L.A. wants to clamp yearlong ban on fast food

This is a lazy response, from a lazy government, perfectly suited for its lazy constituency.

How about the city officials teaching their constituents the merits of cooking at home! We can afford a cholesterol filled burger but prefer our meals at home. Shutting out new burger joints won't eliminate fatness, teaching people how to cook will!

Take a good look at L.A. folks; first, the ban on plastic bags and now a ban on free enterprise. This is exactly the type of government control that the hard-line leftists want for our country. Obama, Pelosi, Reid, Brown, etc. While touting "good of the people," they legislate bans against private ownership and rights. Be afraid people, be very afraid. Your rights are slowly being taken away and given to the government, but of course, they know what's good for us and we're too ignorant to survive without them.

I encourage everyone to read the Communist Manifesto and you will see the parallels to Obama's and the other hard-line leftist speeches.

The 10 Pillars of Communism:
1. Abolition of property in land and application of all rents of land to public purposes.
2. A heavy progressive or graduated income tax.
3. Abolition of all rights of inheritance.
4. Confiscation of the property of all emigrants and rebels.
5. Centralisation of credit in the hands of the state, by means of a national bank with State capital and an exclusive monopoly.
6. Centralisation of the means of communication and transport in the hands of the State.
7. Extension of factories and instruments of production owned by the State; the bringing into cultivation of waste-lands, and the improvement of the soil generally in accordance with a common plan.
8. Equal liability of all to work. Establishment of industrial armies, especially for agriculture.
9. Combination of agriculture with manufacturing industries; gradual abolition of all the distinction between town and country by a more equable distribution of the populace over the country.
10. Free education for all children in public schools. Abolition of children's factory labour in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production, &c, &c.

I then encourage you to read the Unaminous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America. You'll see some parallels to today's political environment and wonder where our 'elected' officials went so wrong.
Then, read the Constitution of the United States of America to see which of our rights are being stripped away.

Good luck, America. I will not be with you chanting Obama, Obama, Obama in front of bronze statues of the Czar. I will be home clinging to everything I own trying to survive four years as our country slides perilously into extinction.

As Marie Antoinette reportedly said when told the French people had no bread, "Let them eat cake!" Anyone wonder why folks with little money want to buy from a dollar menu instead of buying a $32 meal at a nicer establishment.

Folks, these people are hungry. They can feed their kids and themselves a perfectly healthy diet from fast food restaurants. Remember the guy who spurned the fellow who gained so much weight and went on at McDiet. By eating their salads and grilled chicken (inexpensive) sandwiches etc. It is choices people make that make them fat. I've seen plenty of tubs of lard at the nicest steak house here in Seattle. Freedom of choice is what America is about.

Also, for the poorest among us, the choice to eat or not eat should be given some respect. If you were really hungry and it was a dollar menu item or nothing----------

marie,

It is choices people make that make them fat. I've seen plenty of tubs of lard at the nicest steak house here in Seattle.

My guess is that if this passes, meats--especially red meat--will be targeted next.

Why should government stop this. IF the stupid poor people want to eat themselves to death then let them. That will thin the heard so to speak and let the stronger of us survive. They are a drain on our society anyways.
I have never understood why humans are the only mammals that care about the weak and sick. We are killing ourselves because of an over rated emotion called compassion. If the ignorant in this country choose to eat crap that they know or should know is bad for them, then let them do it.
If there is a profit to be made feeding slop to a pig then let that business make a profit. As soon as all the pigs die, so will the business feeding slop. Then we will have evolved into a non slop eating society. Does anyone not understand history and evolution. That is why animals as well as humans have evolved into what we are today. Because dumb weaker kind taught us that we can't do that and we may need to adapt to keep living.

