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Idiots, Idiots Everywhere


Kip Powick

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A provincial ,(Ontario), elementary school has, for years, decided to collect a single item of food for charity...

For years they have collected hundreds of jars of peanut butter, which are turned into the Principal, held in his office and then taken to a local food bank in the festive season..

A "concerned" parent decried the plague of Peanut Butter allergies and the school was advised that they no longer could select jars peanut butter as their 'single contribution" each year so their charity/food drive was shut down.

I guess those that are concerned about the peanut allergy issue don't allow their kids with peanut allergies to go into any grocery stores..........those damned sealed peanut butter jars are just sitting there, spring loaded , ready to send the unsuspecting into anaphylaxis shock.

PS..I do understand the peanut allergy...but sealed jars of peanut butter...for a charity....c'mon now....is common sense really dead.???

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Blues deluxe spends her days teaching a special science program in our region and Toronto area schools. Sometimes five different schools in the same week. This peanut butter story is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to lack of common sense in today's schools.

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I suspect there's a bit more to this story than Kip's rather one-sided presentation. Meantime, I have to wonder: was a busy-body parent, all het up about an admittedly real allergy, the one guilty of idiocy, or were those who's only response was to kill the entire program? Peanut butter is the one and only appropriate donation?

Cheers, IFG :b:

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Well, overblown or not, peanuts allergies are a real thing. At least the story isn't about about a bunch of wacos trying to teach creationism!

Anyway, my solution: switch the "designated" donation item to cans of tuna - solved!

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Seafood Allergies Common for Adults

WebMD Health News

July 13, 2004 -- Shrimp, lobster, clams: Americans love seafood. But many adults will develop a severe allergy to shellfish as well as tuna and salmon.

Some 7 million Americans are thought to be affected, or 2.3% of the population, according to a nationwide survey.

"This study showed that seafood allergy often develops in adulthood, that most persons have multiple reactions, and that reactions often include severe symptoms," writes lead researcher Scott H. Sicherer, MD, with the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

His study appears in this month's issue of the Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology.

Researchers define "seafood" as finned fish (tuna, cod, salmon) and shellfish (shrimp, crab, lobster, scallops, clams, squid). An allergic reaction to certain proteins in seafood can cause life-threatening anaphylaxis -- a sudden, severe, potentially fatal reaction that results in low blood pressure and throat swelling, making breathing difficult. Seafood allergies can also cause a severe skin reaction or can trigger an asthma attack.

According to the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, food-induced anaphylaxis causes approximately 30,000 emergency room visits and about 150 to 200 deaths each year in the U.S.

http://www.webmd.com/allergies/news/20040713/seafood-allergies-common-adults

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It's not the food that's the problem, it's the container. Go to the supermarket peanut butter shelf and you're likely to find one that's leaked but when was the last time you saw a leaky can of tuna?

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Lot of years shopping...never saw a leaking peanut butter jar...they have the aluminum seal and the cap.

I think you are missing the point of the original post.....we all know there is a simple solution...change the donation.... but that should never have had to happen.

One of the stupidest things that was along the same lines was the woman that wanted the School Board to chop down all the trees around the school her kid was attending because they were nut producing oak trees and her kid had an allergy to nuts.

And on a different tangent, and perhaps leaning more toward "entitlement" was the guy who sent his kids to a Catholic school because he felt it was the best in his area, (had more schools to choose from),but did not want then taking religious classes. The school said that was OK but this guy wanted the school to provide a teacher to supervise his kids when they were not in 'religious ' classes. Fortunately 'they' told him to go get 'stuffed'.

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The school said that was OK but this guy wanted the school to provide a teacher to supervise his kids when they were not in 'religious ' classes. Fortunately 'they' told him to go get 'stuffed'.

Thank God! :biggrin1:

Regarding the peanut butter; the major commercial brands like Jif or Kraft have the foil seal since they are packaged to last through the next ice age but if you check the organic food aisle you'll find the odd one that has leaked a bit - this is due to the fact that the oil in the organic ones separates and if the jar is laid on it's side for an extended period it might leak a bit.

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"Organic" ????

Good grief...I didn't get this far in life eating 'organic' stuff...If it doesn't have lots of chemicals in it...I don't want it cause I really think that is what has preserved me up to this age !!! :biggrin2::biggrin1::Clever:

Sure, good for you, but we're not talking about you, we're talking about a bunch of do-gooders donating to a food drive - and they're liable to do anything! (Same bunch that will hand out sugar-free "candy" on Halloween). :blink:

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  • 2 weeks later...

How about parents feed their kids properly from birth in order for their bodies to accept these foods. It is getting ridiculous. I am allergic to cats should I sue for a Feline ban in my neighborhood? Perhaps I will avoid cats like I have done for most of my life.

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Maybe we should start allergy specific schools, and segregate all the students based on their particular allergy.

What happens if you sneak a PB&J sandwich into school, do you get expelled or suspended or....

This is absolutely ridiculous, the day the kid leaves school nobody is going to give a rats ass about his allergy, he better learn to fend for himself.

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As a father to a child with a Peanut allergy I am amazed at some of the responses here. A child with a peanut allergy faces a minefield of risk every day with serious, potentially fatal consequences. They are denied some of the fundamental joys of childhood through no fault of their own. When a child brings in a special treat for everyone, they have to sit idly by and watch. At birthday parties they have to bring their own specially made cupcakes and hope that if peanuts are brought in that kids take the necessary sanitation protocols to ensure their safety. These aren't uncomfortable tummy consequences. These are poison.

Epi pens only enable the child to live long enough for first responders to arrive and are no guarantee.

I would love it if kids could bring whatever they want into the classroom but as a society individual safety should always take priority over collective inconvenience.

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If I recall correctly the peanut allergy issue was the first to become widely known and I don't think most parents have a problem with not sending peanuts and peanut butter to school. When my kids were in elementary school and we got the news about the peanut product ban it took us about 3 minutes to come to terms with it and agree that it was appropriate given the life-threatening consequences to the child with the allergy. The issue now however is that every parent with a child that has any food sensitivity at all is demanding the same ban. I won't send peanut butter if it's life-threatening but if the problem is just that some kid might get a rash from a drop of yogurt on the lunch table or an upset stomach from eating one of my kid's crackers then it becomes too much.

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