Paternalism!!
New York City's Health Commissioner is leading the charge to ban trans-fats from New York's restaurants.
I find this trend extremely annoying.
Who the heck do these guys think they are? I'm an adult. I'm reasonably healthy. I'm not overweight. My cholesterol is good. Why do "they" get to dictate what I eat?
When I was in London in June, I was amazed, then inordinately excited, then frustrated to find that the McDonald's in London have the apple pies from my childhood. Anyone reading this who is of a certain age probably knows of what I speak; the crispy deep-fried rectangular apple pie pouches that were the genesis of the warning, "Caution! Filling is hot!" (see picture.)
Decades ago, through some pressure to be politically correct, the McDonald's in the US switched to wimpy soggy baked apple pie pouches. I tried one once and haven't had another one since.
But, in London, ah, yes, in London . . . There they were, the real, the original, THE McDonald's Hot Apple Pie!! I was in London for 6 days, didn't find the pies until at least halfway through my visit and must have had a dozen before I left (ok, that might be an exaggeration but only a slight one).
Paris, no dice. McDonald's there didn't have any sort of apple pie. Too American for them??
But they all have the ubiquitous soft-serve ice cream cone.
That soft-serve ice cream cone serves multiple purposes. It's very inexpensive and oh so satisfying. In Beijing and in Seoul, it served an even more important role. When I would duck into McDonald's because they had the most reliably tolerable public restrooms, I would assuage my Catholic school girl guilt by buying an ice cream cone. Nobody ever said anything to me or questioned my use of the restrooms but still, I bought an ice cream cone; I was a paying customer.
Now, I know that there are some out there who are appalled by my willingness and even desire to frequent McDonald's when I travel. I realize that I should be ashamed of this tendency. But, you know, I'm just not. So there.
So, "they" have taken away my beloved hot apple pies and now, "they" want to deny me even more culinary pleasures. Humph!
(All of this begs an even larger question. Is it McDonald's or McDonalds? My answer is above.)
New York City's Health Commissioner is leading the charge to ban trans-fats from New York's restaurants.
I find this trend extremely annoying.
Who the heck do these guys think they are? I'm an adult. I'm reasonably healthy. I'm not overweight. My cholesterol is good. Why do "they" get to dictate what I eat?
When I was in London in June, I was amazed, then inordinately excited, then frustrated to find that the McDonald's in London have the apple pies from my childhood. Anyone reading this who is of a certain age probably knows of what I speak; the crispy deep-fried rectangular apple pie pouches that were the genesis of the warning, "Caution! Filling is hot!" (see picture.)
Decades ago, through some pressure to be politically correct, the McDonald's in the US switched to wimpy soggy baked apple pie pouches. I tried one once and haven't had another one since.
But, in London, ah, yes, in London . . . There they were, the real, the original, THE McDonald's Hot Apple Pie!! I was in London for 6 days, didn't find the pies until at least halfway through my visit and must have had a dozen before I left (ok, that might be an exaggeration but only a slight one).
Paris, no dice. McDonald's there didn't have any sort of apple pie. Too American for them??
But they all have the ubiquitous soft-serve ice cream cone.
That soft-serve ice cream cone serves multiple purposes. It's very inexpensive and oh so satisfying. In Beijing and in Seoul, it served an even more important role. When I would duck into McDonald's because they had the most reliably tolerable public restrooms, I would assuage my Catholic school girl guilt by buying an ice cream cone. Nobody ever said anything to me or questioned my use of the restrooms but still, I bought an ice cream cone; I was a paying customer.
Now, I know that there are some out there who are appalled by my willingness and even desire to frequent McDonald's when I travel. I realize that I should be ashamed of this tendency. But, you know, I'm just not. So there.
So, "they" have taken away my beloved hot apple pies and now, "they" want to deny me even more culinary pleasures. Humph!
(All of this begs an even larger question. Is it McDonald's or McDonalds? My answer is above.)
2 comments:
I agree. Governments, local and federal, are getting to paternalistic. How about if they stick to protecting us, helping the poor, keeping businesses honest, and doing what they can for the economy.
We simple folks can decide what we'll eat and read.
Thanks for starting to regulate where people can smoke, but even that's gotten more stringent than needed and I don't even smoke.
I am a 14 year old girl, who before she went to London this summer, had never tasted the delicacy, that is the fried McDonald's apple pie. And although I think McDonald's is very bad for you, there is something to be said for its cleanliness. Whereas the bathrooms of other esthablishments would be questionalbe, the McDonald's bathrooms were always clean.
Darling Daughter
Post a Comment