Thank god our current government was not around when man was first developing because we would still be grunting and dragging our knuckles. "we can not develop speech because it may lead to hateful word that might hurt ones feelings so therefore we ban all speech."
"oh no...fire..how destructive...ban it" "the wheel..what if someone gets run over by it...ban it..."
Don't get me wrong..I have compassion..if my child is sick or my neighbor has a tragedy, I will do what it takes to help them but I don't expect the government to help nor should we FORCE someone to help. The heard must keep moving forward for the survival of mankind.

This article is clearly a demonstration of local govt out of control. While they are considering the ban on fast food have they considered banning the sale and use of cigarettes? It doesn't take a degree from MIT to know that cigarettes kill more people than Big Macs. But of course the govt will never ban cigarettes because there is too much tax revenue.

Gee, confused, I didn't know the John Birch Society was still that active!

I don't like this idea, either, but labeling it as a 'Communist Conspiracy' is more than a little 'out there.'

Shall we hunt for Illuminati next?

"This is exactly the type of government control that the hard-line leftists want for our country."

Hate to tell you this but It was REPUBLICAN Governor Schwarzenegger that signed the trans fat bill. It's the REPUBLICANS that have grown the government by 60% since Bush took office.

It's too bad so many people keep listening to the repub banter "no new taxes" and "hands off government" when the total opposite is true.

Chuck as much as I don't like some of the Democratic views...I am really starting to think the Repubs are heading down the same path. We have no control in government. The three tiers are vieing for the most power...the two party systems is trying to separate us while they believe in the same thing...."BIG GOVERNMENT"

we are headed for a Marxist society and neither party is going to stop it. Neither the democrats or the Republicans are what they originally started out to be...and we as Americans just suck at the tit of big government because we get free stuff.

Crimeny, calling Schwarzenegger a Republican is like calling Jack the Ripper a Massage Therapist. (Sorry off the topic but just had to say it.)

This is just another good intentioned Nannyite solution which will fail like so many other Nannyite efforts, ultimately costing the taxpayer gross amounts of money. What the Nannyites refuse to accept is if people don't give a damn and you cannot change the underlying reason for their dietary choices then you are simple wasting effort no matter how well intentioned the effort.

One can resonably argue that unhealthy eating habits are indicative of a self destructive behavior, which given the abundant health education in the public schools one should know the outcome already, thus indicating an underlying mental disorder. It is just a slow form of suicide.

Are the Nannyites covertly suggesting that these individuals be coerced into geographical based mental health treatment involuntarily? Behavior modification techniques routinely use deprivation (removal of a desired choice from the available options) to achieve alterations in the behavior of subjects. Sure sounds like a duck to me!

Or are they actually suggesting that healthy restaurants should be funded by another government mandate and provide subsidized meals already prepared for the diners?

Methinks the Nannyites are looking funding for another government program while trying to hide behind another deprived group.

So dems are preaching they have the solution to fix the economy... huge amounts of profit loss, thousands of lower income job loss, its a downward spiral that will never stop if the citizens of America don't put the breaks on big government whether it be the leftists or the neo cons we are all doomed.

I can see it now, Mom and Dad come home from thier 8 hour minimum pay job, and are to tired to cook for themselves and thier three kids, you've all been there.

Very true, they don't know what goes on in people's daily life. Besides, who's to know that they are going to cook up a healthy dinner ?!? They can be cooking something equally unhealthy or worse. Good point dave-282794.

Now they have a choice, go to the new RED ROBIN for a hamburger, fries and a drink. Lets see, cheapist burger they have is $8.00 with fries. Soda is almost $2.00. Lets see, hmmm thats $50.00 plus tax, plus tip about $60.00Now Mcdies is $1.00 hamburger, $1.00 fries $1.00 soda, lets see, hmmm $3.00 each times 5 equals $15.00 plus tax, Nooo tip = $16.31. Hi rent, utilities and Almost $5.00 gas, where are you gonna go?

Again, I agree! lol Not everyone can afford to dish out $60 for dinner every night or even every other night. Crazy I tell ya just crazy =D

Personally, I like to eat what I want, when I want. I'd like to keep it that way.

