Toy soldiers featured on birthday cupcakes of a nine-year-old US boy have spoiled the appetite of school officials at a Michigan elementary school, whose staff said the cakes were inappropriate in the wake of the Sandy Hook school shooting.

School officials at Schall Elementary rushed to remove Hunter Fountain’s plastic soldiers, designed to spice up his birthday cupcakes, for fear they were asking for a fight.

The boy’s parents were reportedly chastized for the cakes’ ‘military’ nature; the school principal called Hunter’s mother at home. Principal Susan Wright later issued a public statement saying that in the climate of recent events in schools“we walk a delicate balance in teaching non-violence in our buildings and trying to ensure a safe, peaceful atmosphere.”

“On one hand, there are those who advocate arming teachers, having armed security guards and creating a fortress of defense in our schools. On the other hand, there are those who feel that guns create fear in schools and we need to put solid security measures in place  plus practice routines to be prepared in case an emergency should ever occur. Living in a democratic society entails respect for opposing opinions,” Wright wrote.

She added that “by not permitting toy soldiers on cupcakes at school, no disrespect for our military or for the brave men and women who defend our right to have differences was intended.”

“It disgusted me,” Casey Fountain, Hunter’s father, told Fox News. “It’s vile they lump true American heroes with psychopathic killers. We’re just taking political correctness too far.”

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Traveling to the Middle East? US health officials are warning Americans to be on the lookout for a new coronavirus, an acute respiratory infection similar to SARS that has so far infected 14 people and killed eight.

Most of the deadly infections have occurred in the Middle East, but it only takes one infected American to trigger a nationwide outbreak. A new analysis of the virus has confirmed that it can spread through human contact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Worldwide, a total of 14 cases have been documented, with eight of those resulting in fatalities. The CDC warns that people traveling to the Arabian Peninsula have the highest possible risk of transmission. Of the three cases seen in Great Britain, one came from a 60-year-old old man who had traveled to Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, while the other two cases came through direct contact with the first victim. The second person to become infected became ill on Feb. 6 and died shortly thereafter.

“The routes of transmission to humans of the novel coronavirus have not yet been fully determined, but the recent UK experience provides strong evidence of human-to-human transmission in at least some circumstances,” Professor John Watson, head of the respiratory diseases department at Britain’s Health Protection Agency, told Medical News Today.

The CDC is urging everyone who traveled to the Arabian Peninsula and suffering from respiratory symptoms to immediately get tested for the novel coronavirus. The health agency also advises US residents who have been in close contact with such travelers to pay close attention to any symptoms. The illness usually shows up within 10 days of infection and brings on a fever, coughing and shortness of breath. All patients develop pneumonia, and some suffer from kidney failure.

So far, no travel restrictions to the Arabian Peninsula and neighboring countries have been implemented.

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