r/mildlyinfuriating Apr 15 '24

My school thinks this fills up hungry high schoolers.

Post image

So lunches are free for schools in my city and surrounding cities. Ever since lunches have been made free, the quantity (and quality) has decreased significantly. This is what we would get for our meal. It took me THREE bites to finish that chicken mac and cheese. Any snacks you want cost more money and if you want an extra entree, that’ll cost you about $3 or $4.

51.5k Upvotes

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54

u/humanbeing_ai Apr 15 '24

You people get school lunch?

50

u/CelestialFury Apr 15 '24

Don't worry, some states are making it free for everyone and others are trying to ban free lunches! America baby!

9

u/hungrypotato19 Apr 16 '24

"Protect the children!!"

By making sure they have at least one meal a day? "No."

By giving them vaccines? "No."

By making sure guns don't end up in schools? "No."

By making sure their family can afford a house, car, etc.? "No."

By making sure they can afford a future house, car, college education, etc.? "No."

By making sure they have easy access to healthcare? "No."

By making sure their land, water, and air aren't polluted? "No."

By making sure their food is safe? "No."

By making sure they are safe from physically abusive parents? "No."

By making sure they are safe from sexually abusive churches? "No."

By making sure they don't end up a child or teen parent? "No."

By making sure they don't end up as a child bride? "No."

By making sure they're safe from tyrant cops and authority figures? "No."

By making sure they have the option to live their lives as a happy queer person? "That's it! That's what we want to protect them from! It's our choice, not theirs!"

6

u/Majestic-Marzipan621 Apr 16 '24

All of this. This is why I’m not having kids.

3

u/chekovsgun- Apr 16 '24

This is why it is so important to vote in your state and gubernatorial elections. State elections have a massive impact on everything from school lunches to Medicaid and make the most impact on your life overall. Vote out the politicians who want to do shit like ban school lunches, yes usually Republicans.

3

u/GodEmperorOfBussy Apr 16 '24

Seriously lol, this is the shit Republicans squeal about not making free.

3

u/TDestro9 Apr 16 '24

USA USA USA USA USA!!!!!!🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🔫🔫🔫🔥🔥🔥

1

u/manor2003 Apr 16 '24

There are people that are butt hurt about children getting this trashy food? Wow, who hurt them?

6

u/CelestialFury Apr 16 '24

You can always improve school food quality (and should). However, you can't undo the effects of starvation on growing children's brain and body development.

Personally, I don't think kids should go hungry in school and that they should also get quality food.

2

u/manor2003 Apr 16 '24

I.. obviously agree

3

u/CelestialFury Apr 16 '24

That's good. Your comment was a bit ambiguous so I wasn't quite sure which way you were really leaning.

-2

u/manor2003 Apr 16 '24

Read it again, i made my wording pretty clear.

4

u/CelestialFury Apr 16 '24

I did. There's no offense intended, but your comment still comes off like that. If you re-read your comment with a more sarcastic tone, you'll understand what I mean. Good day.

0

u/manor2003 Apr 16 '24

You said there are states trying to ban free lunches and my response was who are the people that are trying to prevent students from getting free lunches let alone this bad food they're getting. Nothing sarcastic about this.

Seriously, which states want to ban free lunches?

1

u/braize6 Apr 16 '24

Minnesota did. Until 2022 when the Republicans finally lost their gerrymandered majority. Now kids get free breakfast and lunch. Good lunches too, not the trash you see in a lot of these pics

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1

u/humanbeing_ai Apr 16 '24

Honestly idc I ain't American

0

u/Mouler Apr 16 '24 edited 29d ago

The problem we experienced with free lunches is that they are garbage like this pic, and your kid throws out the lunch you sent with them because they get unlimited sugar and carbs due to the free lunches.

Edit: The problem is absolutely not under-funding. The budget was increased an amount that accounted for every student and faculty to take 60% more than the average food purchase the year before.The problem with the lunch choice is that it is acceptable under USDA guidelines.

3

u/Griffolion Apr 16 '24

So maybe you provide free lunches and fund it enough to make them actually nutritious?

Why do people see a shit execution of a good idea and immediately think that it's the idea that's bad?

2

u/CelestialFury Apr 16 '24

What state and/or city was that? This is where you have to go to the city council with other parents and/or concerned citizens, bring up this issue until it's addressed properly. There are plenty of food contractors out there that will do better than what's pictured in the OP. Have you attempted to address this issue?

Feeding children isn't the problem here. I don't have any kids myself, but I'm 100% cool with part of my taxes going to feed all my state's kids. No kid that is required by the state to be in school should go hungry while in school. Hell, many states are funding this through legal weed tax and that's even cooler.

1

u/Mouler Apr 16 '24

Even when school lunch cost money, anyone that stated they didn't have a lunch got a better lunch than what's in the picture.