Totally BS eat what the government says you can eat

Why should government stop this. IF the stupid poor people want to eat themselves to death then let them. That will thin the heard so to speak and let the stronger of us survive. They are a drain on our society anyways.
I have never understood why humans are the only mammals that care about the weak and sick. We are killing ourselves because of an over rated emotion called compassion. If the ignorant in this country choose to eat crap that they know or should know is bad for them, then let them do it. If there is a profit to be made feeding slop to a pig then let that business make a profit. As soon as all the pigs die, so will the business feeding slop. Then we will have evolved into a non slop eating society. Does anyone not understand history and evolution. That is why animals as well as humans have evolved into what we are today. Because dumb weaker kind taught us that we can't do that and we may need to adapt to keep living.

Wow, I've never heard the conservative philosophy stated so succinctly before. Well-done. @!$%# compassion! Let the poor, weak and disabled die, it'll be better for the gene pool!

You really, really make me sick.

good..

"Now the government thinks it has the right to tell people what they can or cannot eat or which businesses should or should locate in certain areas"

The government has been doing that for years and with good reason.

When was the last time you saw a strip club next to a church or a power plant next to an elementary school?

If you've ever voted for a liberal and have fantasized over universal healthcare, you're to blame for this. When the government was given authority over our health, they can now dictate food that they think affects our health.

I'll bet Taco Bell gets an exemption from the ban....

Take a good look at L.A. folks; first, the ban on plastic bags and now a ban on free enterprise. This is exactly the type of government control that the hard-line leftists want for our country. Obama, Pelosi, Reid, Brown, etc. While touting "good of the people," they legislate bans against private ownership and rights. Be afraid people, be very afraid. Your rights are slowly being taken away and given to the government, but of course, they know what's good for us and we're too ignorant to survive without them.

I encourage everyone to read the Communist Manifesto and you will see the parallels to Obama's and the other hard-line leftist speeches.

The 10 Pillars of Communism:

1. Abolition of property in land and application of all rents of land to public purposes.
2. A heavy progressive or graduated income tax.
3. Abolition of all rights of inheritance.
4. Confiscation of the property of all emigrants and rebels.
5. Centralisation of credit in the hands of the state, by means of a national bank with State capital and an exclusive monopoly.
6. Centralisation of the means of communication and transport in the hands of the State.
7. Extension of factories and instruments of production owned by the State; the bringing into cultivation of waste-lands, and the improvement of the soil generally in accordance with a common plan.
8. Equal liability of all to work. Establishment of industrial armies, especially for agriculture.
9. Combination of agriculture with manufacturing industries; gradual abolition of all the distinction between town and country by a more equable distribution of the populace over the country.
10. Free education for all children in public schools. Abolition of children's factory labour in its present form. Combination of education with industrial production, &c, &c.

I then encourage you to read the Unaminous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America. You'll see some parallels to today's political environment and wonder where our 'elected' officials went so wrong.

Then, read the Constitution of the United States of America to see which of our rights are being stripped away.

Good luck, America. I will not be with you chanting Obama, Obama, Obama in front of bronze statues of the Czar. I will be home clinging to everything I own trying to survive four years as our country slides perilously into extinction.

Pffft,
So will KFC.

So they are going to kick out McDonalds and what? Force Outback to move in?
Sit down joints won't go to South L.A. they won't want to be constantly robbed. McDonalds expects to be robbed. Their minimum wage employees are expendable (in their eyes).

More government control that's always a GREAT idea.... Ask any German or Jew with a tattoo on their arm how that worked out for them.

Yes, this is extreme and silly.

