Prince Charles Calls for Ban on McDonald’s Restaurants and Big Macs
The Prince of Wales told a nutritionist in Abu Dhabi Tuesday that the “key” to people eating healthily was to ban McDonald’s fast food restaurants.
Prince Charles was attending the launch of a public health awareness campaign aimed at fighting diabetes in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
He visited the Imperial College London Diabetes Centre and watched as a group of children chose from a selection of “good” and “bad” snacks for their school packed lunches.
Talking to Nadine Tayara, a nutritionist from the centre who had put the children through their paces, he asked her: “Have you got anywhere with McDonald’s? Have you tried getting it banned? That’s the key.”
A McDonald’s spokeswoman said that Charles’s remark was “disappointing”.
Other members of his family had visited the fast-food chain, she said, and “have probably got a more up-to-date picture of us.”
It’s sad that Charles would blatantly call for the use of government to ban goods and services “for the common good”. The saddest part, however, is that his home country has been marching down that path for quite some time now. Maybe a Big Mac would change his bland disposition (the late Princess Diana tried to get him to lighten up, bless her heart…).
It’s up to the individual (or in the case of children, their parents), and not government, to choose healthy food options. While too much fast food can be a bad thing, a governmental ban just isn’t the answer. Market forces have caused Mickey D’s and other burger joints to offer healthier items on their menus, and they can do just fine without an also-ran to the British crown mucking things up.
I vilify laziness and apathy, not McDonald’s for people’s health conditions. I do wish that they’d offer the veggie burger here in Vegas like they do in Barstow, though.
Is Chuck going to ban Colgate next, because his teeth are yellow?