Your School Dinner. "a basic right".

by julie Wed Mar 30, 2005 15:08

How much more tax would people be willing to pay for school dinners? Possibly a more efficient way of arranging it would be to pay the school directly. But then that would not benefit those from low-incomes most in need of a school dinners.

by Trí ní nach féidir a cheilt: tart, tochas agus ocras. Wed Mar 30, 2005 15:48

Well you've started off from the wrong direction there.
It is not a question of "how much more tax would people be willing to spend" its a question of how much is the state willing to invest in the children of the state.
If I had suggested providing a computer to every deprived area, or a soldering iron, then lardy boys and girls would fall over each other to further the post angela's ashes myth of celtic tiger techno-eire.

Fact is, 200,000 Irish citizens suffer food poverty.

Fact is, Ireland is one of the richest states in europe.

Fact is, the Irish state has no policy on providing even the most basic nutrition to children.

Fact is, 12.5% of Irish people are obese, this results from bad eating patterns which begin in childhood.

Fact is the investment in our collective future which would a national nutrition plan in schools will return in real human development.

Fact is vitamins, milk, complex carbohydrates are not expensive to provide and canteens are not expensive to build and many people need jobs.
Give such jobs to older people they'll like it.

Fact is you invest the money in computers or soldering irons instead, you end up with more of what you've got and an awful lot of toxic waste because computers get upgraded more often than our kids' diets.

*************************
Now Ruth Kelly (opus dei - four children anti-biotech eggs) has just denied she's jumping on a band wagon. "That's good politics".
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4367485.stm

Let's see what Ministers for Health and Education in little old rich as golden spuds Eire say-

Mary Hanafin T.D.
Minister for Education and Science
Marlborough Street
Dublin 1

Mary Harney T.D.
Minister for Health and stuff like eggs.
Department of Health and Children,
Hawkins House,
Dublin 2

SCRATCH 'EM & SEE.
.:. for these are intolerable wrongs.:.

last link to a wee piece on Power, Politics, Positionings -Women in Northern Ireland
who heartily support school dinners btw.

by julie Wed Mar 30, 2005 18:37

I agree with all you say. Unfortunately people hate paying tax (no matter what its spent on). And in a democracy sentiments that strong can't be ignored.

"The state" will have to get the moeny from somewhere. I'd advise against borrowing.

by -european Wed Mar 30, 2005 21:27

Why is it that Ireland is the *only* state of the European Union which doesn't invest in giving its primary and secondary school pupils a nutritious meal or see the providence of such as a social responsibility?

Not even a multi-vitamin tablet.
or the offer of a piece of fruit.

either your Government are lying to you (& you're not one the richest states on earth)
or _your wealth_ is being totally mispent or misappropriated. Which gives more long-term benefit? basic nutrition? or an introduction to Microsoft?

by colombian Wed Mar 30, 2005 22:20

Northern ireland get school dinners coz they're prods.
a guide to selected school dinners globally:-
http://education.guardian.co.uk/schoolmeals/story/0,15643,1448386,00.html
Ireland is the only state of the European Union which doesn't provide school dinners.
Ireland is the only state of the top 30 richest which doesn't provide school dinners.
Why?
is it a tax thing?
or a lardy boy& girl blatent avarice greed and corruption networking thing?
next election - you decide.

by ora pro nobis Fri Apr 08, 2005 16:10

European kids are increasingly obese, today a report published in the spanish daily La Vanguardia explored the theme on many fronts.
A cartoon showed the two sides of the world, one of those of who enjoy the best healthcare and food mourning underneath aircraft of war a spokesperson for peace and the other a village of africa where the children die. In the length of time it took to say ciao to the Roman Pontiff more than thousand kids died due to lack of food. More died due to lack of water and vaccines.

Another looked at the alert that 16.1% of spanish kids are obese. After a long and detailed study Evidence has now been presented that for every hour spent watching TV the risk to pre-pubescent child of becoming obese is increased by 12% thats according to the Barcelona John of God's hospital endochronology dept head Maria Torres. (she isn't a world religious leader so she doesn't wear a hat) (nor is she a sex symbol so you don't read speculation on her bottom like that of Kylie Minogue)

TV is toxic!

