If that statement were half as concretely true as you think it is, you wouldn't need to ask some doctor who works at some hospital to give you a number. On top of this, just because a physician works at a hospital (which is to say, they probably treat a lot of acute issues on a relatively short timescale) does't mean they're a reliable source about chronic issues like, say, obesity. So, you're saying fat people exist because we aren't shaming them. That's interesting. So... you claim 10% or less of people are genetically programmed to be fat no matter what, and that most tubs fit 90% of the population... you have created two puzzle pieces custom made for each other, and can't even put them together.
Fuck anyone who says it's ok to be fat. It's a choice and it doesn't just affect the disgusting fat fuck stuffing their face with McDoubles and Super-sized fries. A few years ago I pulled my back lifting a 600 lb lady into the back of an ambulance and wasn't able to work for 3 weeks. After that day all my sympathy for the morbidly obese evaporated (much the same way my sympathy for the homeless is non-existent). People like that should be ground into pig slop and fed to starving children.
That the same 10 % that are genetically programmed are the same as the 10% that need to be lowered into pools with that machine seat?
Dread Pirate: What's the weight limit someone has to adhere to so they escape your plan of becoming pig slop?
I'd guess its because being overweight has become such the norm in the US that when you say "fat" people who are the "normal" 20-30lbs overweight don't want to think of themselves as being "fat" I don't have anything against people that are the "normal" overweight (as I'm guessing neither do most of the people on this site) but there is a checker at my grocery store where I shop who is so fat, it disgusts me. I would wait in a line that is 5 full shopping carts deep instead of going to her check out stand even if she had no one in line.
My opinions are probably somewhat biased because I work in an industry where I see almost nothing but fat people.(also live in Texas) I work in an orthopedic surgery clinic and the doctors I work with specialize in knee and hip problems. They cover all the rest but they have certain specialties. With the exception of the high school/recreational athletes that come in for sports related injuries and kids falling off their bikes, I would say that 90% of my patients are obese or morbidly obese. They are diabetic or if they are young, pre diabetic. They come in with knee pain, and hip pain. Lower back pain. Foot and ankle. All the weight bearing joints and extremities. Yes, it is job security and pays my bills, but it is all preventable. All of it. They wouldn't have to tax the system so hard with their insurance claims for all these elective joint replacement procedures and injections. They wouldn't need tons of physical therapy and pain killers. The doctors don't mind so much because it keeps them busy, but you can see by the looks on their faces that they are tired of the same old shit. Fat people, knee problems. They try to help the people but really, its just worthless. They need to help themselves. They also get their diabetic meds paid for. The problems from obesity are so fucking expensive. And all I want to see is a little responsibility taken.
You guys have accused me of being a fat hater more than once. I suppose that's fair to a point. But there are a lot of fat people who aren't 'fat'. They look fantastic in clothes. Naked they look like hot peanut butter in a bag. Thing is - I don't hold anything against the guy at the gym working his ass off to lose 150 lbs that he put on by eating pizzas by the pound. Nor do I hold anything against the woman who's morbidly obese who emails me and asks me to help her lose the weight she gained because of depression and a few other health issues. The people I have no use for? They're the equivalent, in my mind, of a man standing in the street staring at his neighbor's house, bitching about how pretty his yard is and how neat the house is kept. Whining that it isn't fair that Bob gets to have such a nice yard, and it makes the rest of the neighbors look bad. It's not fair that Bob's house isn't thrashed by his kids and their toys being strewn about, because other people have LIVES you know. They don't have time to work a full time job (Bob does) and tend the yard (Bob does) and make sure the house is neat and clean while raising a family (Bob and Jane do), so Bob and Jane need to stop being assholes and making everyone else feel bad. Fuck off. Do the goddamn work. Read a cookbook and learn to make good healthy meals. Take a fucking walk after dinner. Throw a baseball with your kids. Zumba, ride a bike, go to a park, DO SOMETHING besides sit and watch Honey Fucking Boo Boo eating manufactured food bitching about the work that other people are willing to put into their lives. The people who make excuses, fat or thin, for why they 'caaaannntttt' do something. The whiners, the ones who want other people to bring down their game so the layabouts don't have to work harder? Feed 'em to the fucking sharks. edit: I'm with Xray on the costs thing. The costs associated with obesity are ridiculous and PREVENTABLE. To see kids with T2 diabetes at 8, 9, 10 years of age because they weigh as much as an adult is both disgusting and inexcusable. It's child abuse. The types of foods these parents are feeding their kids, and the way the kids are living their lives, is revolting.
