In the latest chapter of the re-branding of ex-President Clinton, the former president has announced a plan to combat obesity in young children. At least he’s not traveling to Saudi Arabia on the dime of the Bin laden family to trash the US government and spread lies about mass abuse of Arabs in the US. Clinton’s plan, in cooperation with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (we never heard of them either) calls for a vigorous campaign to fight obesity in children through improved school lunches and of course more physical exercise in the schools. For its efforts, the Johnson Foundation put up an $8 million grant to support the obesity initiative. In addition to school lunches and physical fitness, the plan also calls for teachers to serve as healthy role models for children.

Regardless of Clinton’s intentions, the fact remains that childhood obesity is a serious problem. According to the Johnson foundation millions of children are considered obese, with rates increasing exponentially. As most health officials point out this trend will have adverse affects on the nation as the next generation of Americans live shorter and less healthy lives.

It certainly can’t hurt that these organizations are willing to donate funds to support healthy lifestyles for children, but the fact that they focus their attention on government sponsored public schools highlights a perception of the diminished responsibility or role for parents in the rearing of their children. Whether or not a teacher is a healthy role model for children has a marginal impact, at best, on the lifestyles of children, but rest assured if you visit the home of an obese child you will certainly find an obese mom or dad. Parental influence plays the biggest role in the future choices and decision making of children. Parents who exhibit a healthy lifestyle choice will have children who do the same.

If Clinton, Part II and the Johnson Foundation want to stop obesity, they would be well advised to forget about schools and teachers and focus of the negative indoctrination they receive everyday at the hands of their tub of lard parents, that’s were they should focus their volunteer efforts, but then again since it takes a “village” to raise a child perhaps they have intentionally bypassed parents.
Link to Reuters article