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Duxbury schools banish birthday cupcakes
Boston Herald ^ | 6/4/2004 | Boston Herald Staff

Posted on 06/04/2004 11:04:01 AM PDT by saveliberty

Duxbury schools banish birthday cupcakes By Herald staff Friday, June 4, 2004

Birthday kids at Duxbury's Chandler School next fall will get dragon stickers, special seat covers and starred birthday sashes they can wear all day.

But no cupcakes - they're bad for you.

The tradition of cupcakes at school birthday parties died last month when the School Committee unanimously ratified a new handbook that redefines the way students celebrate in class.

``I'm a little saddened,'' said Chandler parent Nancy Krahmer, who favors healthy eating but mourns the loss of the childhood ritual.

School officials made the change, part of a district-wide move to improve student health, after a poll of parents found nutrition to be one of their top concerns, Chandler School Council member Ann Kalous said.

Frequent classmate parties once had students consuming numerous unplanned cupcakes each school year.

``It would be 23 times during the year that other families would not be anticipating that their kids are going to be eating something sweet,'' Chandler Principal Deborah Zetterberg said.

The new system will substitute copious special attention for frosted goodies, Zetterberg said. In addition to the sash, seat cover and dragon sticker, each birthday kid will get a birthday pencil.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; Miscellaneous; US: Massachusetts
KEYWORDS: childhoodobesity; control; foodpolice; healthnuts; obesity; schools
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I wonder how much this really has to do with childhood obesity and not tolerating anyone who is allowed to eat what a dieting employee may not be able to.
1 posted on 06/04/2004 11:04:02 AM PDT by saveliberty
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To: saveliberty

They will be passing out bananas instead. With the condoms of course.


2 posted on 06/04/2004 11:08:02 AM PDT by Ron in Acreage (Kerry is a threat to national security)
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To: saveliberty

But wait....they'll get instead an extra-special birthday pencil!!! And a dragon sticker! Wouldn't that make you feel so special? </sarcasm>

The problem is not that these kids are celebrating a classmate's birthday with a cupcake every once in a while. The problem is that they are going home to parents who let them constantly stuff their faces with Twinkies and Ho-hos and sit on their rear-ends playing video games without any physical activity or encouragement to eat nutritious foods.


3 posted on 06/04/2004 11:11:22 AM PDT by AQGeiger (If you insist that physicians are so greedy, then don't utilize their services.)
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To: Ron in Acreage

LOL!

Hey -- aren't bananas off the Atkins list?


4 posted on 06/04/2004 11:11:24 AM PDT by saveliberty (Liberal= in need of therapy, but would rather ruin lives of those less fortunate to feel good)
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To: saveliberty

It's probably the parents of some poor kid who is not allowed to eat sweets. They don't want their little darling to be tempted.


5 posted on 06/04/2004 11:11:32 AM PDT by Huntress
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To: AQGeiger

Why is the school getting involved in parenting? Shouldn't the schools be teaching and letting the parents to do right or wrong?


6 posted on 06/04/2004 11:12:54 AM PDT by saveliberty (Liberal= in need of therapy, but would rather ruin lives of those less fortunate to feel good)
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To: saveliberty

Just plain mean. When I was a kid we used to look forward to class christmas, birthday and Halloween parties because we got to eat stuff like that in class. It was just for a day and it didn't make us fat. How ridiculous is this. These kids are fat because they are not exercising enough when they are HOME and NOT because of a simple cupcake on special occasions.


7 posted on 06/04/2004 11:14:29 AM PDT by areafiftyone (Democrats = the hamster is dead but the wheel is still spinning)
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To: saveliberty

Yes they are - I am a diabetic and on an atkins-like diet and I can't have bananas because they are chock full of sugar carbs.


8 posted on 06/04/2004 11:15:32 AM PDT by areafiftyone (Democrats = the hamster is dead but the wheel is still spinning)
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To: AQGeiger
But wait....they'll get instead an extra-special birthday pencil!!! And a dragon sticker! Wouldn't that make you feel so special?

Not if your birthday is in July.


