In the New York Times yesterday there was an interesting article entitled, “Is Candy Evil or Just Misunderstood?” In particular it discussed the relationship between candy and children, their concerned parents, and schools with some reference to the work of candy historian Samira Kawash.
I thought of this article when I came across a rather different attitude taken to candy by the US forces running Korea just after the collapse of the Japanese empire. In the October 1946 summary report put out by the military government, we find the following little nugget:
The Department of Education received an allocation of 669,269 pounds of candy which will be sold at cost to all the elementary schools of South Korea with the suggestion that it be utilized to supplement school lunches. Distribution of the candy was begun in late October.1
U.S. Army Military Government Activities in Korea 13 (October, 1946), 78. ↩
Part or all of it is intended to influence the minds of people as children and essentially pre-program their adult beliefs.
In Korea, they wanted the kids to think nice thoughts about America (while at the same time giving them enough carbs to get through their classes and help rebuild the nation.
In America, it’s all about the government controlling everything, including diet and healthcare, things many people believe are off-limits according to the Bill of Rights…
But some folks just insist we’re too stupid to use our God-given rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness without a bureaucrat crapping on our activities.