Jan Perry Is a “Big” Hippocrate
I don’t ususally care too much about politics- as far as I’m concerned, 90% of politicians suck. As the saying goes- how do you know if they are lying? Their lips are moving. But last night I heard a radio show host talk about how council-woman Jan Perry was trying to stop any new fast-food places from opening in her district in downtown LA (where I live). This show was the Joe Hicks show on KFI 640 AM - I don’t usually spend my Saturday nights listening to radio but had I left the clock-radio on to provide some comfort to White Dog.
Now, I’m not certain that this was not a repeat show, as I’ve searched the ‘net and cannot find a very recent story about Jan Perry and fast food- the most relevant story I could find was an LA Times article from September 2007.
What caught me attention was that Jan Perry did not want any more fast food restaurants in downtown- in order to make sure that lower class people did not get fat by eating unhealthy food. I found this funny on several levels, because some of her district is not lower income people, (Higgins Building has low income people?- please check the prices for the lofts here). And I remember her being at the ribbon cutting ceremony for Johnny Rockets- a serious greasy-burger fast food joint that has a place in South Park and is about to open another place in Little Tokyo. Plus, she is no role-model for someone wanting to look like a heathy eating individual.
Frankly, I want MORE fast food places downtown- and ones with extended hours (or just “normal” hours- the nearby Carl’s Jr. in the Los Angeles Mall is CLOSED on weekends- where else is the world is a fast food restaurant closed on a weekend)? And I miss having an In-And-Out Burger, Arby’s or Wendy’s nearby.
If politicians really cared, they would stop the selling of cigarettes- these KILL people, make health insurance much more costly as us non-smokers have to subsidize the smokers, and homeless people will spend their last dollars to buy them. They STINK, teenagers get hooked on them, and smokers litter the streets with the butts, not to mention the fires they cause. Oh, I forgot, the tobacco lobby donates incredible amounts of money to the politicians.
Let me buy a 1500 calorie burger from whom ever I want- why don’t politicians worry about why every downtown construction project has huge delays and cost overruns instead of worrying about our eating habits.
Now just wait for my post about who’s going to get the restaurant contract at the new LAPD HQ - is is going to be Applebee’s??? TGI Fridays??? Have you ever read the calorie content of the foods at those places? Jan Perry has a large role in who will get that contract… time will tell.
not that i’m defending anyone here.. but I never considered Johnny Rockets fast food.. it’s a sit down ‘diner’ type place that happens to serve greasy burgers. ;P
July 21st, 2008 at 9:51 amAlright Meekorouse- what is the difference between a “sit down diner” and an Arbys?
My understanding was Jan Perry did not want establishments that served unhealty food. Let’s look at a normal meal at Johnny Rockets:
Original Burger- 620 Calories- 35 g fat. (add cheese and bacon- BOOM!)
Original Fries- 531 calories, 23 g fat.
Chocolate Shake (here’s a heart attack waiting to happen)- 1100 calories, 60 g of fat.
So I don’t care if a place is “sit down” or what, but this is not in any way food for someone that is not going to get fat if they don’t exercise and watch the other meals they eat (this is ONE MEAL- 2251 calories. For many people that is an entire day’s worth of calories.
PLEASE- I think you can even eat healthier at a McDonalds with a salad- but why go to a McDonalds for a salad?
Maybe Johney Rockets should make patrons run around while they wait for their food, instead of “sitting down”.
July 21st, 2008 at 11:19 amNutrition Info for Johnny Rockets:
http://www.dietfacts.com/list.asp?brand=Johnny+Rockets&page=1
July 21st, 2008 at 11:21 amOn a similar note- in Manhattan Beach or Hermosa Beach there are NO Fast Food restaurants within a mile of the ocean- I’m not excactly sure if the city governments keep it that way, or if people just would not support those places- but they do not exist west of PCH.
There was a Johnny Rockets a block from my apt. in Manhattan Beach (1 blk from beach), but it went out of business (not enough people ate that food to support their restaurant?) It’s kind of a free-market and lifestyle thing- not something that needs to be governed.
July 21st, 2008 at 11:45 amI hate to sound like ‘Debbie Downer’ and rip on downtown again, but the story leaves me no choice.
Once again it seems as though people in power here go out of their way to halt progress and the redevelopment of downtown. Do I think my area should be littered with fast food? Not really because I like an affordable meal as much as the next guy. At the same time, damn it I have had a craving for Wendy’s going on three months now and why can’t I get one down here!
July 21st, 2008 at 12:03 pmBrian- I think we are on the same page- let the market decide what restaurants to open. Johnny Rocket’s didn’t work at the beach (unfortunately, a Wendy’s didn’t either).
And as Meekorouse made me aware, who determines what is and what is not not fast food? Is Subway or Quiznos fast food? Is TGI Fridays or Claim Jumpers healthy enough to be allowed? I’d hate to see the calorie content of some of the “mom and pop” shinese places near me.
There are much bigger fish to fry than legislating fast food.
July 21st, 2008 at 12:20 pmyour headline nailed it eric. she goes where the money is. this no fast-food downtown thing is just the latest.
July 21st, 2008 at 12:54 pmperry’s proposed ordinance was about preventing new fast food restaurants from opening in south los angeles, not downtown.
July 21st, 2008 at 1:22 pmHey Jim and Celia- you two crack me up- sometimes I wonder how you two are married to each other… (just JOKING!!!).
But seriously, her idea is still STUPID whether she doesn’t want fast food by USC or South Park or in new LAPD HQ. And she represents where I live.