I agree but I also disagree. Its cool that they are putting a ban on fast food joints, Lord knows there are plenty people that need it. However banning it for a full year is a bit extreme. I do feel that there needs to be a limit on how many fast food joints should be opened in specific areas of a city. Same food choices should be available everywhere. I hate the fact that on some parts of the city that is all that is available are fast food place and on other part there are more healthful choices than fast food. Same thing applies to grocery stores ALL KROGERS SHOULD LOOK THE SAME AS SHOULD H.E.B. I hate the fact that I gotta travel through great lenghts to same damn store find simple ingredients. Why can't there be a olive garden or a good sushi restuarant in place of those Mc Donalds or KFC. I hate fast food but when its the only thing available in your area it kinda dwindles your choices. To hell with them SHUT THEM DOWN!!!!!!! Their Killin us anyway.

Down with the King! of burger

Just kidding. I think the gov is just responding to our inability to self govern.
Wait. which comes first the gov or the....oh well.

Freedom means the RIGHT to self govern and to learn by trial and error and even to choose the wrong thing as long as that choice is not criminal!

Get the government out of the control business.

As far as the California Governor initiating this idea and "He's a Republican." Well that doesn't make him a conservative, very intelligent or even knowledgeable of Constitutional Law. He's a fitness guru with tons of money to eat only the best and most nutritious foods.

In this part of LA there are many just struggling to survive, feed themselves and their families. Give them a break! Next time you have to stretch $15 for food all week I'll bet you aren't heading to Ruth's Chris!

Poor people don't have the same choices as the Guvinator.

I agree 100% with you Marie. The big economic divide continues developing and it's not good. It's a very had decision to stretch the budget to keep everyone fed vs. buying nice shiny organic apples at $4 a pound.

marie thomson says:
"As far as the California Governor initiating this idea and "He's a Republican." Well that doesn't make him a conservative, very intelligent or even knowledgeable of Constitutional Law.

Nice try. He's a republican --this is just another example of the hypocrisy of the republican party. Government involvement whenever it suits them, all while claiming they want limited government.
the recent corporate bailouts are the perfect example of this.

You think the Governator hasn't long since been brainwashed by the Kennedeys???

So "big brother" knows best. Does the government think these individuals are no more capable than toddlers? Before you know it, they won't let people play or watch sports because they may get too upset for their own good. How ridiculous! Taken to the extreme, we'll all end up in those pods like in the Matrix.

These kinds of moratoriums, like censorship, assume that the people cannot think and act intelligently for themselves, needing the government to make decisions for them.

Whether such actions are taken by liberals or conservatives, they still insult the intelligence and integrity of the people.

From the left OR the right, NO FASCHISM!

Well Said!

This is just a polite way the Government is saying "you live the way we tell you or else". It all starts like this. These folks should fight this. It's just wrong. What they should do is have a whole lot more awareness and education about eating unhealthy. Ohhh wait a minute... Maybe they think those folks in that part of L.A. are STUPID. Typical corrupt, lazy, out of touch, FASCHIST leadership they have over there.

Taken to the extreme, we'll all end up in those pods like in the Matrix.

Yes, but at least our hips won't be so big. /sarcasm off

Well, you can't discriminate against people who are fat. It undermines their delicate self-esteem. Californians are real sensitive, ya know? So they have to discriminate against everyone and say "you are too stupid to eat better, we have to protect you from this". Now that is a message Californians can get behind.

"Bartenders can and should refuse service to someone they feel has already drank too much. A feeling based solely on behavior or demeanor, a feeling with no solid physical proof. In the same vein, why can't waitstaff refuse to accept any order from someone who they observe to be overweight when that order would likely not be in the customers best health concern and instead offer only a low-calorie, low-fat alternative."

Because public drunks are a menace to other people, and fat people are only a menace to themselves. Yeah, restaurants should kick out paying customers who they think are too fat - and lose alot of money in the process, good idea!

because they are only hurting themselves and no one else bartenders have other peoples safety in mind when the stop selling to drunk people

I disagree. I've seen people so fat behind the steering wheel they can't make a full turn. Now that's a danger to public safety!!

