No Candy for You (If you're fat)

First, since most of you will probably be reading this several hours from now, let me start by saying Happy Halloween!

Now, I'm sure that a lot of you have heard, at this point, about the lady that's being blasted all over the internet right now, for stating that she will not give Halloween candy to children that she believes to be obese, or overweight.  Instead, she is providing them with a letter to take home to their parents.  I really want to know your thoughts, and am hoping that you'll share them in the comments.

For those of you who may not know what I'm talking about, there's a lady, who called in to one of her local radio stations, to let them know that she will be handing out normal candy to most children, but children that she thinks to be "moderately obese" will be receiving a letter to bring home to their parents.  She even provided them with a copy of her letter, which you can read here:

Now, let me share my feelings on this, but first, know that these are the feelings of someone who was obese for the duration of my childhood, and, well, most of my adulthood.

Let's ignore for a second the spelling and grammar errors for starters.  I believe, probably more than most, that this is an issue that absolutely needs to be tackled.  Parents need to teach their children healthy habits.  However, it is not the neighbor's job to do so, and Halloween is not the right way to start doing this.

The way I'm picturing this going down is awful... "What a cute superman costume, here's a Snickers bar for you, and for you in the cat costume, you get a Reeses, now, for you in the cowboy costume, here's a letter for your mom and dad.  Make sure they get it, k?"  How embarrassing.

Luckily, I have embraced a far healthier lifestyle before my bad habits were able to affect my daughters health in a negative way, so she is of a normal weight.  But if she were overweight, both of us would feel badly about it, and this letter would undoubtedly do nothing more than make me extremely angry, and my daughter extremely self-conscious.  And don't for a second think that she would forget what house it came from, you would get a visit from me, and I probably wouldn't have pleasant things to say.

"It takes a village to raise a child".  I firmly believe this as well.  I really do, but I will only be part of a village that brings up our children and helps them thrive.  My village will never be one that tears down children.

Now, clearly, I disagree with this woman's sentiment and future actions.  And while we're looking at this letter, it may be an unpopular opinion, but to some extent, she is right.  We do have to be more focused on making our children healthy.  We do need to make sure that they're not overeating that Halloween candy, and we also need to change the sedentary nature of kids (and adults) in today's society.  I am not for a second going to discourage Halloween.  I will be out trick or treating with my family tomorrow, but I am saying that as parents, I do agree that we need to step up and make sure that we are being good examples, and good leaders for our children.