Waste of time. Spend her time (and our tax dollars) in better ways. It will be interesting to see who gets contract for restaurant at LAPD HQ though.
July 21st, 2008 at 1:51 pmThe one thing I would support is if the school lunch programs did a better job of promoting healthier food- and not making pizza and french fries options, or at least maybe limiting to once or twice a week. And “open lunches” where stundents can go to off-campus to McDonalds- PLEASE- that was unheard of in high schools where I grew up. This is an easy first step to helping people be healthier-
Then make physical education classes mandatory in grade school/high school again. What the hell happened to them- was it all just legal worries?
July 21st, 2008 at 2:03 pmwell I didn’t catch the radio program that you did. Johnny Rockets, Applebee’s, Chili’s whatever.. they all have unhealthy food. I know you know the difference between “fastfood” and “sitdown” McDonald’s, Arby’s etc being fast food and someplace like Johnny Rockets is a sitdown place.. you get a server bringing you the menu and taking your order.
It doesn’t matter where you eat whether it’s McDonalds or Islands (which I really like) you can eat just as unhealthy anywhere you go. I think places like McDonald’s or In N Out (and really I think there’s a major health difference between McD’s and In N Out regardless of the salad option) are the easy targets.
You can easily over-eat on the Applebee’s Kids menu as you can on an adult sized burger at McD’s. The only difference is the pricepoints at a lot of these places.
July 21st, 2008 at 4:03 pmPamela- my point was that it is not a politician’s business to try to govern what food is available in what neighborhood- Not the distiction between Johnny Rocket’s and McDonalds.
Why should they not regulate what is served at our city/districts schools first? That I think would be a higher priority.
Maybe I’m wrong- I don’t understand what the hell most politicians do anyway- I guess I’m just jealous of not having their expense accounts. Vote for Jan Perry… no problem for me but I will point out what I see as hypocaracy and ill-spent time/money when I see it.
July 21st, 2008 at 4:31 pmEric- You will be happy to know that LAUSD has already acceded to your wishes and pizza is only available twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. As for fries, the only ones I see on campus nowadays have been smuggled in from the neighboring BK and Jack-In-The-Box. The “fries” previously available at Garfield were actually baked and completely inedible, thus posing no real nutritional threat as they were never consumed. LAUSD has no “open campuses” due to concerns over security rather than nutrition. That is not to say that kids don’t go to great lengths to hop the fences, succumbing to the siren call of freedom and food with flavor. Of course, the local BK is often visited by the school deans and police in order to bust the truants, still wearing the paper crowns that came with their burgers.
As for Jan Perry, the City Council has no real jurisdiction over LAUSD. The Board of Education controls the schools. Please remember, not all students in LAUSD live in the city of Los Angeles. Many live in unincorporated regions of Los Angeles County in the attendance areas that belong to LAUSD. The school district gets its money from revenues controlled by Sacramento and Washington and its those folks who get the school board to dance to their tune.
July 21st, 2008 at 6:25 pmHi Kids, I could be wrong here, but I thought it was just “South” Los Angeles…that would be USC to Gardena. Maybe “downtown” Los Angeles is safe…
July 21st, 2008 at 6:33 pmRead on…http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20726137
Hey Dennis!! Good to hear from you and your always educational posts. I admit I really know nothing about nothing. But I do know that many people that DO live in LAUSD do NOT allow their kids to attend those schools- but that is a different issue…
All politics aside, LAUSD does not have any (required) physical education classes does it? Just curious as it sounds like you know these kinds of things.
July 21st, 2008 at 6:34 pmHmm downtown_mom- I’m not sure what exactly you mean by “safe”- that we can have a fast food place like Wendy’s open up by me in Gallery Row/Old Bank District? (YEAH!!!)
I don’t know what Jan Perry’s district encompeses- and I don’t care to Google it- but I know she it the representative where I live and there was some recent talk about her not wanting a fast food place in the new LAPD HQ across the street from me- fine- bring on a Cheesecake Factory!
July 21st, 2008 at 6:41 pmSafe as in “downtown” will not be affected only those areas in “South” Los Angeles.
July 21st, 2008 at 9:32 pmSo when is Wendy’s coming downtown?
July 22nd, 2008 at 9:53 amhere is the council file for the ordinance, which passed the planning and land-use committee today. the ordinance in the city clerk’s report is interesting.
July 22nd, 2008 at 3:34 pmEric- I’m not sure where you got your information, maybe it was from those parents that would not allow their children to attend an LAUSD school, but LAUSD, like all other public school systems, mandate two years of physical education at the high school level as a requirement for graduation. Its part of the California Education Code. Recently added has been a mandatory statewide test in which all students must demonstrate proficiency in three out of four common physical fitness standards.
As for Garfield, more than a thousand students, nearly a quarter of the entire student population participates in extracurricular sports. The kind of fervor generated by varsity football alone inspire hundreds of teenage boys to lift weights, run laps and participate in endless drills already in the early weeks of July. Sit in my classroom and listen to the starting guards on the Girl’s Basketball team discuss the finer points of nutrition, training and setting a pick in front of the key. Come by Garfield around 3:15 and watch hundreds of student athletes, girls and boys, sweating it out on the asphalt or inside the gym or out on the field, that is, if the teams aren’t out actually playing against other schools in their league.
Have no fear. Physical culture has plenty of proponents here at Garfield.
July 22nd, 2008 at 7:58 pm