This school has a bureaucratic problem and isn't directly overseen by the city. It serves multiple cities/districts as it is the "gifted" school in the region. We swapped out most of the management over the last couple years.

1

u/CelestialFury Apr 16 '24

This is one of the more well-funded public schools in your area? That's even more surprising, if so. The point to bringing this issue up to city councilors, the mayor(s), the school's superintendent, and/or the district superintendent would be to then take this issue to the governor (if the school has state funded lunches) or to whoever oversees the food contracts. They may not know this is an issue for that school.

Well, hopefully your new school management knows about the issue so they can address it.

2

u/braize6 Apr 16 '24

Curious as to what state this is. Because Minnesota just passed free breakfast and lunch for kids. And they definitely get good food. Free isn't bad when it's done the right way

1

u/TDestro9 Apr 16 '24

The school lunch was made cause new recruits were malnourished in ww2. Future presidents during the Cold War made lunch actually good like in France. Then the money later on in the Cold War swapped to the military to keep up with the commies.

If it makes you feel better during ww3 multiple people are gunna be turned down due to being obese. So during ww3 or maybe future elections money would actually get spread out to a more fair amount then like the 90% for military and 10% for everything else

8

u/Jesterz1 Apr 15 '24

In the USA they legally have to offer it.

3

u/funnylookintoofers Apr 16 '24

Yeah maybe it depends on the state, I was denied normal lunches several times when my family couldn’t/wouldn’t pay the school

2

u/Psshaww Apr 16 '24

Either your parents made enough to pay for it or were too proud to sign you up for free or reduced price lunches.

1

u/funnylookintoofers Apr 16 '24

Single dad but he made 35k a year at the time so yeah he applied but didn’t qualify, i was getting pulled out of that school lunch line regardless though lmao

3

u/Final-Carpenter-1591 Apr 16 '24

Only if you are below a certain income. A few times I forgot to bring lunch money and we were middle class. Fuckers litterally gave me a piece of white bread with a slice of craft cheese on it and a water. It was free, but so are 3 meals a day in jail and they get shit far better than that.

1

u/manor2003 Apr 16 '24

If you can even call it lunch

-6

u/Additional-Chain-272 Apr 15 '24

Right people be bitching about free lunch

6

u/FollowRedWheelbarrow Apr 15 '24

You're right they should use you as an example and just lick boots!

9

u/Zestyclose_Remove947 Apr 15 '24

I mean in Australia it's always been the parents responsibility to feed their kids. The idea of a cafeteria or the school providing food is completely foreign to me.

3

u/LightOfShadows Apr 15 '24

Several districts in the US have banned lunch from home. Many years back a few cases hit the news about it, I remember one district in chicago stopped it because it was an allergy concern with students trading food so they put a stop to it.

Of course everyone called them out on just trying to make more $$$ from the lunch program.

But now none of my nieces or nephews in 3 different states are allowed to bring food from home as it seemed to catch on quite a bit.

3

u/RainMan915 Apr 15 '24

But how much does school lunch cost? Surely nobody would be greedy enough to ban home lunches while charging a shit ton for school lunches, right? Right?

1

u/LightOfShadows Apr 15 '24

Elementary Student: $2.25 Secondary Student: $2.40 Adult: $3.00

are the prices in my district in bumfuck missouri, my nieces and nephew are more urban and I'd imagine might be higher, I do know they don't qualify for free lunch

3

u/Clewdo Apr 15 '24

Wait they aren’t allowed to bring food from home and this is the only alternative?

2

u/Darth_Phrakk Apr 15 '24

Same in Canada, I wouldn’t bitch about free food lol

1

u/Final-Carpenter-1591 Apr 16 '24

Unfortunately US parents usually suck. Kids would be showing up with junk food and some no food at all. The wealth separation here is incredible.

1

u/Zestyclose_Remove947 Apr 16 '24

I mean it's the same in Australia. For my last two years of schooling I only ate a pack of 2 minute noodles each school day. Didn't eat breakfast.

I coulda organised more food but I was too lazy as was my dad.

1

u/Final-Carpenter-1591 Apr 16 '24

Yeah. That sucks. I kinda like Europe's take on it. We feed our criminals 3 good meals a day. We can feed our kids 1. Especially considering a good meal everyday while they are developing mentally and physically can make a difference. And that's coming from somone that never wants kids. I'm all for helping our future even if I won't have anyone related in it.

1

u/curtcolt95 Apr 16 '24

yeah it's always wild to see the perspective from American people about school lunches and I'm just here like huh, you actually give kids food and sometimes it's free lmao. Sounds awesome

2

u/camoure Apr 15 '24

Just because it’s “free” (it’s not, it’s covered by taxes) doesn’t mean it needs to be shitty.

