Detention for a Jolly Rancher?!

When a 10-year-old student came home in tears about receiving a week's worth of detention for possessing contraband in her Texas elementary school, her mother was shocked. So you can imagine her surprise when she found out the "contraband" was a piece of candy!

The school says that they have to enforce their no-gum, no-candy policy - which I understand ... to an extent. Rules are rules and in a school setting, you can't make exceptions. But come on now - there's something to be said for the punishment fitting the crime! The school's superintendent told reporters that it's also a matter of following state guidelines that limit the amount of junk food in schools, but according to the state's Department of Agriculture, the rules do not require schools to punish a student for possessing junk food.

Now I know that we have an obesity epidemic on our hands in this country, and recent assembly of state and federal task forces have been aimed at reversing the trend by helping children make healthier choices. But a Jolly Rancher candy has 23 calories and provides 2 percent of the daily value of carbohydrates - so the state guidelines argument just doesn't have any credibility.

This is not how you fight childhood obesity. Many school districts are going absolutely insane, by putting kids under more stress and potential causing irreversible damage by placing severe punishments on them for making a mistake or breaking the rules - and in some cases, the children don't even realize they've broken any rules.

A child who is caught with a piece of candy in school should not be slapped with a week's detention. This kind of traumatic experience can cause a sense of insecurity, a fear of telling the truth, and certainly confusion about reasonable guidelines - not to mention all the issues kids face with eating disorders and depression these days. Psychologists will tell you that consistency and rationalization in a secure environment are the best ways to foster healthy growth and maturity in children.

The bottom line, for a school to hand out this harsh of a punishment for having a piece of candy is completely unfair and ridiculous. It's just another example of how bureaucracies get out of control and the nuts are running the asylum.