Et Tu, Kellogg’s? Take another bite out of Freedom.

I heard the most ridiculous thing today. Two obviously socialist, anti-capitalist groups called the Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood along with two Massachusetts parents had threatened to take the cereal company Kellogg’s to court. They intended to bring a lawsuit concerning the Battle Creek Michigan based breakfast food’s advertising practices.

They are upset because children watch several hours of commercials a day designed to instill a desire for their “unhealthy” product. According to them Toucan Sam, Snap, Crackle and Pop, Dig ‘em and the rest are directly to blame for obesity in children.

Well, Kellogg’s in their infinite wisdom decided to click their heels and fall in line with these totalitarian demands. They will either change the composition of their products or market them to an older demographic.

It’s true that America’s children are obese. Lack of physical activity, video game addictions, lack of parental supervision and parental laziness are leading causes. Obese parents raise obese children, (hint, it’s not always heredity, it’s the double quarter pounders and the all you can eat buffet). Take a walk through your neighborhood. Observe the children playing outside. They are running around, playing ball, playing tag and enjoying themselves. “Come on mom, just a little longer” I know most of you have said that many times yourselves as children. Anyway, take a close look at these children. What do you notice? Not a fat one among them, huh? Maybe one in a hundred, but that’s the exception. Yeah, I said FAT. If it offends you then I’m happy. You must be fat or the parent of a fat child. Remember, one right no one has is the right to not be offended. However, that’s a subject for another entry. So, where are the fat kids? You know where they are. They are inside sitting in front of the computer, the video game or the TV. In whichever of these it may be you are assured there are potato chips, candy, colas or some other comfort food being consumed.

Not only is it the inactivity of the child which is to blame. It’s the laziness of the parent as well. “I don’t have time to prepare a good breakfast.” “We’re always in a rush, so we have to pass through McDonald’s or the like”. I hear these and other ridiculous statements explaining why their children are fat tubs of jiggle fat. I have two words for these people. Bull Shit! How about you wake your lazy ass up 30 minutes earlier and make these kids a decent meal instead of giving them these sugar coated cereals or shoving a Pop Tart in their hands as they run out the door. “Oh, but I would be tired all day”. Well, how about turning off the TV and going to sleep instead of watching Letterman. And for the other excuse, it’s a shame that all these fast food joints have to eat is fatty, greasy hamburgers, French fries and milk shakes. What’s that? You say they have salads? What? They have broiled chicken? They have water? They have juice? Why don’t you shut the hell up and have a carrot. “Oh, but they ask for these foods, it’s all they want”. “They won’t eat healthy foods.” Um, guys….YOU the FRIGGIN’ PARENT!! Act like one. Do you give your kids everything they want? Of course not. In the immortal words of Nancy Reagan….”Just Say NO.” If they don’t want the food you put in front of them, let them go hungry. They will not starve to death and eventually they will eat what you offer. Our mothers decided the menu, prepared it and presented it. If we didn’t want to eat it, there was no alternative offered. We ate it or went with out.

If your child is FAT and you continue to provide him/her with these unhealthy foods then YOU ARE A CHILD ABUSER! You are no better than someone who beats their child, burns their child, ties their child to the radiator, locks them in the basement or sends them to a government school (another entry to come). If you do not get your fat ass child involved in outdoor activities instead of sitting on their fat ass next to your fat ass in front of the TV, then YOU ARE A CHILD ABUSER.

The health and welfare of your child is your responsibility. Once you have a child, your comfort, relaxation, wants, needs and desires take a back seat to your child’s well being. You are not your child’s friend. You are their parent. If you are fat, you do not make your child fat so you can feel better about yourself.

It is not the responsibility of others to regulate the health of your child. It is not the responsibility of food manufacturers, advertising agencies, the courts, or the government’s power of force to see to it that your child does not become a fat ass. Food manufacturers are in business to make money. They owe it to their investors to sell their product to whoever will buy it, which includes weak parents who can not stand up to their children. Advertising agencies are paid to present their clients product to those who would desire it. They owe it to their clients to use known weaknesses of the intended audience to promote the product. It’s the responsibility of the audience (or parents of such) to use their best judgment as to which items are purchased and which are not. As for the courts, only the weakest of the weak would need the courts to save them from themselves. Government regulation? When are we going to realize that anything and everything that the federal government controls is inept? Government involvement always, always, always makes whatever the case may be much worse.

Now, if you are still with me you will remember that I mentioned taking another bite out of freedom. I have a real problem giving away any form of freedom. These Freedoms that our Founding Fathers gave to us, Freedom that they made us responsible for protecting are fading. People have a tendency to confuse Liberty with Freedom and our Politicians enjoy this confusion. The Founding Fathers provided Liberty by releasing our physical selves from the bonds of abuse of the English Empire. Freedom was inherited by us so that we may choose how we live. An individual sense of option is the definition of Freedom laid out by Jefferson and his cohorts. Did you notice that I said the “sense” of option? It’s the sense of option that makes us free not the exercise thereof. This concept is detailed more thoroughly in my previous semi-plagiarized entry entitled “Freedom” which you will find in my archives. Freedom in simple terms is the option we have in our lives. At every turn we are faced with options, some good, some bad, some healthy, some unhealthy, some beneficial to others, some beneficial to our selfishness. However, we are responsible for the exercise of the option chosen. The exercise of option is not a freedom and can result in the loss of Liberty. But the very fact that we have the sense of option is Freedom and as long as our choice of option does not impede on the rights of others to choose their options we are free to choose for ourselves our course.

When government gets involved because an individual’s exercise of option offends, offers other individuals an additional sense of option (which they don’t think someone should have or that they can’t control in others or themselves), results in benefits that others’ exercise of option did not, or in other situations where one’s exercise of option falls short of impeding another’s Constitutional rights or their exercise of option is Totalitarian at best, Socialism at worst. Limiting our sense of option or making it so that no matter what exercise of option one has made he is placed on the same level as everyone else is not freedom and a revocation of Liberty.

The Republic along with State’s Rights died at Appomattox. Lincoln was not the great savior our government schools have lead us to believe. (Ooh, wait till you read that upcoming post). Since then we have become more and more a true democracy (mob rules). A major culprit in this is the theft of State representation in Washington. There has never been a successful Democracy in the History of the world. “Democracy will only survive until the people discover they can vote for themselves the treasury” Thomas Jefferson. “There will always be those who are willing to give up a little freedom in exchange for a little security. These people deserve neither and will eventually lose both” I forget for the moment which Founding Father said it. Look it up if you need to know.

This is the lifeline of a Democracy….Bondage-Liberty-Abundance-Complacency-Apathy-Dependence-Bondage. Democracy has never veered from this. Where are we? It’s obvious that we are between apathy and dependence. If we do not get back to our Republic roots we are doomed. Yeah, I know, I’m a fool, an idiot, a fear monger. The problem is I am right and these groups that I have berated above and others like them are speeding us along to our country’s demise. With any luck I’ll be dust by then and my great, great grandchildren’s children will deliver themselves from bondage as our Founding Fathers did.

God Bless America