There's a national campaign going around called "Meatless Monday" and that's supposed to be a good thing. Naturally, PETA's a big part of it, but now Baltimore City Public Schools is being praised for adopting meatless menus on Monday. WHOOPEE-DOO!!!
First, does this not presuppose eating meat is a bad thing? Second, don't the schools of Baltimore City have far more important things to deal with?
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Quality meat is one of life's great pleasures and in the context of a balanced diet, a good source of protein and other vital minerals. There's nothing wrong with eating meat per se but done so responsibly shopping for lean cuts where possible and monitoring how much is consumed as part of one's overall diet. This writer is very chauvinistic on this matter. We did not go through millions of years of evolution to get to the top of the food chain to eat nuts and berries!!!
Yes, we should discourage massive Mickey D and Burger King infusions, but even there, an ocassional burger is not a terrible thing. When thinking through the school's program, what is the message and is it appropriate?
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Of course, in the broader context of what's happening in Baltimore City schools, the whole thing seems silly. Where kids are beating the crap out of each other, attendance rates are low, drop out rates are high, and overall performance is terrible, there are lots of things to work on far more important than some silly reformist nonsense. Despite the state adjusting funding needs providing Baltimore tons of per pupil funding, where are the results? Surely not at the local school or in the classroom. What school system has the most bloated bureacracy? Duh, that would be Baltimore City.
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The bottom line is eating meat is a personal decision and a responsible diet is not a matter of whether or not one consumes meat. If a person doesn't want to eat meat, that's fine. There are plenty of other possibilities -- soy burgers, tofu, and whey powder. Find a context where people are having eating meat forced upon them and that would be wrong. Why is it then that that so many vegitarians insist on making their business others' business?
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Listen up, you veggies and vegans, mind your own business.
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Schools would be better off if every little cause-du-jour that the high-minded self-styled "progressives" would be avoided as clearly the emphasis needs to be on clearly expressed values: respect for authority, killing and beating up others is unacceptable, stealing and destroying others' property is wrong, and you're too damned young to have sex, got it? From there, reading, writing, and computation skills are essential, but all schools need to provide a good well-rounded program that prepares kids for responsible PRODUCTIVE lives.
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Baltimore city schools are failing by every measure. The school year is still young. It won't be long before some violent episode is reported. You can count on that.
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No eating meat doesn't make people violent.
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Monday Night Football and a rack of ribs...hmm. That's much more positive thinking than "meatless Mondays."
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There's no shortage of meatheads in public school administration, is there?
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