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Edited by HurtfulTurkey: 5/13/2013 7:00:08 PM
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Why is obesity acceptable in society?

I read an article regarding the A&F story by an obese woman that felt they are being negatively discriminatory by not offering sizes for overweight people. She compared it to racial discrimination at one point, and claimed it was wrong to cater to a specific body size when 2/3 of America is overweight. Unfortunately, I can't find the source for this, but I'll post it if I can. Now, barring the ethical discussion about whether they have a right to do so and to what extent, why is obesity acceptable? The wealth factor is not a compelling argument, since healthy foods tend to be some of the cheapest available (lean meats, canned chicken and tuna, raw/fresh/canned vegetables, etc.). The time factor is not compelling either, since being at a healthy weight does not require exercise if you eat well. I'm sure impoverished people around the world would find the idea of specifically trying to burn energy from food because you've eaten too much of it to be simply absurd. There are definitely cases where people are genetically predisposed to having a higher body fat percentage, or have some sort of disease which prevents healthiness, but those tend to be less than a percentage of the whole. In addition, I'm not advocating bullying or harassment. Heart disease is the number 1 cause of death in America, and the number 1 cause of heart disease is poor diet. This isn't a campaign to force people to conform to societal limits of beauty, it's a sincere question asking why we allow, even defend, the ridiculously high number of overweight individuals in America.

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  • Edited by Gaara444: 5/14/2013 12:48:56 AM
    I don't deem it acceptable. Don't try to say something like "It's in my genes" or "I can't help it". It's not because it runs in your family, it's because no one runs in your family.

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    • Its not, but usually, how do people deal with an addiction? They get help to deal with, they are put into rehab, or their family help them with some sort of detox method to get them healthy again. I was overweight before I was given a gym membership by my step dad and he helped me get into shape. Point is, they need help, simple as.

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      • Having an addiction isn't a -blam!-ing choice.

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        • Because they aren't deviations from the norm. Nor does being overweight so drastically destroy your body. Being a raging alcoholic isn't nearly common place. And having your teeth fall out from excessive drug use is more immediate than heart disease some X amount of time down the road.

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          • Because ostracizing them isn't going to solve their problem. They will not feel compelled to change themselves for the better. You know what fat people do when they are depressed? Eat.

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            • I would suggest that most people who make "discrimination" claims are using that as a coping mechanism. Most fat people hate the way they look more than you ever will.

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              • It's become acceptable to point out when people smoke and to criticise them, the same shall soon happen to people that become overwieght. Its not that people are being mean, they just care for peoples health.

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              • I think obesity is one of those things people have a hard time understanding unless they go through it. It's like saying to a gambling addict, "just quit". If it were easy to simply lose weight we would have close to zero overweight people. Secondly, I don't think obesity gets a social pass in America. There's a significant social stigma associated with it. Thirdly, I don't think stores should be forced to carry plus sizes, but I do think Mark Jeffries' comments were douche-tastic.

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                • Actually, it is just proof that my plan is working. Only America stood in my way, with the country too fat to do anything but eat, the Chimichanga Uprising will succeed!

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                • If you have free time, this is interesting to watch.

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                • You can't expect Americans to give up their delicious unhealthy meals that are made on an assembly line by teenagers and felons in a greasy fast food kitchen. You can't expect them to stop enjoying the utterly huge selection of tempting junk foods at their local grocery stores. If all of that unhealthy crap wasn't advocated then there would be some pretty pissed off corporate executives. Fat = a lucrative business.

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                • Edited by Closed Account: 5/13/2013 7:09:31 PM
                  Based on what I've seen, healthier foods tend to be more expensive. Go into the realm of organic foods and it's even pricier. Also, some people just have those genetics in which they're heavyset people, which you mentioned, although you basically brushed it off anyway. But if you look around, you'll notice that people don't condone obesity. It's an absurd notion to say we as a country do. The TV is littered with weight loss commercials and thin models. Our society even holds thin people above large people, and this holds very true for women. In what way does that condone the life of obesity?

