1984 sticks its camel nose under the Catholic cafeteria’s door

 by Dexter Duggan  

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Big Brother dishes up mealtime regulations for students - but how did "sexual orientation" get on the menu? Poster in a Catholic School cafeteria states that discrimination based on sexual orientation is prohibited. Literally "cafeteria Catholics."

The brightly colored poster on the door in the Catholic elementary school's cafeteria here carries lengthy legalese.

The large poster is on the side of the door facing into the kitchen area, but is easily visible in the student dining hall when the door is propped open.

"Restricted foods," the poster says in red, next to roadside sign shapes that one would see to advise motorists about warnings and required stops.

But this poster says "Stop" to soda, gum and candy. A warning is printed against "Foods of Minimal Nutritional Value," which, another cautionary note says, "will be prosecuted."

No joke, the sign carries the authority of the Academic Achievement Division, Health and Nutrition Services Unit, School Health and Nutrition Programs, Arizona Department of Education, Tom Horne, Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Asked about the sign, Lori Kroener, cafeteria manager at the 626-student St. Thomas the Apostle Elementary School, told The Wanderer, "We do have to post it."

She said no one else had asked about the poster, which is dated February 2005.

On the bottom right, one reads: "The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation and marital or family status."

Following this is an advisory to persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication, and a listing of the contact information for one to file a complaint of discrimination with the USDA.

Asked about the discrimination disclosure which includes "sexual orientation," cafeteria manager Kroener said, "I don't have anything to do with it."

Exactly true. The poster is provided by a secular governmental unit that requires adherence to its dictates. The fact that "sexual orientation" gets slipped into government-mandated good-eating practices at a Catholic elementary school is nothing more than another little step along the road of subordinating conscience to Big Brother.

Big Brother was the dictator in George Orwell's prophetic 20th-century novel 1984. A dictionary defines Big Brother as "an omnipresent, seemingly benevolent figure representing the oppressive control over individual lives exerted by an authoritarian government."

One might suggest that "totalitarian government" would be a more accurate description of the land of 1984, where Big Brother arbitrarily commands people how to behave - for their own good, of course.

But has Big Brother really put on the cook's hat in this Phoenix school cafeteria? The St. Thomas Dads' Club monthly all-you-can-eat breakfasts don't have any jackboot footprints in the French toast. The Latin Mass community's Sunday afternoon potlucks here aren't required to forgo saying grace and instead to swear allegiance to homosexual-rights activists.

And the bright red, green, yellow and orange colors on the poster don't seem oppressive. It's only the lengthy legalese that turns the mind toward numbing shades of gray.

Following "Restricted Foods" in red, one reads:
"Restricted Competitive Foods are foods that compete with more healthful choices and should not be made available to students. Restricted Competitive Foods, also known as ‘Foods of Minimal Nutritional Value' or FMNVs, cannot be sold in the food service area during meals where a reimbursable meal is sold or eaten. The following are examples of restricted competitive foods.

"Soda. As defined by 21CFR 165.175 Food and Drug Administration Regulations, (class of beverages made by absorbing carbon dioxide in potable water, etc.) except no product shall be excluded form [sic] this definition because it contains artificial sweeteners or discrete nutrients added to the food such as vitamins, minerals and proteins."

To the right of this, the offending soda brands are named: "Product: Pepsi, Coke and Coke products including Diet, Sierra Mist, Sierra Mist Free, Mountain Dew, Diet Mountain Dew, Mountain Dew-Code Red, Diet Mountain Dew-Code Red, Mug Root Beer, Diet Mug Root Beer, Slice, Mirinda Orange, 7 Up, Cherry 7 Up, 7 Up Plus, A&W Root Beer, Sunkist, Dr. Pepper, Diet Dr. Pepper, Fanta, Fresca, Mello Yello, Mr. Pibb, Tab."

Returning to the left side of the poster, one sees that the list of forbidden substances progresses through water ices, chewing gum, and certain candies. The candies are further categorized into hard candies, jellies and gums, marshmallow candies, fondant, licorice, spun candy and candy-coated popcorn.

Like the example of soda drinks above, each category is defined. Then, to the right, the names of the offending brands are given.

A spokeswoman for the Arizona Department of Education didn't respond before deadline to a request by The Wanderer for further information, including questions about possible penalties for failing to display the posters or for serving the restricted items.

However, Ron Johnson, executive director of the Arizona Catholic Conference, which lobbies for the state's Catholic bishops, told The Wanderer he questioned why a notice would be required that included "sexual orientation" as part of an anti-discriminatory warning.

"It makes me wonder why we would be forced to post these types of clauses in our facilities," Johnson said.

Somehow, generations of Americans managed to grow to adulthood even though they may have had a sparkly sip of soda with school lunch. And their lunchrooms didn't carry warnings that "sexual orientation" - which can be seen as a synonym for homosexual activism - must be protected.

Yet the deeper we go into the 21st century, the closer, paradoxically, we go back to 1984. Babies not even conceived in the old 20th century are entering first grade as the calendar turns to 2007.

What will they know of dim times past when Mom and Dad told kids what to eat? Could Ma and Pa possibly be wiser than the department of education? And what else might the department of education want to tell kids that Mom and Dad might disagree with?

It's a day of ever-growing government despite Republicans often having been given the reins in recent decades by voters who fear government power to disrupt family life.

The camel's nose is under the tent at the St. Thomas the Apostle cafeteria.

No lie, the major cross street a few blocks to the north of St. Thomas is Camelback Road. Easily visible to the east is the imposing shape of local landmark Camelback Mountain. And over the horizon to the northeast, though ever less distant, is the ever more imposing profile of Washington, D.C.

Politics: General, Arizona Politics, Culture: General, Education, Family Issues, Homosexuality

Read more articles by Dexter Duggan