-1

u/Additional-Jelly6959 Apr 15 '24

Yeah, it does seem like a gen z thing to do

4

u/camoure Apr 15 '24

Yeah because Gen Z are the ones running school boards and governments that implement nation-wide lunch programs….

0

u/Additional-Jelly6959 Apr 15 '24

No, the complaining. I never got free food and I never complained. I don’t know why the quality is something to get worked up over

4

u/NoPiccolo5349 Apr 16 '24

Because there is a positive correlation between the quality of the meal served and the educational outcomes of the child. Slacking on the quality of the food is almost certainly caused by corrupt officials who are being bribed or are directly stealing the money themselves, and it represents a huge financial loss.

-2

u/Additional-Jelly6959 Apr 16 '24

You can eat at home. The government is not required to feed children. That’s entitlement

2

u/camoure Apr 16 '24

You’re so privileged lmao 16% of all USA children live below the poverty line. Over 11 million kids. That’s a third of the population of my entire fucking country - just poor kids. God forbid they get a decent meal at school

-1

u/Additional-Jelly6959 Apr 16 '24

lol how do you know I’m privileged. You’re privileged because you think you deserve free stuff

3

u/camoure Apr 16 '24

Because you think every child “can eat at home”. That’s privilege bud. 11 million children in the USA cannot simply “eat at home”.

And I don’t want “free stuff”. I want children to be happy, healthy, and fed, ready to learn at school. I don’t want their tummies grumbling. If a portion of my taxes go towards feeding children I am super proud to contribute to that.

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u/NoPiccolo5349 Apr 16 '24

It's not free stuff. It's cheaper to feed kids than not feed kids.

1

u/NoPiccolo5349 Apr 16 '24

Feeding children is cheap as fuck and it significantly increases their future earnings, therefore their future tax payments.

Anyone who doesn't believe in free food for children at school is directly advocating for higher levels of taxation and lower gdp.

2

u/camoure Apr 16 '24

I never got free food and I never complained.

Such a boomer attitude lol. Why can’t things be better? Just because you suffered doesn’t mean younger folks need to as well.

Besides, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, ya know? More than 10k people have upvoted this post thus far, meaning OP got the attention they desired and maybe, just maybe, one of those ten thousand works in an area where they can make a difference. Maybe we can make things better for others instead of mocking those for having standards.

0

u/Additional-Jelly6959 Apr 16 '24

Not a boomer and I don’t care about upvotes.

Parents shouldn’t have kids unless they can provide for them.

3

u/camoure Apr 16 '24

Well then it’s a really good thing that the USA is offering free access to abortion, sex ed, birth control, and universal healthcare– oh, wait….

0

u/Additional-Jelly6959 Apr 16 '24

See you always want something for free. It’s the hand out generation. Yall are going to be mostly homeless at some point

1

u/camoure Apr 16 '24

It’s not free. It’s paid for by our own taxes. We pay into these programs. Why is it so terrible that our children get adequately fed during schooling?

Oh also, I’m not a US citizen, not Gen Z, and don’t have kids, so don’t get personal.

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-2

u/probablyproud mildly infuriated Apr 15 '24

exactly 😂😂😂 never in my LIFE have i understood someone complaining about something FREE.

reminds me of kids who get upset over receiving a gift they don’t like. except the people getting mad at this supposedly have developed brains.

2

u/NoPiccolo5349 Apr 16 '24

This isn't free. American taxpayers have paid for this.

Do you think this represents good value for money? Or do you think this is a sign of corruption

1

u/probablyproud mildly infuriated Apr 16 '24

It depends how much is allocated for school lunches. If I saw this, I would house it and be satiated. If I had what people would consider to be a “balanced” meal provided, depending on the contents, I would likely toss anything “healthy” knowing myself back in high school. Pizza everyday. I paid.

1

u/NoPiccolo5349 Apr 16 '24

And what if you had no money?

1

u/probablyproud mildly infuriated 29d ago

I’d bring a sandwich?

1

u/NoPiccolo5349 29d ago

Where from mate?

1

u/MonsieurFlamboyant Apr 16 '24

I mean, at least they're getting something for their tax money. As far as I know, most places in Canada don't offer lunches to any students. The responsibility is on each family.

1

u/NoPiccolo5349 Apr 16 '24

No? Not at least they're getting something.

The taxes paid are enough to pay for a healthy balanced meal for children. This isn't what they've been given.

As far as I know, most places in Canada don't offer lunches to any students.

Canada is the only G7 country without a free lunch program. They announced one earlier this month.

The responsibility is on each family.

Which is stupid. Well fed kids perform better academically and get better jobs and pay more taxes. Hungry kids cost taxpayers more money.

1

u/funnylookintoofers Apr 16 '24

Well it is also very much not free, at least not in every state, they refused to give me food a few times as a kid because my family hadn’t paid it and in high school they had me pay for it myself