Governor Spitzer really cares about the chiiiildren, and to prove it he'd like to tell them just exactly what and how much of it they should eat.
Since introducing legislation he called “an important step in the fight against childhood obesity,” Spitzer has seen both houses of the Legislature reshape his proposal, removing such items as precisely how many calories a milk carton may contain or the percentage of whole grain products that must be offered each week on a lunch menu.
Lawmakers bristled at the extent of the food mandate. Spitzer’s bill was so precise that it had to include a clause assuring that its provisions are not meant to apply “to the consumption of water from drinking fountains.”
I know this is the kind of policy that Democrats just love -- government planning out our lives in great and organized detail. But I find it bemusing and quite alarming that our Governor is such a micro-manager (control freak in the vernacular) that he'd submit legislation this detailed to solve what most of us don't even consider a problem.
I'm sure that school food can be improved but I'm also pretty certain that there are wise and skilled people in each and every district capable of doing that. Perhaps some gubernatorial exhortations might be in order to get the ball rolling, but can the Soviet-style planning -- please.
[UPDATE:] In an unrelated story, Congressman Higgins is hinting that news may soon be forthcoming about some changes to the highway system on the Outer Harbor.
Pressed for details, Higgins would say only that the office of Gov. Eliot L. Spitzer is working on more detailed plans.
Oh, you can just bet they are.
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