What's China got to do with it?

Have you ever paused to consider the phrase "Finish your food. There are starving kids in China?"

I think this phrase must be really confusing for kids when they first encounter a Chinese restaurant. Face it, most menus of the Asian persuasion are LONG. Extensive. Exhaustive. Most servers ask you to give them a number, versus the name, of the dish.

Now, any sane, observant kid, enjoying dinner out with the folks, would think to himself "If these people know how to cook chicken and octopus 5,231 ways, why are their kids starving?"

And, with that thought, little Johnny will NEVER, EVER again eat his green peas. Because he knows, for sure, that Mommy is fudging the truth just a wee bit.

So, to preserve the integrity of Moms everywhere, I'm suggesting a change to the time-worn food-bribe phrase: "Please eat what your body needs. Be thankful for what you've been given. And don't forget to pray and provide for those who have less."

Of course, this does create a little dinner-table issue. What happens when there is stuff on the plate and Johnny wants dessert?

Try this one on for size: "Eat your cake. There are dentists in Egypt who need the work."

Here we go again.