We've been telling you that for years. And one reason is that Non interactive viewing/watching especially in children causes alarming endochronological responses, as the child reacts emotionally to what they perceive even before they have learnt how properly to distinguish "reality" from "imaginary". A child may more readily believe in the perfection of Kylie Minogue's bottom as reported in today's Irish independent as he or she sees it on TV, or the words of any man or woman who takes to the screen in a doctors uniform to recommend a healthy snack. But once that child grows up they learn that the healthy snacks led to diabetes, and Kylie Minogue's ass is fake filled with fibre and covered in make-up and airbrushed pert and coz she's pintsized you'd probably be a michael jackson type to want to look at it naked.
But by that time the lies are learnt.

By the time you have taken to read this comment,
you could have said a bunch of hail mary-s or noticed the unsung death of 5 children in the 3rd world or sat through half a TV advert break.

its fake. its unreal. its all lies.

by - Sat Apr 09, 2005 17:03

with the European Council to tackle the 25% average of obese kids. Measures include - education - public example - advertising restrictions - how to have an ass like kylie public monster meetings at the vilalge square - the return of hanoi jane - & just the hint that feck it they're all mutants.
for your files see the link-

by chef Thu May 05, 2005 16:57

Take a sandwich to school. It won't make you obese. Cost to the individual, between €2 and €4. Cost to you, nothing.

by ronald mcdonald Thu May 05, 2005 17:21

Give the little fuckers money and send them to me, my food is healthy and nutritious

they wont get fat

by ping Wed Sep 14, 2005 01:32

*they don't get school food. Norwegian kids do.
And all the rest of Europe including northern ireland.

*they don't get school books all the rest of europe except for the portuguese and spanish kids do.

*Kylie minogue will be back on stage soon, her sister Dani confirmed to press that her sister had recovered well from cancer and is fighting to be back with a performance of showgirl later in the autumn.

*Irish kids parents are indirectly taxed in more ways than in any other EU state and are third only to their British and Northern irish counterparts for economic disparity relative to geographic area.
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=71672

*who is ripping them off? do you think any coalition of public interest career politicians elected to the legislature of the Irish state which includes FF, PD or FG will help correct the wicked neglect which has so long sat on the trellis work of the constitution?

by thinking am i asking for votes for women or something? Wed Sep 28, 2005 02:22

Nigeria's government has just managed to get back almost 25% of the money its leader between 1983 and 1989 creamed off it.
$290 million
(SFr377 million)
257million£
well over 275 million€.
& almost as if to celebrate Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo Monday launched a home-grown school feeding program aimed at improving the nutritional intake by at least 25 million children of school age in Africa's most populous country. A total of 2.5 million children or 10 percent of the total population of primary school children are expected to take part in the pilot phase of the program aimed at providing one meal per school day for every child in Nigerian schools].
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/KHII-6GM4ZF?OpenDocument

Nigerian School kids thus join the list of those who are guaranteed a meal a day by their state.

Irish kids aren't.
The only children in the EU who don't get meals.
Alone with Spanish & Portguese kids in not getting school books.
& they don't have an accountable and transparent criminal intelligence or terrorist intelligence network.

[maybe they'll migrate and wash ducks or eat their sisters. watch the animation at link to get that joke]
http://www.langerland.com/content/view/37/59/

by mr hobbs Wed Sep 28, 2005 09:17

Imagine the government providing school dinners! How much would it cost? 4 million a school? What do they care, its our money for them to spend.

by nutritious sugar - iosaf get me a dentist!!!!! Wed Sep 28, 2005 14:48

today spoke to her party conference in Blackpool on criticism of the british school dinner.

From next september "junk food" will be banned in UK schools.
Incidently for those of you who like and remember my little barstool factoids, Ruth Kelly is a member of Opus Dei, has four children and is the highest ranking female politician on public record from that organisation. [I wonder does Mr Eldridge know that?]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4287712.stm

Meanwhile, coz I feel strongly about this-

* Irish kids have no schooldinners.
the only ones in the EU not to have them.

* Irish kids together with Spanish and Portuguese kids are the only ones in the EU not to get free school books. Both Spain and Portugal are reviewing this under the Zapatero and Socrates administrations respectively. Ireland can't afford the expense of investing in its young.