Junking Fat Foods in Schools

December 10, 2007
Editorial The New York Times
Junking Fat Foods in Schools

As America’s youth have grown fatter and the number with adult diabetes continues to rise, there is one obvious way to help. Public schools should stop selling students so much unhealthy food. A worthy but imperfect amendment now pending in Congress would help curb junk foods sold in too many of the nation’s schools.

Senators Tom Harkin, a Democrat from Iowa, and Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska, have won wide support from both industry and consumer groups for their amendment. The problem is, they are trying to attach it to the $286 billion farm bill due to hit the Senate floor this week.

So far, the farm bill is about as good for the American consumer as most of the confections in school vending machines. The White House opposes the bill because of the huge subsidies, which is to say corporate welfare, it provides to agribusiness. As we recently wrote about food stamps, something is very wrong when good initiatives must ride along on this regrettable package of special-interest subsidies.

The amendment’s broad support offers clues about its strengths and a few of its weaknesses. The American Medical Association and the Center for Science in the Public Interest are on board. Public-health watchdogs want the amendment because it would impose healthful rules on schools across the country, like limiting the drinks available in elementary schools to bottled water, juice or low-calorie milk. Foods outside the school lunch program would be required to have less fat and sugar and fewer calories.

The people who make Mars bars, Frito-Lay chips and Coca-Cola also back the amendment. That’s because it would not remove all junk food. It would allow diet drinks in high schools and require states like California, which currently bans them, to relent. Local districts would be allowed to impose tougher restrictions on the foods in their schools but states would not. The bill would also give industry a long time, until 2011, to adapt.

The Harkin-Murkowski amendment is not perfect, but it would be a major step toward weaning the nation’s students from the chips, sodas and sweets that are doing them so much damage right now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/10/opinion/10mon2.html?ref=todayspaper

Professor Popcorn Video + Site Revision

Please visit Professor Popcorn Video to see two "Professor Popcorn: nutrition & health education" instructor, Kristin and David, from Fisher Center for Wellness & Gerontology in Ball State University talking about their creative way of introducing nutrition, health ideas to Delaware County kids (Royerton Elementary School). Also see 1-4 grade kids having lots of fun when gaining correct knowledge about food choosing.

Professor Popcorn Site

Please visit: http://bchiou.iweb.bsu.edu/popcorn/

Sam_11_I

What story being told?
How the stories developed?
Every time when I look back to Chinese history, there are really a great deal of stories being told by storyteller, novel writer. I am now compelling them (the English version) and hope to show you guys in the end of next semester.

Sam_9_I

Storyteller has a powerful tool.
Digital Storytelling even much powerful.

But if someone wants to tell good story and others want to tell bad story that is not something we can decide. Period.

Group 6 update

Some misunderstanding between our group and Ms.Richards in Storer Elementary. We wrote her and talk about it, we are waiting her response. Basically, the problem is about the communication between our group, the Wellness Center, and the school. But we'll see.

Curt Sutterfield the Digital Storytelling Liason from Fisher Institute for Wellness and Gerontology suggest us to look for other schools to cooperate with. We will also take her advise and think about start to contact other schools.

Sam_8_I

When the topics comes of "listening" I cannot stop my mind thinking of the video Jeff brought up in TCOM 680 class.
It was a video about the people who can not hear, and the discrimination they suffered.
http://www.d-pan.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=36&Itemid=45
I think this video is awesome.

Several years ago, when I was preparing the travel to France, many people says French people are very arrogant, but when I was there, I feel it is not the case. French people just don't understand English very well. I saw their confused eyes and half-opened month, then I know, they're not arrogant and not willing to listen, they just don't have the clue what I was talking about.

I think listen to people is important, listen to people who use different way to communicate is a much tougher, but more important when we're going to face the people from globe village.

Team 6 update

Meet Bethany L. Richards at 11:00-12:00 a.m. Thursday, Oct 4.

Storer Elementary
3211 W. Mansfield Drive
Muncie, Indiana 47304
747-5360

Sam_7_I

A story to the Unwilling, unconcerned, or unmotivated? No need in Taiwan. Like the environment policy, the Taipei government severely carrying out the law that:
1. No convenient stores give away plastic bag, if you need one, buy it.
2. No mall/supermarket give away plastic bag. Customer need to prepare their own bags.
3. All trash need to be categorized into dump, plastic, glass, paper and be recycled in different days during the week.
4. Trash bags for dump need a special kind of bag and need to be purchased.

Sometimes, things just need to be executed.

Group 6 Brianstorming

Group 6 (Tonya, Han, Boyun)
Exercise to the Beat - Fitness can be fun. (musical, art, dance, health)

1.Interview
a. student
b. parents
c. teacher
d. community

2.Good points
health
performing art
Melody
positive effect/ mood

3.take heart rate

Who: DelCom Schools
Elementary Schools/ Fitness Clubs
Contact for
Delaware Community Schools is:
Steve Hall at shall@delcomschools.org

Storer Elementary
Contact:
Bethany Richards brichards@muncie.k12.in.us

Yorktown Elementary
Walking program with a 10,000 mile goal
Contact: Steve Back (765) 759-2736 or sback@yorktown.k12.in.us

When:
Deadline: Dec, 4.

Where:
School shots = interview student, random in to a class, Take heart rate.
Family shots = one/two students and his family.

