Lawsuit claims McDonald's burgers and fries are making kids fat
Now, I understand that the law and common sense can exist on different planes, but it sure would be nice if they at least occupied the same area codes. At what point do we hold people responsible for their own actions and decisions (or lack of same)? Or do we?? I'm beginning to wonder.
Lawyers have filed a class-action lawsuit against McDonald's on behalf of New York children who have suffered health problems, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity.
In federal court in Manhattan on Wednesday, a lawyer alleged that the fast-food chain has created a national epidemic of obese children. Samuel Hirsch argued that the high fat, sugar and cholesterol content of McDonald's food is "a very insipid, toxic kind of thing" when ingested regularly by young kids.
The plaintiffs include a Bronx teen who ate every meal at McDonald's for three years while living in a homeless shelter. Another is a 13-year-old boy from Staten Island who says he ate at McDonald's food three to four times a week and is now 5-foot-4 and 278 pounds.
Now, unless officials at McDonald's forced these kids to ingest their offerings at gunpoint, what case do these folks have? They could just as easily have gone to the salad bar at Wendy's, right? The fact that these children, and by implication their parents and guardians, made a conscious decision to belly up to the counter and order their 2 QuarterPounders with extra cheese and a large order of fries should kill their case right there. What I don't understand is why these morons aren't laughed out of the courtroom.
I'm all for using the courts to redress legitimate grievances. That is, after all, one of their primary roles. This lawsuit, and the others like it that will surely follow, are simply ploys by attorneys looking for ways to milk the system and augment their income. To me, and to any clear-thinking individual, the facts should be relatively simple:
1) McDonald's does not sell "health food". Burgers and fries are not "healthy" by anyone's estimation. Yet millions of Americans scarf millions of burgers and tons of fries on a daily basis. It's a safe assumption that this is done by choice and not by coercion.
2) If you're trying to lose weight, or unclog your arteries, McDonald's is probably not what you want to see on your daily menu. If you choose to eat there, you are responsible for the results.
3) No one strong-arms children, or adults, into buying McDonald's food. They don't have to. People are sheep enough to find their way into their restaurants with a minimum of advertising.
4) McDonald's food may well be fattening, but it is the eating of their food that is making kids fat. There is, thankfully, a very simple solution to this problem: STOP EATING AT McDONALD'S!!!!
At some point, we as a society have to take responsibility for our own lack of self-control. The problem here is not McDonald's. OK, their food sucks, but I'm a minority opinion. Enough people like their food to keep the corporate behemoth in fine fettle. A burger is a burger is a burger, whether it's in Spokane, Shreveport, or Belgrade. The people who buy and eat them know what they are getting. This should come as no shock to anyone who has everyone unwrapped a McDonald's hamburger.
Come on, people. It's not as if these folks are manufacturing cigarettes and hiding the fact that nicotine is both highly addictive and deadly. If you're worried about the health effects of your Big Mac and fries, just push yourself away from the table and go get yourself a salad. Just leave the lawyers out of it, OK??
