Group will sue McDonald's over Happy Meal toys

knight_shadow · #1 06-22-2010, 11:42 PM

WASHINGTON – Are the toys in your child's Happy Meal making him fat?

The Center for Science in the Public Interest says they are. The Washington-based consumer advocacy group threatened to file a lawsuit against McDonald's Tuesday, charging that the fast food chain "unfairly and deceptively" markets the toys to children.

"McDonald's marketing has the effect of conscripting America's children into an unpaid drone army of word-of-mouth marketers, causing them to nag their parents to bring them to McDonald's," CSPI's Stephen Gardner wrote to the heads of the chain in a letter announcing the lawsuit.

link

Really? Who else are they going to market the toys to?

Drolefille · #2 06-22-2010, 11:47 PM

I'm 95% : Parent your own fucking children

2%: But sometimes I like the toys

and
3%: McD's shouldn't be marketed to kids because it's shitty for them.

IrishLake · #3 06-22-2010, 11:52 PM

Maybe once a month I will indulge and we will get fast food as a treat, take it to a park and eat, then go hike or play hard.

Sometimes, my daughter begs for McD toys... and I have no problem telling her, "NO."

UofISigKap · #4 06-23-2010, 12:03 AM

..."Still, some may accuse the group of extremism, arguing that it's the parents' responsibility to monitor what their children eat, not the restaurant's.
Michael Jacobson, executive director of CSPI, says it's the parents responsibility too, but he equates the toy giveaways to a door to door salesman coming to a family's house every day and asking to privately speak with the children.
"At some point parents get worn down," Jacobson says. "They don't always want to be saying no to their children. We feel like an awful lot of parents would be relieved if this one pressure was removed from them."...

My parents must have been superhuman then because my brothers and I could beg and plead all we want. (Which we really didn't because we learned at a very early age it got us nowhere.) The answer was NO! I'm not saying we never went, but it sure wasn't because of some promotional toy. We couldn't even get sugared cereals that were over 8 grams of sugar while school was in session. You think the cool toys were in Corn Flakes and Rice Krispies? Uh no, they were not. Looking back on it, I was a very healthy child and really don't think I missed out. How many people still have those little toys and stickers and whatnot that were in the meals and boxes anyway?

dreamseeker · #5 06-23-2010, 02:30 AM

Quote:

"McDonald's marketing has the effect of conscripting America's children into an unpaid drone army of word-of-mouth marketers, causing them to nag their parents to bring them to McDonald's,"

shuuuuut the fuck up. smh.

christiangirl · #6 06-23-2010, 03:08 AM

If I go to McD's I will often get a children's meal (I can be full on the smaller portion no problem) and play with the toy.

After I play for awhile, I give it to my nephew. He never wants for McD toys because I'm his supplier.

DSTRen13 · #7 06-23-2010, 05:57 AM

Sure, happy meals are not the greatest thing, but "real" restaurants are often MUCH worse for kids. My co-worker was recently comparing kids choices at places like Chili's, Applebee's, etc, to try to decide where they would go for dinner and the calorie counts on those suckers were really gross.

DaemonSeid · #8 06-23-2010, 07:35 AM

and then there are the times parents fight the kids because they want the toys also.

Drolefille · #9 06-23-2010, 09:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DSTRen13

Sure, happy meals are not the greatest thing, but "real" restaurants are often MUCH worse for kids. My co-worker was recently comparing kids choices at places like Chili's, Applebee's, etc, to try to decide where they would go for dinner and the calorie counts on those suckers were really gross.

*argues against calling Applebees a "real" restaurant*

DrPhil · #10 06-23-2010, 10:16 AM

McD's was a treat in my household when I was a child. It was a family place and all of the meals were eaten in moderation within a family setting. One of the coolest things was my parents bringing us some fries and a Fillet-o-Fish if we did well on a test.

Fast forward almost 30 years and fast food is a daily meal replacement for people. The food is bigger and more fattening than it was when I was a kid. Some families are too tired, lazy, inept, whatever, to place meals within the family context. Everyone's eating until their brains fall out. That isn't McD's fault but capitalism is based on supply and need. Capitalists are strategic in how they make money and therefore aren't fully free from blame.

(I still love a FRESH BATCH of McD's fries, sundae, ice cream cone, Fillet-o-Fish, or McChicken from time to time)

33girl · #11 06-23-2010, 11:22 AM

That Michael Jacobson dude has been bitching about fast food for the past 30 years. You can see how effective he's been. I remember seeing a picture of him (he was uber geeky looking) and thinking "whatever this dude is advocating, I want to do the opposite."

If parents are pussies and do whatever their kids want, it's really not McDonald's problem. On another note, our McD's used to give out a free cheeseburger if we got an A on our report card. Damn you for tricking me into getting good grades, McDonald's.

DaemonSeid · #12 06-23-2010, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrPhil

McD's was a treat in my household when I was a child. It was a family place and all of the meals were eaten in moderation within a family setting.
Fast forward almost 30 years and fast food is a daily meal replacement for people. The food is bigger and more fattening than it was when I was a kid. Some families are too tired, lazy, inept, whatever, to place meals within the family context. Everyone's eating until their brains fall out.

I'm sorry what did you say???

Cheeseburger made between two grilled cheese sandwiches:

http://consumerist.com/2010/06/frien...-arteries.html

Friendly's Burger Has Grilled Cheese Sandwiches For Buns