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Mrs. Obama Invites Children to White House to get Stung by Bees
Okay, I’m just having some fun here, alright? Leave me alone.
But, uh, you know. If my kid were going to this event, I’d want to know whether we’re taking any precautions . . .
Because the White House put out the notice last night: First Lady Michelle Obama to Harvest the White House Kitchen Garden, Highlight Pollinators
Okay, pollinators. Personally, I’m allergic to certain pollinators, and these delightful creatures do get angry sometimes and turn their attention from the pastoral pursuit of flowers to inflicting venomous stings on human victims.
From the White House:
The First Lady will welcome students from across the country who participate in the ten Let’s Move! sub-initiative programs to harvest the White House Kitchen Garden . . . This garden harvest will highlight the important role of pollinators in the healthy food that we grow and consume. Last year, Mrs. Obama planted a pollinator garden next to the White House Kitchen Garden to support bees, monarch butterflies, and other pollinators as part of Administration efforts to promote pollinator health.
Just as I suspected. They’re trying to spin this as also a butterfly event, but we know “pollinators” means bees.
Pollinators play a critical role in supporting agricultural production, and they are responsible for one out of every three bites of food we take. Because pollinators are facing disturbing signs of decline from a variety of causes, important efforts are underway to support pollinator health and habitat.
Okay, that’s all true. I mean, I can’t say I awaken in the morning fretting about the decline of bees, but I do salute the first lady for addressing the issue. Also, might I suggest, if things plants aren’t being sufficiently pollinated, eating more meat
This year, W. Atlee Burpee & Co. donated one million pollinator seed packets to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Interior to encourage people to plant pollinator gardens in communities across the country. Nearly 30,000 of these seed packets were distributed to families at this year’s Easter Egg Roll. As well, the newly established National Pollinator Garden Network is launching on Wednesday the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge, a nationwide call to action to preserve and create gardens and landscapes that help revive the health of pollinators.
Well, I thank Mr. Burpee, Mr. Slurpee, and anyone else who is working to solve this problem. Although I have noticed fewer yellow jackets around in recent years, which gives me some comfort that there is not less chance I will be stung and suffer a slow, wrenching death as my gills swell and seal off my supply of oxygen. But still, I get that the earth needs bees more than it needs me. So go for it.
Just, I won’t be covering the event.
Source: http://www.whitehousedossier.com/2015/06/02/obama-invites-children-white-house-stung-bees/
