McDonald’s, the fast food restaurant chain, has come under fire from a child advocacy group over its sponsorship of envelopes carrying school report cards issued to children attending elementary schools in a Florida county.
Some 27,000 children aged five to 11 in Seminole County took home their school report cards for the current school year in envelopes featuring the company’s Ronald McDonald clown mascot, and an offer to reward good grades and attendances with a free “Happy Meal” at local restaurants…
The Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood has called on McDonald’s to stop the promotion on the envelopes that are used to carry home report cards throughout the year…”Happy Meals featured on the report card can contain as many 710 calories, 28 grams of fat, or 35 grams of sugar,” it said.
McDonald’s was one of 13 large food and beverage companies that signed a Council of Better Business Bureaus pledge earlier this year that restricts advertising to children. The pledge takes effect on January 1, although the Seminole report card envelopes will be in circulation until June.
Hey! Either you care about the crap your kids consume and what it does to them – or you’re so dumbfounded by the Korporate Kingdom of Amerika you won’t challenge anything handed to you on a greasy paper wrapper.
The nanny state strikes again. At least SOMEBODY’s offering them incentive to do well in school. We’re circling the drain…
#2 – uh, what the incentive is – also matters. Would you approve of a little smack or maybe a six-pack for the 5-year-olds?
Telling kids a greasy mccrudburger is an appropriate reward just reinforces the junk food mentality that suits American politics.
Good Lord, people. Get a grip. It’s a TREAT. Are we so nuts about health we can’t let our kids have fun once in awhile? I used to give my kids 5 bucks an A on their report cards, and sometimes they wanted to spend some at Mickey D’s. Is that so bad?
yep, ole McDonalds is just shoving burgers down our kids throats. Just let the corporations win and quit fighting. Or you can go start protesting in front of any store you can find. It is all about that American fighting spirit. Hmm, better yet, let your kid enjoy a crappy burger and teach him or her about a misplaced concept known as “moderation”. Just a thought.
Instead of getting angry at McDonalds who is just advertising their product, shouldn’t we be angry at the school for accepting this kind of advertising?
I agree with “Airman Basic” people get a grip. NO one is forcing a child to eat a happy meal. At least someone is encouraging the kids to work for something. It’s a sad day when a person or in this case a company tries to do something nice and gets blasted for it.
If you don;t like the envelope it just through it away. Personally my kids hate MCD’s.
Flame if you must, but get off your soap box.
Ronald McDonald in happier times:
Knock it off.
#8, Mister jc
Instead of getting angry at McDonald’s who is just advertising their product, shouldn’t we be angry at the school for accepting this kind of advertising?
Yes.
In our district though, McDonald’s and Pizza Hut pay the school to include vouchers for free meals. The free kid meals are designed to bring the parents and rest of the family into the stores. Where they make the profit. It also partially explains why most of the lunches are so fat laden.
#11, Mister Lauren,
Love the new handle. I had to look it up though and almost fell off my chair laughing.
First it was the tobacco companies poisoning people, but then the lawyers got their settlement, so next they turned to demonizing the gun industry. The NRA was too tough to tackle, and it turned out gun makers just didn’t have that much money. Next up was alcohol and fast food makers.
And the nanny-staters are only too happy to join in, and tell everyone what to eat.
#14. Actually, why shouldn’t they include a coupon for a free pack of cigarettes with their report cards?
Having schools pimp for fast food corporations is vile.
>>Love the new handle. I had to look it up
>>though and almost fell off my chair laughing.
OK, I think we’ve jumped the shark here. Totally lame.
Would you like those fries Metastized?
#16, MM,
C’mon, we’re having some fun. Please don’t take it personally. Besides, my wife made me use the computer chair with the arms so I can’t fall off. (I prefer my other chair.)
Peace bro.
Actually #14, you’re right, for the wrong reason. And #15, you’re wrong, for the right reason.
“Either you care about the crap your kids consume and what it does to them – or you’re so dumbfounded by the Korporate Kingdom of Amerika you won’t challenge anything handed to you on a greasy paper wrapper.”
Oh I think that what McD is counting on are the kiddies becoming fast food attics, from early childhood. Just like how the tobacco industry works. The parents won’t be watching what their kids will be eating, later in middle and high school. And if there is a McDs nearby, the kids will be gettin takeout with the rest of the gang. And instead of the schools having a healthy eating curriculum. They take money from McD to promote the exact opposite!
i dont know what the deal is
when i was in elementary school (1987-1994) they had mcdonalds promotions on our elementary school – and i went to private school – so we NEEDED the money.
i dont see why this is such a big deal
isnt it standard policy for corporate america to help promote themselves (and therefore) help pay for the education of america’s youth
i mean come on – there are scholarships to colleges that are in corpation’s names, my own architecture firm has a $1000 scholarship for the college where i went to. and dont even get me started on the sports scholarships – isnt ever week this fall that we saw the pontiac $1000 a week donation to a college school based on the performance (that the fans called in and paid for via celfone charges) player of the week.
Well without the schools having proper funding, what else do you expect? Honestly it’s a folder you throw away. Should you honestly care about the ad? When you go to your kid’s school play, there are ads in the playbill right?
if the parents do their ‘job’ as parents, the kids won’t be affected by ANY advertising.
Assholes always blame everything on someone else.
66% of americans are already OBESE FAT UGLY HUMAN PIGS. If you believe its id Mc.D who forced them to eat their shit, you are just another brainless american idiot (go watch more tv, theres no hope for you)