Parents angered by son's suspension over peanut cookies ["You cannot speak to the principal,"....]

NJ.COM ^

[AMDG&BVMH]

"I know. You used to never hear of any such thing.
Maybe it's the pesticides they spray on the crops
in storage or in the fields."

I read recently that peanuts are grown in an aflatoxin mold, so maybe that is what causes the allergy?? The book said to eat only peanuts which are aflatoxin free. I am not allergic to peanuts, so I have not yet bothered to find out how one determines that . . .

BTW, re: other posts: I too ate a lot of peanut butter when I was pregnant. It was good to stop the naseausous feeling. My daughter is not allergic to peanuts, thankfully . . .

[Lucky Dog]

They are nationalists, in which they support a strong military, are against illegal immigration, and are jingostic. All of which leans towards the conservative side of things. But they also support subsidized low-cost housing, public utilities, and health care--and generally do not trust big business. All of which leans towards the liberal side of things.

Perhaps it is not the understanding of the word “Nazi” but the words “conservative,” “liberal” and “socialism” that creates the misunderstanding.

Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

con·ser·va·tive adj.

1. Favoring traditional views and values; tending to oppose change.
2. Traditional or restrained in style: a conservative dark suit.
3. Moderate; cautious: a conservative estimate.
4.
a. Of or relating to the political philosophy of conservatism.
b. Belonging to a conservative party, group, or movement.
5. Conservative Of or belonging to the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom or the Progressive Conservative Party in Canada.
6. Conservative Of or adhering to Conservative Judaism.
7. Tending to conserve; preservative: the conservative use of natural resources.

n.

1. One favoring traditional views and values.
2. A supporter of political conservatism.
3. Conservative A member or supporter of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom or the Progressive Conservative Party in Canada.
4. Archaic. A preservative agent or principle.

lib·er·al adj.

1.
a. Not limited to or by established, traditional, orthodox, or authoritarian attitudes, views, or dogmas; free from bigotry.
b. Favoring proposals for reform, open to new ideas for progress, and tolerant of the ideas and behavior of others; broad-minded.
c. Of, relating to, or characteristic of liberalism.
d. Liberal Of, designating, or characteristic of a political party founded on or associated with principles of social and political liberalism, especially in Great Britain, Canada, and the United States.
2.
a. Tending to give freely; generous: a liberal benefactor.
b. Generous in amount; ample: a liberal serving of potatoes.
3. Not strict or literal; loose or approximate: a liberal translation.
4. Of, relating to, or based on the traditional arts and sciences of a college or university curriculum: a liberal education.
5.
a. Archaic. Permissible or appropriate for a person of free birth; befitting a lady or gentleman.
b. Obsolete. Morally unrestrained; licentious.

n.
1. A person with liberal ideas or opinions.
2. Liberal A member of a Liberal political party.

so·cial·ism n.

1. Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means of producing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that often plans and controls the economy.
2. The stage in Marxist-Leninist theory intermediate between capitalism and communism, in which collective ownership of the economy under the dictatorship of the proletariat has not yet been successfully achieved.

There appears to be no reference in any of these definitions of “conservative” to ”a strong military,” “illegal immigration,” or “jingoism.” Therefore, your assertion that Nazi’s were “conservative” is apparently fallacious.

On the other hand, the definition of “socialism” includes central, or state control of producing and distributing economic resources. As Hitler’s Third Reich did exactly this, it would seem that they were “liberal” in advocating change from capitalism, the previous economic system, as you claim, as well as being “socialists,” inasmuch as the Nazi party apparetnly correctly called itself “socialist.”

[muawiyah]

I live in Virginia. I came from Indiana and I wanna' go back. Soon!

I have a 2.5 pound tin of gigantic peanuts from Virginia Diner in Wakefield, VA.

BTW, way back when we always grew peanuts in our garden. The small variety (Spanish peanuts) could usually make it through the growing season.

Don't take it that I'm not sympathetic to the folks with the peanut allergy problem. They are few in number and it's a quick killer. However, I have what amounts to a wheat, oats, corn, rice, tapioca and potato "allergy", and it would kill me just as certainly. That's why I read EVERY label before I buy anything. You wouldn't believe how often these guys try to slip some starchy substance off on us while calling it "meat" or "lo carb". It's criminal!

[jslade]

Since I live in Florida, I like by PBJ's with a more exotic taste. Guava Jelly. Yeah!

[ladylib]

The more I think about this story, the more I think -- What are these parents thinking about? They're waiting for the Grand Poohbah School Superintendent to get off his @$$ and decide when their child can again receive a "free" public school education? Who needs NJ public schools when the homeschooling law is so favorable?

This is NJ -- one of the easiest states to homeschool in. Why aren't these parents contacting NJ homeschooling groups who can help them set up a homeschooling curriculum with homeschooling support? Why are they waiting with baited breath for some government lackey (albeit a well-paid one)school superintendent to decide their child's future?

