning saggy pants. His parting gift to the media and students alike was a little ditty of wisdom he adapted from his father:

“When I was growing up on the farm my daddy always said when the weed comes up nip it in the bud when it’s young and you don’t have no problems, well if you start with these kids now and get them belts like they should have to hold up their pants then later on their pants won’t be on the ground.”

Does Jack Stone deserve a pat on the back or a swift kick in his properly fitted pants? Don’t tell us — tell Jack:

Commissioner Jack Stone
1805 Hancock Road
Albany, GA 31705
Home telephone: (229) 432-1810
Work telephone (229) 886-2277