I have stayed out of this discussion till today because it is a tough
subject and very personal to some people. I do have an opinion which many
here have a problem with. I'm concerned that we have a clash of "rights".
Also, even the most innocuous and ubiquitous substances like plastic cause a
reaction in some people. My concern is this: where do you draw the line?
What if someone is allergic to maple trees? In my neighbourhood ( Canadian
spelling!), we have dozens. Should someone have the right to cut them all
down? Does one child with a serious peanut or milk allergy mean that no one
in his/her school can eat peanut butter or drink milk at that school? Each
of us has rights in a democracy. But where does one person's rights have an
overriding value to someone else's rights? We all drive on the right side of
the road would be one example. But when it comes to food, we are entering
uncharted territory. I'm not concerned about one walnut tree, but I am
concerned about the possible extension of the logic to other circumstances
with much broader implications. We are having a horrendous debate in this
country about Hepatitis C sufferers who were infected via the blood system.
There are legal rights to compensation because of malfeasance by public
officials but that covers only a subset. Many Canadians want compensation
paid to all. That leads into a tough topic - do we compensate all victims of
medical misadventure? If so, our vaunted public health care system will be
bankrupted. That brings me to the greater good of the populace and people's
individual rights. In my view, we need a consensus. Unanimity is not
possible. Please keep the debate at a philosophical level or we'll never
reach any kind of agreement. Emotion will always trump facts, logic,
arguments and consensus. May we start a dialogue here about how we, a free
people, can work together for the common good. I realize I'm probably
dreaming in technicolour (Cdn again!). I would like to know where we draw
the line a food allergies and the environment we live in. I'm a relatively
mild sufferer of milk and pollen allergies. Maybe I don't have enough 'skin'
in this. Fire away, so to speak!

Don
Toronto
>>
>> Let me see if I have this correct.
>>
>> School districts set up No Peanut Zones in lunchroom if a student is
>> allergic to peanuts, or ban peanuts (peanut butter) on the possibility
that
>> someone may be allergic.