9 posted on 06/04/2004 11:16:26 AM PDT by Lunatic Fringe (John F-ing Kerry??? NO... F-ING... WAY!!!)
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To: saveliberty

You are correct. However today's "educators" love to think that parents would be completely unable to raise their children without such an intrusion. Like most liberal establishments, they assume that people are simply too stupid to adequately take care of themselves and their families.

That being said, there is sadly a sizable portion of parents today who don't care enough about their children to actually parent them. They are too concerned with having their children like them.


10 posted on 06/04/2004 11:20:27 AM PDT by AQGeiger (If you insist that physicians are so greedy, then don't utilize their services.)
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To: AQGeiger

Hey everone knows that if a child steps outside to play even supervised that in under 2 seconds he/she will be abducted. OR he/she will be acosted by and evil SUV. OR be injured playing a non-contact sport. It is not safe outside of the confines of the living room.

Seriously, I have an aunt who teaches kindergarten. They started this "no one in school can hand out sugar/snacks/candy blah, blah, blah" thing this year. Started on a state level. The way to get around it is for the parents to send the offending food if they are so inclined. It is punishable for the kindergartner to share it with classmates. Anyway, she said that one of the parents decided to send lunch with their child instead. The mother sent a nutella sandwich, m&m snack bar and chocolate pudding.

Remember, schools (read: your government) are the only ones that can solve this obesity problem. /so


11 posted on 06/04/2004 11:21:23 AM PDT by Jaded
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To: saveliberty

OMIGOD!

The evil cupcakes have been brought down.

Bad bad cupcake.

Bad.


12 posted on 06/04/2004 11:22:16 AM PDT by najida (Who said I could spell? My fingers are faster than my brain.)
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To: areafiftyone

That's what I had thought too. (I don't miss bananas, but I can empathizes if you do).

Perhaps the teachers can do away with birthdays entirely so that no one feels left out or that no one feels more special than the other?


13 posted on 06/04/2004 11:23:58 AM PDT by saveliberty (Liberal= in need of therapy, but would rather ruin lives of those less fortunate to feel good)
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To: saveliberty

I'm gonna make some cupcakes today, yum!


14 posted on 06/04/2004 11:26:34 AM PDT by Trillian
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To: najida

No, somehow major corporations plotting the downfall of ordinary and unsuspecting citizens (legal and undocumented). And the school is galloping to the rescue! Well, maybe not galloping. Someone's probably tired and trying to get someone to share a bagel (avec le creme sheeze).


15 posted on 06/04/2004 11:28:02 AM PDT by saveliberty (Liberal= in need of therapy, but would rather ruin lives of those less fortunate to feel good)
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To: saveliberty
Actually I don't really miss the bananas but I do miss Watermellon and Pineapple (can't have them either) too much sugar.

We had all that stuff growing up and we were skinny. I grew up in the 60's and 70's. I still think its lack of exercise (too much computers, video games and cable tv). We were outside playing all the time and hardly ever watched TV except for nighttime just before bed. But that's only my opinion.

16 posted on 06/04/2004 11:28:50 AM PDT by areafiftyone (Democrats = the hamster is dead but the wheel is still spinning)
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To: saveliberty

We are becoming a nanny-State, which is a by-product of feminism. Let's see, there are smoking bans, gun bans, sweets bans, father's rights bans. They've banned the military from using both hands against our enemies in warfare, and they've banned your choice whether or not to wear your seat belt. They've banned Creche scenes on public property, they've banned school prayer. They've even banned the ban on partial-birth-abortion.


17 posted on 06/04/2004 11:29:42 AM PDT by TheCrusader ("the frenzy of the Mohammedans has devastated the churches of God" Pope Urban II)
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To: saveliberty
the loss of the childhood ritual

Hmmmmm....I was a child some 50 years ago and don't remember this particular "ritual." Valentine's cupcake parties, yes, but not cupcakes for each kid's birthday.

18 posted on 06/04/2004 11:30:27 AM PDT by EggsAckley (............Al Gore: I rant, therefore I am............)
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To: TheCrusader

Any chance of banning the Lifetime channel?


19 posted on 06/04/2004 11:30:40 AM PDT by saveliberty (Liberal= in need of therapy, but would rather ruin lives of those less fortunate to feel good)
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To: saveliberty

20 posted on 06/04/2004 11:31:34 AM PDT by the_devils_advocate_666
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