So what's news today? Study: Fast food clusters near schools

The subtitle: Researchers say pattern likely contributes to obesity

Shocking! Shocking, I tell you. This is NEWS. I hate to tell these researchers who live in bubbles, but where there are people, there is fast food. Look around you - if you're my age, those "fast food clusters" were near your schools 10, 20, 30 years ago, no? But suddenly these "clusters" are contribuing to the obesity of someone you know! Stop the clusters!

The scene is repeated throughout Chicago, where fast-food restaurants are clustered within easy walking distance of elementary and high schools, according to a study by Harvard's School of Public Health. The researchers say the pattern probably exists in urban areas nationwide and is likely contributing to the nation's obesity epidemic.

"It can be very hard for children and teens to eat in healthy ways when they're inundated with this," said lead author Bryn Austin, a researcher at Harvard and Children's Hospital Boston.

McDonald's Corp. spokesman Walt Riker said the fast-food giant locates its restaurants "in high-traffic areas like every other business, to serve customers. It has nothing to do with schools." He called the study assumptions speculative since the researchers didn't assess whether proximity of fast food affected students' eating habits.

Posted by: hln at 02:36 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Yay! I am LOVED! Loved, I say! LOVED!

Exalted! Read these words!

Once again, Heather goes into attack mode (a common trait among high school-level objectivists). Her indignation is that we don't hold her aloft as a shining example of the Great American Success Story to those she believes remain mired in subsistence-level jobs because they don't possess Heather's strength of character, will, moxie, spunk, etc.

The facts remain, however, that Heather's very brief foray into the entry-level world was not without a safety net. And, in fact, she worked with multiple safety nets and was unencumbered by burdens and/or responsibilities.

As Ehrenreich's book vividly illustrates, many people simply don't have the advantages and safety nets Heather had. For these people, an illness, car problems, a sick child, a job loss are not mere inconveniences--they are often cataclysmic events all too often resulting in homelessness.

Of course, underlying Heather's disinclination to look at the facts is her unwillingness to realize her current lifestyle is largely subsidized on the backs of these people she scorns. Like all High School Ayn Rand-wannabes, she regards her lifestyle as an entitlement; there's a fair amount of insecurity involved as well.

Posted by: hln at 05:46 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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