Thursday, September 3, 2009

Ban the Ice Cream Man? Are you kidding me?

Rant Alert #1

I recently read an article in the New York Times pertaining to food but not in the way you'd expect from this blog.

It's about "irate" parents who are trying to put an end to that long standing Summer tradition, the ice cream truck.

Read the full story here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/19/dining/19soft.html

This issue begs me to ask:
Who among us did not have that "typical Pavlovian response" to those wonderful, awful jingles coming from the trucks of the heroes of Summer?
Who among us didn't have a parent who said "No" much more often than "Yes" when these trucks came around?
Who among us had someone to "coach" our parents to say "No"?
Who among us were traumatized from these "predatory" villains and their plan to dominate the world by driving Mothers crazy with nap less, tantrum throwing children?

As a parent of two and a lifelong fan of The Ice Cream Man, I say, parents who were children in the 70s and 80s should grow up. Being a parent isn't easy. No one said it was. Parents have a duty to say "No" to their children. It keeps them from getting hurt, hurting others, and being spoiled. If you can't deal with your toddler's ice cream problem, how will you handle drugs, alcohol, and sex in their teen and pre teen years?

Oh, I almost forgot. If you park your stroller and a diesel truck pulls up in front of you, unlock the safety breaks and roll to different spot. Don't blame the truck.

Long live the Ice Cream Man!