They thought he was going to get a ten-day suspension? They should have told the school officials to go pound sand on day one and that they would figure out how to educate their kid without the public schools' help.

[Doe Eyes]

I never knew one child who was allergic to peanuts.

Its the Liberals. Just one more way to control us. No such "allergy" exists.

[ladylib]

Yes it does.

[HitmanLV]

It's a legit allergic reaction.

[CAIndependent]

[Exit148]

My husband is 76 and has had the allergy all his life. He has ended in the ER a few times and when the Epi pen came out, he started to carry it when he traveled.

BUT - it was HIS problem. He watched out for himself.

Daughter is 46 and has the same alergy. She survived her school years without pc in the schools because she watched out for herself, and took care in other situations.

10 year old grandson doesn't have to worry in school because everything is verboten. God help some kid who says the word 'peanut' out loud!! BTW, he also is well versed in his allergy and simply avoids anything suspicious. He doesn't take anyones word -- he simply skips or carries his own treats.

[mississippi red-neck]

All I'm saying is that just about everyone is allergic to something that doesn't bother other people and if we ban ever thing that people are allergic to the plain and simple fact is we would all die of starvation.

I mean I'm allergic to sulfur drugs some people die from bee stings,some people die from penicillin and I can die from grapefruit or it's juice. Now the substance has to get in the person's system somehow.

But the point is that people with special problems are going to have to learn how to cope with them. If it is a child then it's the parents responsibility.If it is an adult then it's their responsibility not the government or your neighbor or the rest of the world.

I mean we have to be realistic if we do away with all medicines and all the food items that some portion of the population is allergic to we would all die. There are several hundred people ,adults and children who die each year from electrical shock. Now we got by for thousands of years without electricity.

Are you going to call the power company and have your power turned off or,are you going to use child guard caps and watch your children? If we want to be a free society we have to be able to accept personnel responsibility.

[DH]

What was the kid going to do? Hold her down and force her to eat it and if she didn't, he would use it as a peanutbutter suppository?

We have gone beyond any resemblance of common sense in our fears of EVERYTHING!

[sweetliberty]

"Ingestion of even a tiny morsel of peanut can cause severe reactions in allergic children or adults. Reactions can range from throat irritation to death."

What I want to know is why no one ever heard of this until relatively recently and why is there apparently not another menu substance on the planet that can throw a school into chaos the way even the thought of a peanut can. Peanut butter was the sandwich filling of choice for generations of kids and we all seemed to have survived. Now the evil contained in one piece of peanut is right up their with nail files and aspirin. God help them if they ever have to deal with anything really dangerous.

[Slings and Arrows]

BEWARE OF THIS TERRORIST!

[Doctor Stochastic]

What I want to know is why no one ever heard of this until relatively recently ..

Maybe you were not paying attention. I've known about this for at least 50 years. Shellfish similarly (except that peanut oil is volatile and need not be ingested.) Peanut oil is being used more often now than before (it's cheap and has good properties for cooking.)

[Marie]

Why can't you get an allergy to stuff that you don't like? Seems unfair...

You think that's rough? My son's alergic to WHEAT. No cake, Ding Dongs, 3-Musketeers, pasta, etc. A few days after the diagnosis he was getting really depressed so I took him to the store. I bought fresh strawberries, cool whip, ice cream, chocolate milk, kosher hot dogs, candy bars, jelly beans and every other good thing that he could still eat. Of course I didn't let him eat it all at once, but he was thrilled and is still happy with the trade offs.

Then, just a few months after the wheat thing, he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. He was very depressed about having to give up sugar until his first hypoglycemic attack. "Here! Quick! Eat this candy bar! Drink this juice! Eat these jelly beans!" We're still adjusting his insulin and on one very bad day he had to eat... 4 16 oz glasses of juice, 8 candy bars, 6 fruit cups and a half gallon of milk to keep him up. Scared the crap out of me and made him SICK of candy! LOL!

[Marie]

Type 1 or type 2? (Just curious. My son's newly diagnosed and I'm always looking for advice.)

[Marie]

Practically every food substance can cause an allergic reaction in somebody, if you look hard enough. Where do we draw the line?

You are so right. My son's allergic to wheat. I'm training him to read lables and not eat anything he's not sure about. If we go to a party, he's learned to be very content with a bowl of icecream or (if there's nothing he can eat) to sit quietly (without attitude) while the other children eat and I buy him icecream on our way home. He's not unhappy about it.

[hunter112]

Exactly the same thing that my folks taught my younger brother about sweets (he had juvenile diabetes). But if peanuts are like the Andromeda Strain to enough people, maybe they ought to be restricted to certain zones. If I expect it of smokers, I guess I have to accept it as a peanut fan.

[muawiyah]

Type 2.