Bike paths for health

In an otherwise good story in the Star Tribune today Jim Oberstar unintentionally revealed how out of touch he is.

The column was about how he and Congressman Colin Peterson stand to be influential in the next Congress because of their seniority. Oberstar is the longest serving congressman in Minnesota history.

But Oberstar described how he was going to attack childhood obesity by funding more bike paths. 

“Oberstar said he wants to focus on battling obesity in school-age children by using federal transportation money to build more bike paths and sidewalks. He said Minnesota wouldn’t necessarily see an increase in road aid.”  

 

Oh Puhleese! Sure we’re raising a lot of coach potatos but the way to overcome this is to spend more money on physical education and stop subsidizing the foodstuffs that make kids fat – Sugar, Wheatflour and fruit drinks. I’d like to see Colin Peterson, the likely new Chairman of the Ag Committee, push for cuts in subsidies like that. The sugar beet farmers in his district would raise the roof.

If that’s the best thing we have to look forward to as Jim Oberstar adds another two years to his record tenure while we’ve got an eleven trillion dollar deficit he’s dotty. Now repaving some of our crumbling highways…. that makes sense. Too bad Oberstar has no interest in the priorities of the State Highway Department.