You are equating two very different issues; drinking and driving endangers the public due to altered physical behavior due to alcohol, when was the last time you saw an obese person kill a family in a car accident due to too many cheeseburgers? Additionally, when you begin to judge someones physical appearance, you open a very slippery slope argument; could I then use race as a selection tool; you know blacks have a higher propensity to hypertension and therefore I wont serve you certain foods that contain high quantities of salt, regardless of your weight.

that is purely a biased observation on your part. As having been in the medical profession all my life and spending 15years within a clinical facility, we never had a single case of a fat person hurting someone because they could not turn the steering wheel. We did see a great many old people who caused accidents due to lack of response times. You should use facts not your subjectivity to argue a point.

How very liberal of you> What about the fat parents that raise fat children that raise fat children that raise fat children that don't educate them or take the time to show them how to eat properly or to make them go outside to exercise or play! If you work in the healthcare industry,then you already know that obesity is as dangerous as drinking and driving so don't give me that liberal crap! A persons size is a direct result of lifestyle as is drinking, drugging or smoking!!

I hope you're kidding. I would pay to see an NFL offensive lineman's reaction when a McDonald's counterperson won't sell him a Big Mac because he "observes him to be overweight."

You just made my point. Lifestyle.

Oh my God! Will they ban ice cream next? Will I have to weigh before ordering dessert? Wake up America!!!!! Get Government Out of the Bedroom AND the KITCHEN!

sounds like somebody is seriously jealous of Californians ......

Take your blood pressure meds there Bill 339279. Just relax. I'm worried about you.

Zep,
They told him San Francisco was full and it hurt his feelings.

It's funny how two people can hold a similar opinion and yet be so different. Take me and Bill for example.

You, "HOLIER-THAN-THOU", TYPES, are no better than NAZI's!

That must get really annoying to someone who obviously considers himself holier than everyone.

Leave PEOPLE alone, or SUFFER the consequences of your stupidity!

Go Stick your noses up your own backdoor, and leave everyone else's alone!

Give the rest of us a break will you?

They did you dingus. They didn't say "California will force America to give up fast food", they said California is attempting to ban fast food in one city.

Ok, it's a given,.... fast foods are not good for you and neither are cigarettes...
But if you really want to see something bad for your health, you just screw with people's food!

Wait, THIS is your argument? Seriously? Wow...

Either way I could NOT care less!

Who here buys THAT?

Oh my gosh, Bill said go have an eartquake and then they DID!!!

Maybe HE is holier than us....

Bill-339279,
It's NOT the people in California, it's the City officials! Did you read the article? Obviously, you generalize the people of California and it shows just how dense you are. Why don't you have yourself a big glass of shut up juice! Yeah, I went there hehehe...

Ugh...Bill I was rude.. for the comment of the shut juice..sorry. Two wrongs don't make a right... You just came off as,well hateful, towards Californians, which of course I am. Guess I took it personal. I let it go, no need for me to be mean too. Ok, I feel better now =D

Point well taken Tron.

The Peoples rights are getting chipped away slowly. The sad issue is the voters are allowing this to happen all in the name of saving peoples lives. Most just don't realize the government has not only public health in mind, but the Almighty Dollar.

Obesity, cigarette smoking, seat belts and so on, cause a serious financial strain on the health care system. So, the government has to come up with a solution. Why not take peoples personal rights away? Especially when we are begging for it wanting change.

In a poverty stricken area, isn't it cheaper to simply take the rights away, rather than implement a social program to teach a healthier way to live? The people in those areas live off of food stamps which is not nearly enough for a full month. It's cheaper to buy a meal from the dollar menu at McDonalds, than it is to go buy a dinner at the grocery store.

I don't want anymore of my personal rights taken away in the name of saving money.