How much do you have to weigh to qualify for a Medicare-funded Rascal scooter or handicapped parking spot solely because you're fat? Whatever that number is would be a good starting point.
Right now I'm about 20 pounds overweight and I don't bitch if someone calls me fat, because they're right. I let myself slip and got a little chubby, and I look terrible. But guess what? I'm already taking measures to get rid of that shit. Soon I'll be back to normal, but until then people can go right ahead and give be shit for being overweight, because it's no one's fault but my own.
Usually I don't open thinly veiled warning spoilers, and that time I did. Thanks CJ for pushing me past the absolute BRINK of homosexuality. Looks like it's throw rugs, Pier One Imports and decorative Kleenex boxes for this guy now. Reprehensible.
Kill all the fat people! They've made poor choices that negatively affect their life and indirectly the lives of people around them, so they don't deserve basic human decency. Why stop there, though? We should grind up everybody who makes sub-par financial decisions. A hatchet to the face for anybody who doesn't read on a regular basis. Let's stab anybody that posts somewhat inane facebook statuses in the face. If you have a dead-end job but you can actually do better, into the woodchipper you go. Anybody who doesn't know world politics should be drowned -- how hard is it go get back down onto the couch and get yourself some knowledge? I want the head of anybody who doesn't recycle. Can we waterboard everybody who doesn't volunteer enough?
I remember a thread we had here a few years ago where we were asked if our significant other used to be fat, would we want to know. I think the general consensus (myself included), was that we deserved to know that sort of information. A lot of people passed off knowing that sort of thing would be necessary to gauge the habits/work ethic/motivation etc of their partner. I just thought it was worth a mention, in that perhaps the fat guy/girl working hard at the gym to lose weight, and actually does (going against the norm), doesn't necessarily escape total judgment.
Protip: if you think that exercise is the best first step to weight loss, you're clueless and need to shut the fuck up now, period. I'm looking at quite a few of you now.
I'm surprised that economics hasn't been mentioned yet in this thread. We can preach all we want about "Cook healthy meals from scratch," but a large chunk of (mostly inner city) populations who are at or below the poverty line live in food deserts. They also live in recreational deserts. The only "grocery store" is the local bodega, and the only place the children can play are parking lots of apartment buildings. One of the larger (no pun intended) contributing factors to obesity is your socioeconomic standing. The poorer you are, the fatter you're apt to be.
For most of my life I was the skinny guy. Somewhere in my mid 20s to mid 30s I hit my sweet spot, and looked good. Or, at least as good as I'm going to look. Now I'm the fat guy. And I'm well-fucking-aware how it happened. Shit, I'm drinking a beer and eating cheese as I type this. But to bitch about thin privilege? - fucking ridiculous. It's no one's fault but my own that I've gained about 40 pounds in the last 10 years. That website is absurd at best, and they all deserve to be mocked. And if I could heave my quivering bulk up out of this chair I'd come over there and smack lhprop silly. Damn lucky I'm currently out of breath, bitch.
This pretty much describes me as well. I used to be skinny as fuck when I was growing up; when I was 18 I was 5'10" and weighed 135 pounds. I was at my best weight when I was in the military at about 170, but when I got out that and just getting older I put weight on. At my worst I hover around 215; when I'm working out regularly I'll get down to 195. If I changed my routine I could drop more weight but I honestly don't care that much - I'd rather be strong and carry a little extra weight then be really skinny again but have no muscle. My diet isn't terrible; I avoid soda and mostly eat a lot of proteins, good fats such as eggs, and lots of fruit. I could improve my diet by cutting out the pasta and pizza, but the main thing keeping me heavy is the portions - I simply eat too much. I really wish my doctor would back off about my weight, because he still goes by the stupid BMI chart. I get a full lab panel done every year and this most recent year was my best ever: good cholesterol, low blood pressure, everything else in a good, healthy range. The BMI chart is frankly my biggest fucking gripe. I wish health professionals would stop treating it as sacrosanct advice and take a more comprehensive look at a person's total overall health before make a judgment about their weight.