Posted on 02/21/2007 3:25:57 PM PST by Eric Blair 2084
New York, NY (PRWeb) February 19, 2007 -- www.actionagainstobesity.com -- As America's child and adult obesity figures rise, National Action Against Obesity (NAAO), calls for a boycott of the reported $700 million in Girl Scout Cookies sold annually.
Profiting off cookies -- it's the wrong message, the wrong product and the wrong era. Girl Scouts have an economic, medical and moral imperative to dump junk food as their $700 million fundraising source. NAAO would like the Girl Scouts to commit to a 5-year plan transitioning away from junk food as the organization's primary fundraiser "Girl Scout Cookies are high-calorie, high-sugar, high in saturated fat and nearly devoid of nutrition. Using young girls as a front to push millions of cookies onto an already bloated population further exacerbates an alarming crisis, no matter how cute the uniforms are," said NAAO President MeMe Roth. "The Girl Scouts sell up to 200 million boxes yearly -- that's about one box for every overweight American."
Girl Scouts of the USA have a flawed business model in direct conflict with their posted mission statement -- 'Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place.' "Profiting off cookies -- it's the wrong message, the wrong product and the wrong era. Girl Scouts have an economic, medical and moral imperative to dump junk food as their $700 million fundraising source. NAAO would like the Girl Scouts to commit to a 5-year plan transitioning away from junk food as the organization's primary fundraiser," continued Roth.
NAAO suggests Girl Scouts look to Boy Scouts as a model -- they're known for community service, unlike Girl Scouts singularly identified with baked goods. "Do your good deed -- while Girl Scout Cookies are on sale through March, smile at the children, offer a donation, but leave those cookies behind."
The forms, flyers and posters for the Taste of Home program CAME from the national office. I'm the Troop Cookie mom, I know where all the paperwork comes from.
It sounds to me like Move America Forward was using the GS name without express permission from GS and was not doing this in affiliation with GS. That's a shame, I agree, but if they did it without express permission it's understandable.
Ah yes, worthwhile and productive forms of employment.....something these hand-wringers know nothing about.
It's a volunteer board of a non-profit comprised of business people. They purposely schedule meetings around a noon hour so that some of might be able to attend occasionally.
Sorry,, I just scrolled down and clicked on the wrong "post reply" button.
And the organzation knew they had a winning product with their first box of cookies sold. Who could resist such an "angelic face"?
These sweet little girls could sell dog biscuits to people without pets.
I'm wondering how much of the profit from cookie sales realistically benefits these young girls and all the volunteers necessary to keep the organization in existence.
I hardly expect any bleeding heart liberal to even imagine such a question, while I view conservatives as those who look deeper into every issue.
Back in the 1950's when I was in scouting and my mother was Neighborhood Chairman for the largest area in St. Louis, I understood that the individual troop received a small percentage, but the greater part went to fund camping facilities and then another small part went to pay for the product with the left-over to the National hierarchy. Whether that is still the case, I cannot say. I only know that my mother (who was no camper by ANY stretch of the imagination) shepherded hundreds of girls to Camp Fiddlecreek and learned herself then taught them all the skills any soldier in battle would need to keep clean and cook and survive.
Trust me, I learned how to cook everything over an open fire you can imagine -- she'd never let me near her kitchen, but I can camp the poop out of anybody -- it's the skinning and cleaning of fish that I never could bring myself to do. I had trouble in Biology for Elementary School Teachers when I had to knock a frog out to disect it. I did, however, keep my disection kit for carving pumpkins every Halloween and still have my mess kit and bow and arrows somewhere. ;-)
It would appear that her goal is "doing well by doing good."
Thank you for writing, Ms. -------. Up to now all efforts have been 100% volunteer and at the expense of volunteers. However, NAAO is transitioning into consultancy work as well, which hopefully will offset costs, if not some day produce real revenues. It's NAAO's goal to become a new-gen for-profit advocacy.
NAAO believes many organizations would support its efforts--certainly the insurance industry.
Thank you for taking the time to write.
MeMe
To All,
Like I said, you can't make this stuff up. FYI, the fake story I was going to post was in the Onion. (It would be obvious to everyone that it was a joke, I like my credibility and wouldn't damage it). I can't post it here and I'm not even sure I can post a link to it.
Go to the Onion.com website and look at the article about the crackdown on "childhood imagination". I'll ask the mods if I can post the link.
Sincerely,
The "yahoo who posted this" (as paulat calls me)
Unfortunately, Americans need a good prohibitionist crusade now and again to make us feel that we're holding the fort against the forces of darkness. Just as the prohibitionists tried to blame every social problem on "demon rum," so today everything wrong with our health is due to "obesity" (never mind that our lifespan is longer now than it's ever been.)
There are also plenty of people to go along with the new crusade. Just look at these threads - time and again you hear the same kind of fat- and food-bashing as in these articles.
OR, if they are really concerned that this is the method that girl scouts use to raise money they can donate enough money to the girl scouts that they don't have to raise support funds.
Sorry, the liberal nanny state do-gooder for profit money is off the table. That pays the mortgage on their mansion in Malibu.
Meanwhile, we the sheeple are busy arguing about whose vice is worse than the others, while they all make a fortune. Divide and conquer. And we're all gleefully going along with it until it's our ox being gored.
Now that the Girl Scouts are part of the Obama Youth, I’m just waiting for the day when MeMe Roth starts saying “Girl Scout cookies promote weight loss”, “It is your patriotic duty to buy and eat Girl Scout cookies”, and “I never called for a boycott of Girl Scout cookies, you’re a kook and a food industry shill for saying I did”.
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