From: Susan Dabney [dabney@texas.net] Sent: Wednesday, September 11, 2002 11:05 AM To: fdadockets@oc.fda.gov Cc: Gary Ruskin; senator_leahy@leahy.senate.gov; vermont@jeffords.senate.gov Subject: Commercial Speech 02N-029 Request for comments on 1st Amendment issues To the decision makers in this country: As a parent and an active citizen in my community I feel very strongly that you SHOULD NOT give 1st amendment protection to corporations for the right to commercial speech. Many of these entities have no social conscience; they feel no civic duty to give back to this country. They do not care who gets hurt in their quest for money. Many of their decisions actually hurt this nation. They know it, and they don't care. A good example of this thoughtless corporate behavior is the recent development where we have allowed our schools to become sales outlets to subsidize and promote corporate food and beverage interests at the expense of our children's health. Corporations have convinced parents that they have no choice but to let them peddle their wares to children or use children to peddle their wares in the name of school spirit and support. The fact that people have bought in to this idea should come as no surprise. Corporations have millions to spend on public relations, advertising and lobbying. Individual parents have nothing more than their lone voice. When you realize that schools are accomplices in this whole charade because they have done away with health instruction, physical education, and providing nutritionally supportive food environments, it becomes clear that most of the children do not have a chance to learn about anything that would help them put the damaging corporate message into perspective. Our children are a captive audience being brainwashed in the name of money. As taxpayers, we get to pay for them twice. First, while they are in school, and second, when their poor health lands them unemployed, uninsured or in prison. The cost to this country of this lazier-faire attitude with children alone is going to be trillions of dollars in health care costs over their lifetime. This is money that will go to pay for chronic illness, lost work, social services, increased health insurance, etc.; money that could have gone into public education. It is already happening. Public education is one of the pillars of our democracy, yet we are allowing it to crumble because of misplaced priorities. Allowing corporations more freedom to continue to promote their vision of an America where every man, woman, and child is hooked on their product is a very unbalanced approach to economic development. I fail to see how allowing corporations the opportunity to make billions of dollars at the expense of the health and future stability of this country is in anyone's best interest. In fact, it is downright stupid. Not only should you not expand the power of the corporations to advertise, you should curtail commercial activity in our schools. A country that allows children to be used and exploited to subsidize corporations or to subsidize public education, is a country in decline. Today is September 11th, 2002. I see the flags, I hear the rhetoric. I wonder if it will be business as usual tomorrow? Sincerely, Carey Dabney 12005 Corner Brook Pass Austin, TX 78739 (512) 292-1313