Surely with an understanding of dialectical materialism you can see that it has been part of the social structure of consumerism for about seventy years here in America. And as far as the one step away from becoming a new China comment, as well as the democracy deal that you think exists somewhere over the rainbow, America has not been a democracy for decades now. Democracy is merely a platform peddled in this country to an ignorant populous. I would recommend reading Marx's works on class consciousness and commodity fetishism, particularly Das Kapital and The German Ideology. Within these works you will find a startling revelation: The American philosophy towards consumerism is surprisingly Marxist. But Shhhhh... don't tell anybody..... it's a secret......

See, in Canada it's annoying because our health care is paid for through taxes. Which is great! But what's not so great is that those taxes often go to give long term and often intensive care to smokers and overeaters, for example. So for us, their vices are a direct tax on the system. But our solution isn't to ban fast food but to change the menu in places like school and office cafeterias and to offer healthy alternatives in our restaurants. Canada knows better than to tell fellow Canadians what to eat. I would like to see them ban Tim Hortons coffee and donuts (our major fast food vice) in TO. Even for a day. People would freak.

Dear Rebeca torres, mother of 4. Here's a dining choice...cook it yourself and eat at home, if you're not too busy watching tv. Buy some vegetables and fruits with those food stamps.

Why only one year?

second..

American has a right to eat what they want to? Not when it poses a health threat! If this is true then cannibalism would be legal. Has everyone thought about how this will affect the rest of us if we let the poor people get more obese? They most likely DO NOT have health insurance so guess who gets to pay their medical bill due to obesity complications and diseases?????? It is in our best interest to intervene!

American has a right to eat what they want to? Not when it poses a health threat!

It does not pose a health threat to anyone other than the person doing the eating.

If this is true then cannibalism would be legal.

Surely, noone is this shortsighted. Cannibalism infringes on the rights of other people to.. you know.. not get eaten. Cheeseburgers are not promised those same rights under our constitution.

Has everyone thought about how this will affect the rest of us if we let the poor people get more obese? They most likely DO NOT have health insurance so guess who gets to pay their medical bill due to obesity complications and diseases?????? It is in our best interest to intervene!

Even for a stereotype, that's a bit of a stretch, don't you think? How can you possibly say that people who eat at McDonalds don't have health insurance? I have excellent coverage, myself... and enjoy a good whopper now and then. Not good for me, perhaps... Any of your business? Definitely not.

Who's with me?

Right there with ya

Don't forget that these are the same people who have rioted twice and destroyed many Korean owned stores in their area. No one in their right mind would risk their live savings investing in a store in this area. Seems they are getting what they deserve for being at heart criminals.