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                  • Ewwww, why you so fat Texas?

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                    • [quote]I think obesity is one of those things people have a hard time understanding unless they go through it. It's like saying to a gambling addict, "just quit". If it were easy to simply lose weight we would have close to zero overweight people. Secondly, I don't think obesity gets a social pass in America. There's a significant social stigma associated with it. Thirdly, I don't think stores should be forced to carry plus sizes, but I do think Mark Jeffries' comments were douche-tastic.[/quote] Completely agree with this guy. I wouldn't say being overweight or obese is now acceptable in society. It's not like you see in the media how it's now suddenly attractive to be over 200 pounds. I guess more tolerate would be a more suitable term, imo. However people which are overweight will always be tormented by the fact they'll never fit into the standard definition of "beauty", and that's the price they must pay to have such horrible eating habits. As for complaining about certain stores not carrying their size, this isn't something "new". As long as I can remember, if you never fit into the standard sizes of small, medium, large, you had to go to more specialty clothing stores. Gez, when I was a kid I remember it was quite rare to find the sizes XS or XL in the stores I regularly shopped at.

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                      • Nobody wants to be fat. If it was easy to lose weight, believe me, everybody would be skinny.

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                        • Read the title. No, its not really acceptable in society, at all.

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                        • Because it's not their fault and I don't care if they are fat I only care about myself.

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                          • Edited by Cultmeister: 5/13/2013 9:03:34 PM
                            it's because fat people have always been around and it's seen as a natural part of society like tall people and big-eared people are.

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                          • is the relevant at all?

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                            • HurtfulTurkey, you're doing the Lord's work in here. I speak as someone who was overweight (not obese) and worked over the course of months to shed 45 pounds or so. You are dead on about people thinking it's harder than it actually is. I thought that for many years and finally discovered that with some strong self-discipline on a daily basis I could lose weight. I agree that shaming obesity is not a particularly effective strategy. Neither is assaulting fast food constantly. Neither is saying that if you don't exercise you suck. What we need to do is show people that their lives can change for the better if they want to step up and JUST. EAT. LESS.

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                              • Edited by Recon Number 54: 5/14/2013 4:20:56 PM

                                Started a new topic: nvm that was messed up beyond belief.(2 Replies))

                              • It isn't acceptable.

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                              • Because of feminism I FCKING HATE FAT PEOPLE JESUS CHRIST THEIR SO STUPID WITH THEIR PHAGGOT EXCUSES LIKE MUHHH GENETICS GO FCK YOURSELF

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                              • I wish it weren't becoming more acceptable. I spent 3 years in Germany, came back to America and noticed what I overlooked before; fat people everywhere. Fat people were rare overseas. Not as common as in America. It's sad. It's sad that these obese people are pushing for equality amongst weight and comparing being fat to a beautiful thing and if anyone tells you otherwise they are mean and shallow. These obese people simply want to be accepted rather than do something about it, rather than confront their own shame, they would feign self acceptance and ask you do the same.

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                              • American portion sizes. Bad habits growing up. Fast food. Cheap, crap, fat inducing frozen food. Binging (yes, that includes guzzling 6 pints on a Friday night). And perhaps the percentage of people who have a naive, childish mind and say 'I can do what I want', and go ahead and order/cook more food than necessary. Boredom. Depression. Loneliness. Comfort. Anyways, relating to the OP, we all have ways to deal with the crap that goes on in our lives - some people comfort eat, some rely on drugs and alcohol.. Live and let live, but I don't think people should just rest on their laurels and get fat.. it's lust laziness in the end. Maybe people's friends are lazy asses too, and instead of suggesting going out, they'd rather sit at home.. Not good inspiration to be around. It seems that nowadays, most of us don't care about motivating others. Or maybe that's just me..

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                                • I don't know, but I really hate fat people and I hate the fact that I'm surrounded by them 24/7 here in the US. They could fix being fat so easily but yet they would rather sit around and complain about being fat instead of doing something about it.

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