Sam_6_I

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Street and Elm Street issue really recalls me to some disputations about landmark-naming in Taiwan. Like recently, renaming the Chiang kai-shec Memorial Hall(CKS), became a big issue in the political arena in Taiwan. By now the memorial hall renamed as National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall. However, what I can see is the name changing process cost so much for the society, the attention of the media. The gap between Blue & Green party was deepen by another political manipulation.

Sam_5_I

I was surprised in the "physics of story" section Anne mentioned "You influence by not trying to influence" which is very close to, Zhuangzi, the very famous philosopher, and storytelling in ancient China. He told a story to describe the dynamic point of view to understand life and death, useful and useless:

"The Tree on the Mountain"
(http://chinese.dsturgeon.net/text.pl?node=2852&if=en)

Zhuangzi was walking on a mountain, when he saw a great tree with huge branches and luxuriant foliage. A wood-cutter was resting by its side, but he would not touch it, and, when asked the reason, said, that it was of no use for anything, Zhuangzi then said to his disciples, 'This tree, because its wood is good for nothing, will succeed in living out its natural term of years.' Having left the mountain, the Master lodged in the house of an old friend, who was glad to see him, and ordered his waiting-lad to kill a goose and boil it. The lad said, 'One of our geese can cackle, and the other cannot - which of them shall I kill?' The host said, 'Kill the one that cannot cackle.

Next day, his disciples asked Zhuangzi, saying, 'Yesterday the tree on the mountain (you said) would live out its years because of the uselessness of its wood, and now our host's goose has died because of its want of power (to cackle) - which of these conditions, Master, would you prefer to be in?' Zhuangzi laughed and said, '(If I said that) I would prefer to be in a position between being fit to be useful and wanting that fitness, that would seem to be the right position, but it would not be so, for it would not put me beyond being involved in trouble; whereas one who takes his seat on the Dao and its Attributes, and there finds his ease and enjoyment, is not exposed to such a contingency. He is above the reach both of praise and of detraction; now he (mounts aloft) like a dragon, now he (keeps beneath) like a snake; he is transformed with the (changing) character of the time, and is not willing to addict himself to any one thing; now in a high position and now in a low, he is in harmony with all his surroundings; he enjoys himself at ease with the Author of all things; he treats things as things, and is not a thing to them: where is his liability to be involved in trouble? This was the method of Shan Nong and Huang-Di. As to those who occupy themselves with the qualities of things, and with the teaching and practice of the human relations, it is not so with them. Union brings on separation; success, overthrow; sharp corners, the use of the file; honour, critical remarks; active exertion, failure; wisdom, scheming; inferiority, being despised: where is the possibility of unchangeableness in any of these conditions? Remember this, my disciples. Let your abode be here - in the Dao and its Attributes.

Sam_4_I

I think Annette introduced a good check list for us on storytelling as follows:
1.Oral Language
2.Gesture
3.Facial Expressions
4.Body Language
5.Sounds, Smells, and Tastes,
6.Irrelevant Detail
7.Virtual Reality
8.Timing and Pause
9.Tone
But as my experience, there seem in most Chinese storytelling occasion, a stoyteller who gives a good story use some kind of gadget, some visual aid or music instruments. please see: http://www.shuoshu.org/Chinese_Storytelling/Professional_Storytelling/ShenZhifengstorysinging.mpg

Sam_3_Q

When I traveled to Lake Michigan last weekend with other 29 international students and Joel Lieway. I brought my "Story Factor" with me. I tried to finished the 3rd chapter night before we went to the lake. The weather is good, the beach is fun. Later, during the lunch, I witnessed an American friend in our groups trying to drown bees. Yes, the bees are greedy about our food and our drink, especially the magenta ones. But I don't see a right for him to drown the bees. However, I didn't know what to say. I kept silence and left the scene. The 3 chapter of story factors did not help me to stop him. He finally stopped by more and more bigger bees gathering around him, and he started feel scared. I didn't come out with anything, like a story, at the spot to stop him. Is anyone who have a better idea to use a story to stop him? Or just wait for the fact, the bigger bees coming?

Sam_1&2_I

On page 4 it mentioned there are six questions including:1. Who I Am Stories, 2. Why I Am Here Stories, 3. The Vision Stories, 4. Teaching Stories, 5. Values-in-Action Stories, and 6. I Know What You Are Thinking Stories.

Here I want to share a bit of my personal experience about the first "Who I Am," as a confusing issue of Taiwanese nationality .

Through my high school,1993-1999, students in Taiwan need to memorize all the geographic details about China. During that period I think Taiwan have a great connection with China, even I know politically we are separated.

When I was in army service about four years ago, I found it is ridiculous that the imaginative enemy for the Force of Taiwan (R.O.C.) is CHINA. And all the simulations is about defending China force to land on Taiwan.

I myself was born in Taiwan, I speak fluent Chinese and I am proficient in Taiwanese; my parents was born in Taiwan, they speak fluent Chinese and Taiwanese; my grandparents was born in Fujian Province, China, they speak fluent Taiwanese and are proficiently in Chinese. People live in Fujian Province speak Min Nan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Min_Nan), so called Hoklo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoklo_people). Many Taiwanese came to Taiwan from Fujian Province for decades or maybe a century and they speaks Min Nan.

As years go by, the ones born in Taiwan think they're speaking Taiwanese, but in fact, they're speaking Min Nan, or something just like Min Nan. Min Nan itself still has disputation about being a language or a dialect by far.

More later...