RUTH
I THINK YOU HIT ALOT OF IT IN THE HEAD.
THE PROBLEM IS MORE COMPLEX THAT THE SOLUTION THEY ARE PER POSING TO FIX IT WITH.
I WORK IN THE MEDICAL INDUSTRY AND I SEE MORE OVER WEIGHT PEOPLE ON THE WELFARE SYSTEM. SOME OF IT IS A VICIOUS CYCLE. SOME OF THE PEOPLE GET ON THE SYSTEM DUE TO BAD HEALTH OF UNWED MOTHERS, LOSE OF JOB-ES. BUT WHAT I CAN TELL YOU IS THAT EVERY ONE OF THEM. THAT IS HEAVY WHEN THEY GO ON WELFARE GET FATTTTTER. THE LONGER THEY ARE ON THE SYSTEM. WHY. DUE TO NO JOB, LOW SELF ESTEEM OR JUST LAZY. SOME OF THAT IS TRUE AND SOME OF IT IS NOT. OUR JOBS ARE GOING OVER SEAS, OUR MONEY IS FUNDING A WAR THAT WE CANT AFFORD. JUST THINK IF WE HAD NOT SPENT ALL THAT MONEY IN IRAQ, TRILLIONS. SOME WHERE I HEARD THAT IF WE HAD NOT SPENT THAT MONEY OVER THEIR WE COULD HAVE SPENT OVER A HUNDRED THOUSAND PER PERSON IN THE US. WE COULD HAVE BOUGHT EVERY BODY A HYBRID CAR AND GOOD DOWN PAYMENT ON A HOME. IF WE HAD BOUGHT EVERY BODY A NEW HYBRID WE WOULD NOT NEED THE OIL. NO MONEY NO FUNDING TERRORIST. THAT MONEY COULD HAVE CREATED JOBS FOR THE AUTO INDUSTRY, HOME- CREATES JOB-ES -STORES IT ENDLESS. I FIGURED UP THAT MY HUSBAND AND I SPEND $5000.00 IN GAS JUST TO WORK AND BACK. IF I COULD AFFORD A HYBRID I WOULD BUY ONE. THAT WOULD MEAN $5000.00 TO SPEND SO THAT WOULD CREATE MORE JOB ES. THIS ALL TRICKLES DOWN EVEN TO POOR SECTION OF EVERY CITY. THE KEY IS TO HAVE CHEAPER FUEL AND ENERGY TO POWER INDUSTRIES AND HOMES. OUR GOVERNMENT HAS TO STOP THE COLLUSION WITH THE OIL COMPANY'S AND THE AUTO INDUSTRY. IT SAD I HEAR EVERY BODY TALKING THEY WOULD LIKE TO GET OUT OF THEIR GAS HOG CARS. BUT WHAT THE AUTO INDUSTRY IS SELLING IS JUNK. WHY BU Y A CAR THAT IN THREE YEARS YOU ARE GOING TO BE BACK TO WHERE YOU ARE TO DAY. 30-35 MILE TO A GALLON. GIVE ME A BREAK. THE AUTO INDUSTRY WOULD LOVE TO FORCE US TO BUY A NEW CAR EVERY THREE YEAR. IT TAKES ME OVER 5 YEARS TO PAY MINE OFF. COME ON THINK HEAD. IF I M GOING TO GO IN DEBIT. I WHAT SOMETHING TO BETTER MY SELF. NOT PUT MY SELF IN DEBIT. SO FOR NOW MY $5000.00. IS NOT GOING IN ANY BODY'S POCKET EXPECT THE OIL COMPANY. IT NOT GOING TO SAVE ME $5000.00 TO BUY A NEW CAR, WITH THAT LOW OF MILEAGE. CAR PAYMENTS ARE TO HIGH. SEE IT IS A VICIOUS CYCLE.

They riot because there is always somebody out there trying to treat them like they don't have no rights. I am a Native American mother of 4 and my kids got the blessings of being part Black and part Native American to some people that may not be a blessing but to them and me it is. As a person born and raised on a Reservation and being married to a black man neither race comes from a rich background or a middle class background. We have to work hard and sometimes harder then an average person and we have to do things at time to get attention to be treated equal so they're not getting what they deserve they are getting stomped on again as they are just dumb lazy people who don't spend their money right the stereotype that is put out there for minorities all the time but like ruth said as people who live on a fixed tight income they gotta do what they gotta do. I lived with very little growing up it ain't the easiest lifestyle to live. There was times we had a couple of dollars and had to go to an expensive mom and pops grocery store and get bread and sandwich meat for supper or a thing of hamburger and find things to go with it. They don't live an easy life. Before I went back to school after getting divorced and trying to raise 4 kids on my own living in a city there was times I had to go to the pizza place that sells pizzas for 5 dollars because I didn't qualify for foodstamps, because I made to much money a whole dollar over my the income guidelines it aint easy. Then to have people not treating you as equals that is just not right. If that is the case then why don't they tell rich communities they can't have all you can eat buffetes because they have obeisity problems also. It isn't just the poor who have problems with their weight it is everybody.

