“Are we now getting government involved in banning people?s activities because 100 people a year might be affected by it?”

1. “Government” is not getting involved in “banning” anything.
2. A lot more than 100 people a year are “affected” by it.
3. Peanut allergy is a growing problem, and there’s a lot of ignorance about it.

From your link:

Wisconsin is asking people to refrain from feeding squirrels at the state Capitol because they might inadvertently harm a child with a peanut allergy. The state sent a letter Monday to tenants of a downtown Madison office building, asking whomever has been feeding the squirrels on the Capitol lawn to please stop.

Nanny state? “[A]bsurd hyperbolic action”? There are no new laws proposed here. No threats of prosecution or civil sanctions. They asked in a letter if whoever was spreading the peanuts would please stop.

I suggest you do a little more research.

“Food allergic reactions cause an estimated 30,000 emergency room visits and kill 150 to 200 people a year.” (Source.) Peanuts are the #1 food allergy, affecting something like 0.5% of the population.

My 20 year old daughter has a moderate to severe peanut allergy. We always had to avoid going to restaurants where peanuts were handed out in buckets, shells thrown on the floor, etc. A small amount of peanut dust in the air has been enough to trigger asthma: “….F]or those with peanut allergies, even 1/1,000 of a peanut can cause a severe reaction.” You tell me how to avoid exposure to peanut dust on a commercial flight when peanuts are handed out as a snack.

From the time she was able to read, Ellie was vigilant about avoiding peanuts, always reading food labels (food labeling per the dictates of the FDA — there go the jackbooted nanny state thugs again! ). She had serious exposure to peanuts on 3 occasions:

1. At a school fair at age 6, she ate a homemade Rice Krispie treat that contained a small amount of peanut butter (unlabeled, of course). That sent her to the emergency room.
2. At age 8, she ate one bite of a birthday cake at a friend’s party. The hostess had made a box cake mix, but added 1 tablespoon of peanut butter for texture. Another emergency room visit.
3. At age 18, Ellie ate about a teaspoon of pesto at a restaurant. The chef’s “special recipe” was the substitution of peanuts for pine nuts that are normally in pesto. Another emergency room visit.

After the last visit, the doc told us that most peanut deaths are seen in teenagers, who are out from under parental supervision and reluctant to carry their epi-pens with them at all times.

One of the scariest episodes of my life was when a friend experienced anaphylactic shock as a result of some allergen that was never identified. Up until then, I too thought that allergies were a nuisance that mostly caused hives, itching, sneezing and discomfort. In anaphylaxis (the same reaction experienced by those that are sensitive to peanuts, bee stings, shellfish, etc.), the body goes into severe respiratory and circulatory shock that can be fatal within minutes. It is very, very serious.

As a parent, I probably would have simply avoided that squirrel feeding ground. But I also see that one of the biggest threats to the 1 in 200 or so who is deathly allergic to this very common ingredient is the blithe ignorance and the dismissive attitude of the general population. Peanuts are almost impossible to completely avoid.