A Modern Trojan Horse

Within hours of my post last night, I read this article in USA Today about incoporating fitness games into physical education classes.  Yet this particular program is not what I or maybe anybody else had in mind: it is sponsored by McDonald's.

McDonald's "Passport to Play" will apparently be introduced in over 31,000 schools this year.  For each game that students complete, they will get a stamp to go on their McDonald's passport.

As expected, many are extremely disappointed in this uncomfortable partnership.  "It is a travesty to have a PE program branded by McDonald's," says psychologist Kelly Brownell, director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University.  I would concur.

This appears to be pure PR on the part of McDonald's - an effort to keep them from being labeled the bad guys.  When the criticisms of their awful food crest again, they can point to actions like these in their defense.  Yet if they were truly serious about this idea, why not just donate some money behind the scenes?  Instead, they emblazon their name on the program and try to gain increased market share with children.

It's a sign of how desperate schools have become that they are willing to accept such a devil's bargain.  Fast food and good health don't mix, and neither should McDonald's and our schools.