We're lovin' it

Dear Meal Plan Committee,\nWe understand the McDonald's in Read Center is not a money-making business for Residential Programs and Services. Tuesday's Indiana Daily Student article, "RPS considers scrapping McDonald's," highlighted the sticky situation. Apparently, only 10 percent of every meal point purchase at the fast food joint goes back to IU. Financially, McDonald's doesn't offer the University a strong incentive to keep the franchise on campus after its contract expires in 2007. \nNevertheless, we encourage you to make the right decision when you vote to renew McDonald's contract at your Oct. 14 meeting. \nPlease don't let McDonald's slip away. Where else can we get creamy McFlurries, greasy Big Macs and those strangely addictive french fries? \nStudents love McDonald's. We don't know which students junior Sam Scarpino was referring to in Tuesday's IDS article when he said "several" have expressed a desire to see a healthier option replace McDonald's. \nWe already have plenty of healthy food in the IU-Bloomington vicinity with Stacks Deli offering sub sandwiches in two different food courts and the neighboring Subway on Atwater Avenue. \nBut, where is the closest McDonald's? (Which, we must add, also offers a variety of a healthy food, such as salads and Fruit n' Yogurt Parfaits). The former McDonald's on Kirkwood is gone, and now we risk the campus McDonald's departure. \nWe know you must bargain with the University's economic interest in mind in order to maintain McDonald's. And we know you are trying. But, please, for the sake of students, try harder. Without the Read Center McDonald's, we risk the archaic reality of a foreign land with no other golden arches around for miles.\nNot "lovin' it"\nThe act of replacing the Read Center McDonald's has the potential to save students from themselves. Yes, the current location of the golden arches is convenient, but do we really need easy access to unhealthy food? The Meal Plan Committee is considering giving Mickey D's the boot because of low University profits. The restaurant is popular among students, but only 10 percent of every meal point purchase goes back to IU. Even if the franchise's contract is renewed with a higher percentage of profits going to the University, there's still the matter of saturated fat.\nOf course, college students are adults capable of making their own food choices. But when heart attack-inducing, grease-laden snacks are only a stone's throw from where students lay their heads to sleep, convenience takes a turn for the worst. There are healthier options to replace McDonald's, such as Subway. Let the weight loss story of IU's very own Jared Fogle serve as an example of the power of having a restaurant with healthier options located near where you live.\nReplacing McDonald's is a good idea, as long as the new franchise provides healthier food options and a contract that's more financially beneficial to the University and students.