The state as parent: No Happy Meal toy for you, sonny

California doesn't have enough real problems to deal with? Santa Clara County wants to outlaw Happy Meal toys because they make kids fat:

Believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, the proposal would forbid the inclusion of a toy in any restaurant meal that has more than 485 calories, more than 600 mg of salt or high amounts of sugar or fat. In the case of McDonald's, the limits would include all of the chain's Happy Meals — even those that include apple sticks instead of French fries.

And guess what: Residents think their government is going too far:

. . . the proposal has caused a bit of an uproar on the Internet, where comments on YouTube and other sites say it is another example of the "nanny state" gone wild. [h/t: Sister Toldjah]

That's pretty much exactly what it is. I'm sure you can think of other cultural practices a busybody might want to modify, for our own good, like popcorn and candy at movie theaters (veggie platters would be more healthful -- but hold that Ranch dressing), fast food drive-thrus (they make eating way too easy for lazy fat folks), and restrictions on what the neighbors can offer trick-or-treaters (pencils, not peanut butter cups). Why not? It's for the children! And we're all children in the eyes of our statist handlers.

This kind of thing is de rigueur in the UK, where everything is padded, sanitized, and circumscribed for you, in the name of ‘Elf ‘n’ Safety, mate. Mark Steyn:

You only have to spend, oh, 20 minutes in almost any corner of the British Isles to have that distinctive local formulation proffered as the explanation for almost any feature of life. The signs at the White Cliffs of Dover warning you not to lean over the cliff? It’s Health & Safety, mate. Primary schools that forbid their children to make daisy chains because they might pick up germs from the flowers? Health & Safety, mate.The decorative garden gnomes Sandwell Borough Council ordered the homeowner to remove from outside her front door on the grounds that she could trip over them when fleeing the house in event of its catching fire? Health & Safety. The fire extinguishers removed from a block of flats by Dorset buildings risk assessors because they’re a fire risk? Health & Safety. Apparently the presence of a fire extinguisher could encourage you to attempt to extinguish the fire instead of fleeing for your life.

It's all for your own good, you see.

I personally agree with one of the moms quoted in the LAT article: "the toys are crap." Of course they are. And so is the food. But face it: If government banned everything crappy there wouldn't be much of anything left. Solution: don't get into the habit of bringing your kids to McDonald's. Do it once in a while, for a treat. Or not at all. Problem solved.

And by the way, not that it matters to those who are using obesity as a tool to regulate our lives and businesses, the "obesity epidemic" is highly disputable:

In fact, a new comprehensive meta-analysis of data from more than a dozen countries, including the U.S., reveals that, for a decade now, obesity rates all over the world among both adults and children have been largely flat or actually declining. The study points out that alarmist claims from public health officials about an “obesity epidemic” are all explicitly based on the mistaken assumption that obesity rates are continuing to rise.

But, as with global warming or our health care emergency, the foundational crisis for all that regulation doesn't need to be real.

Thanks to MichelleMalkin.com for the link.

Most recent posts here.