Two brothers, ages 6 and 8, have launched a protest of a ban by the city of Boulder, Colorado, on ice cream bars at its swimming pool concessions.
The policy was implemented because the portions are too big, according to the health standards the city has adopted.
“Come on, city of Boulder, give a kid a break already!” Andrew and Thomas Gafford wrote in a letter to the editor in the Boulder Daily Camera. “Kids exercise a lot, especially at the pool. We just want the choice of an ice cream sandwich sometimes.”
They wrote about the move by the politically progressive city – dubbed by local wisecracks as 27 squares miles surrounded by reality – after finding out the snack was banned “because they aren’t healthy.”
“It is not the city’s job to monitor what we eat,” they wrote. “Our parents do just fine with that.
“Kids are always being told what to do and that helps us learn. But parents, grandparents and teachers do a good job teaching us. The city needs to trust our parents to make the right decisions for us. Bring back choice at the pools, bring back ice cream as one of those choices.”
The newspaper reported the city has discontinued vending ice cream throughout parks and recreation facilities.
“That’s because the ice cream bars previously being sold have larger portion sizes and higher sugar and fat content than is allowed under the city’s latest guidelines. Today’s Boulder-sanctioned snacks must satisfy a series of nutritional standards, which govern not only ice cream and sandwich-based ice cream varients, but apply also to everything from nuts, chips, packaged fruits, cereal, cookies and pudding,” the newspaper reported.
The paper said Alison Rhodes, a city official, defended the policy.
“We’re not just the people who have fun places and do fun activities,” she said of the parks department. “We’re also in the business of promoting the community’s health.”
Andrew said he’s fine with the city promoting health.
But the city has gone too far now, he said.
“Boulder can’t tell the parents what to do, because the parents are doing a good job of helping us grow up and telling us the rules. I say leave it up to the moms, the grandparents, the great-grandparents.”
City officials said there is a BYO policy allowing visitors to bring their own food or drink “including Neapolitan ice cream sandwiches,” the newspaper said.
The Daily Camera said a mother, Ellen Boeder, works with people who have eating disorders and is “concerned about message at the pool.”
“Having a little bit of everything, including ice cream, is OK,” she said. “I feel really capable of making sure my kids are eating a well-rounded diet, and I think that treats are part of that.”
from PropagandaGuard https://propagandaguard.wordpress.com/2016/07/02/brothers-6-and-8-protest-citys-ban-on-ice-cream-bars/
from WordPress https://toddmsiebert.wordpress.com/2016/07/02/brothers-6-and-8-protest-citys-ban-on-ice-cream-bars/
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