My family was really poor when i was younger; we never ate out even at fast food places. That was a luxury. We ate home cooked meals. We all knew how to cook and didn't depend on our parents to cook for us if they weren't home. The only "bad" treat we would be lucky to get is an ice cream from the ice cream truck. Poor people CANNOT make healthy choices because they do not know just how bad these fast food places are! Im sure they do not know what HDL and LDL are. Or how sugar enters the blood and why it's bad to eat processed foods. They don't know the difference from good sugar to bad sugar or good carbs from bad carbs. So NO they are not educated enough to make a healthy choice by themselves if they don't know and understand the function of food. Just reading a food label needs some understanding of daily requirement of food and nutrients intake.

That's a thought I had. If the economic situation is as bad as they are saying, wouldn't these fast food resturants be jobs that are in a way competed over?
Where I grew up, the economic situation was harsh, and it was difficult to get a job at McDonalds, Wendy's, Pizza Hutt, KFC, Long John Silvers and the like, because they jobs had lots of people trying to get them, and they have people who had been working at them for sometimes almost 20 years!

This seems to me to be another example of the government putting it's fingers into places it has no point being...

Finally! Someone who noticed that the jobs that were filled by the people in these neighborhoods would be gone. What, do they go on unemployment and when that only brings in a portion of the small amount they were making in the first place they might as well start selling drugs?

The city counsel needs to court these other businesses first before cutting the lifeline. What do they care though, they have jobs. This kind of nannyism makes me ashamed to be a Democrat. These people don't think of the consequences of their do good ideas.

Exactly! Hey why stop at cigarettes and fast food -- why not ban SUV'S , cell phones, IPods, etc. When are people going to get fed up with government interference. And, doesn't "government" have any issues more pressing than this to keep themselves busy????????

just wondering...

Wow! You're a compassionate guy and a typical liberal. You're only compassionate with somebody elses money. Why don't you buy all of the poor people a gym membership on your dime. You could work multiple jobs. You'd have less time to spend somebody elses money that they worked hard for and want to spend their way.

Um, Observer,
It's the Liberals in L.A. trying to take away fast food. It is the Liberals who are trying to make a Socialist state out of America. Let the Liberals pay for the gym memberships. Call it part of their universal health care.

Damn I miss In & Out Burger. I wish we had them here...

It's the Liberals in L.A. trying to take away fast food.

Arnie is a liberal, now? Someone better tell the republicans that.

Why is caring about the health of other people an evil, liberal idea? Should they eat McDonald's every day? Probably not. Who should stop them? No one, because no one has the right to tell other people what to do.

I was merely making a suggestion. Besides, the YMCA is filled with wonderful volunteers who would be more than happy to help people create and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

While we're at it, why don't people in the financial services industry volunteer some of thier time to help these people with making budgets? That way they could see how much money they are wasting on fast food and steer them towards the grocery stores.

I don't see why these are unreasonable and evil goals.

When you work 3 jobs and are the sole caregiver to your kids, just when do you have the time or energy to go to the gym?

I think that's a great idea!!

See above reply. You're such a compassionate person with somebody elses money.

See above reply. You're such a compassionate person with somebody elses money.

And exactly who's money is going to be spent wooing the sit-down restaurants to the area? That's right... the public's. Those restuarants will probably be offered all sorts of tax breaks to open shop in an area where they will get very little business because people can't afford to eat there.

Angry's plan makes a great deal more sense to me.

Most of them aren't working anyhow. We're paying for their meal ticket.

I agree with you 100% about cooking at home, Donna. However, I think part of the problem is that in poor neighborhoods you have a lot of single parents that take whatever job(s) they can find - and in many cases this means working at a restaurant during the hours a home cooked meal would have to be prepared.

Just think though, Marine. This could leave the poor with even less opportunity for earning any of their money and consequently breeding even more welfare recipients. The more recipients, the more votes for the liberal Democrats that run that hell hole.

Man everything to you is a lierals fault and I bet you dont even know what a liberal is. Get a life already.

In regards to this issue, yes, it is. I have a life and want to keep the government out of mine, thank you very much.