This article was written by a student from West Boca High School
Something Fishy Is Going On
Where education is concerned, the number one priority should be safety. However, when West Boca Raton Community High School (WBRHS) adopted the use of vending machines in the school year of 2014-2015, this safety was threatened.
According to The Guardian, vending machines are more dangerous than sharks, killing more people. These ‘murders’ on behalf of vending machines are most likely caused by the tilting of broken vending machines in order to get food.
While it is difficult to imagine, you must consider the fact that in schools there are thousands of hormone-raged, ‘starving’ teens not willing to take ‘no’ as an answer from a vending machine. It is quite common to hear the pounding of vending machines from across the courtyard at WBRHS, almost like a person knocking on death’s door.
Along with the physical threat that vending machines pose within schools, they also contain a vast amount of hypocrisy. The purpose of vending machines is to provide quick, efficient, and preferably healthy snacks to those without food. However, when a bottle of water costs $1.50 and a can of soda costs $1.25, it encourages the consumption of unhealthy drinks. This concept also applies to the foods in the vending machines, making ‘unhealthy’ the easiest choice.
Ultimately, vending machines were installed in schools as a method of making money. However, when the pursuit of money is valued over the safety and health of students, it is time to call into question whether we should just swap to a safer alternative…replacing sharks with vending machines.
Editor’s Note: For another take on vending machines in schools, see School Vending Machine Bans.
