San Francisco has done the unthinkable. Not win the World Series. It's effectively banned happy meals.
In order to include a toy with purchase, these new, unhappier meals must meet a checklist of nutritional requirements (PDF):
• The meal can't exceed 600 calories
• Less than 35 percent of the calories can come from fat (nuts, nut butters, low-fat cheese excepted)
• It's required to have a half cup of vegetables
• Breakfast meals are required to have a half cup of fruit
• Sodium limits
• A multigrain requirement
Does that sound like a happy meal you've ever eaten? This is a blow to happy meal toy enthusiasts everywhere. While happy meal toys have been getting crappier over the years, bans like these will surely hasten their decline as a mass cultural form. Inside the cardboard walls of a happy meal box, soaked in grease, is where I got my first wind-up car, an army of tiny robots and sweet transforming figures. No more.
San Francisco clearly hates children. And happiness. [SF Weekly, Image: CC licensed from Jason Ippolito/Flickr]