A Rant: Can't Eat a Protest

[railenthe]

Recently the bill that improves the nutrition, and limits the calories of, school lunches, was put into effect. As a result, the maximum caloric load for the public school lunch is about 800 calories, maximum. The intent is to combat obesity by balancing their dietary intakes.

Students were not amused by this. The largest complaint is that they’re still hungry after eating their plates. What do they do in reaction?

They throw away the food in protest and make a video on Youtube that dramatizes just how hungry they are.

You’ll excuse me if I don’t have much sympathy.

You see, there is no way that this will do much of anything. It’s a completely counterintuitive thing to do—WE’RE HUNGRY, AND SO WE ARE GOING TO REFUSE THE FOOD WE’RE GIVEN. Way to make your point, kids. Show us your passive protesting and let us revel in the wisdom of NOT EATING the food you’re allotted. Because NOT eating will help your hunger.

Again, I really don’t have much sympathy. If you’re so hungry, then eat the food. Don’t complain about it being ‘not enough food’ and then throw it all in the garbage. Not only is that wasteful, you’re not eating anything. And therefore, you are hungrier. This lunch could be your one solid meal for the day and you’re refusing it because you don’t get as much of your favorite junk food in the lunch?

You’re allowed seconds of certain parts of the menu. Why not take that option, instead of pitching it all down the chute?

The athletes who complain about not having enough protein and stuff—why not bring things from home to supplement the hot lunch at school? That’s not that difficult.

But no…throwing it all in the garbage is a perfect way to make your point. You’re sitting in class on an empty stomach now and complaining about lunch after having thrown it into an overflowing garbage pail.

Why the hell would this make sense?

Kids…JUST EAT IT. You’ll adjust to not having deep-fried everything in the middle of the day. And learn how to provide your own supplementation from home if it’s not enough.

DON’T point at the government, blame them for your hunger, and then complain about the food that you could still be eating.

Comments

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[alkonost-storm.livejournal.com]

Weird Al's "Eat it" comes to mind.

And what the hell happened to bringing lunches or hey! eating after school!? >=/

Re: ......

[railenthe.livejournal.com]

I know, right? I'm all for peaceable protest, but the kids SERIOUSLY didn't think this through. Protesting being hungry by not eating and making it worse? Maybe I've missed something here—or this is as nonsensical as I think it is.

It is quite simple to bring more food in from home—no one checks it to see if it meets stated quota. I would have done so at that age—if we'd had the money and extra food. And here these kids are, chucking food like it's nothing? What the actual food.