SEATTLE -- Let’s just bubble-wrap everything and get it over with.

I like to think I’m as safety-minded as the next person, but this never-ending quest to protect people from themselves is past the point of absurdity.

We’ve now got the American Academy of Pediatrics fueling another round of parental paranoia with a warning about exotic pets.

The kiddie docs are saying that children under 5 need to be kept away from the likes of hamsters and turtles, not to mention hedgehogs and baby chicks.

Seems those "exotic" animals carry germs that can cause diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps.

Now, I’m not making fun of kids getting sick.

I’m taking issue with the Academy of Pediatrics for joining the hordes of overly-educated, unduly intrusive groups who believe it is their mission in life to sanitize the whole world because the rest of us are too stupid and careless to live life the way they think we should.

So instead of just giving us information and letting us make a decision on how to proceed, the Academy of Pediatrics is telling parents to get rid of their turtles and hamsters and keep young kids away from petting zoos.

Gee, I don't know how parents have been able to raise their kids without these people running interference - and giving us a never-ending supply of bubble-wrap.

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