Is it fair to fine fat people for not dieting?

Originally posted by WhiteHat
Maybe you're right.
When it will hurt them to the bone, maybe they'll stand up and say: enough!
But it's a long, painful road until there.

Remember, war is not glamorous.

When your enemy stays two steps ahead of you (while tracing the contours on the proverbial red button), the only action you have left is to take away that in which gives them pleasure.

You push the red button.

Reply to Whitehat: What if the sheep have a shepherd? The wolf approaches the flock salivating and is killed by the shepherd.

is this the Obamacare that we have been hearing so much about? LMAO!

Originally posted by HUMBLEONE
Reply to Whitehat: What if the sheep have a shepherd? The wolf approaches the flock salivating and is killed by the shepherd.

Oh, the big scary wolf!
What about the shepherd? Isn't he supposed to keep the sheep safe until he himself can kill and eat them? At least the wolf is open with his intentions, while the good shepherd is not.

What a luck we are not really sheep, and we can take care of one wolf by ourselves. Or hire some dogs....But who will tell us that? is not profitable for the shepherd....

its pretty obvious that some people in this thread are taking "fat tax" as a personal insult.
sadly arguing this topic is useless.Its not as black & white as some people are making out.

Ok, probably a little off topic but, I work at a convenience store. I could not even begin to count how many overweight customers come in, and buy close to 45 dollars in nothing but junk/snack food. Really? I have a better alternative. Maybe you wouldn't be so overweight if you didn't buy/eat so much crap. AND, even better, why don't you use your food stamps for actual meals, and actually feed your family something healthy? I could not even begin to describe how much I'm against foodstamps, EBT, and welfare. I mean yeah, some people could really use it, like people who are mentally or physically disabled. They're making it way too easy for people to obtain such benefits. I could very easily get these benefits, but because I have no reason to, I refuse. I have a friend, who has told me numerous times, after asking her about her finding a job, that she would rather live off of her foodstamps, and her disability, because she wouldn't have a life if she had to work. She would much rather sit around, smoking her weed, and do nothing at all. I have no idea how she was able to get on disability, I've known her all my life, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with her, at all. Period. America is making people lazier and lazier.
Sorry, I ended up ranting, but I just needed to say it.

As a fat person, I will say, in my opinion, it is fair, depending on how it's done. Should there just be a direct penalty that you pay? No, I don't think so. Should unhealthy foods be taxed? Sure. If you take up an extra seat on a bus/train/plane, should you pay more? Sure. If you have health insurance, should you pay an extra fee because you're likely to use more resources? Sure.

So I guess I'm for taxing the behaviors that would lead one to be fat, similar to taxing cigarettes. On the flip side, should there be benefits for healthy people? Maybe there should be...maybe some sort of tax benefit if you go to the gym X times a month or if you maintain a healthy weight / cholesterol level / blood-sugar levels, etc.

Does anyone see the irony in this?

Long ago people were just happy to get enough food for their family from welfare, now the system is putting a penalty on over-weight recipients? lol

They actually pay for cell phones and more in my area too, ridiculous right.

I understand some people need help when they are down and out, but when you have 4 and 5th generation welfare recipients, that are morbidly obese and expect a check every month for doing nothing, I would wager there is not going to be much sympathy for a "Fat Fine"

Reply to whitehat: touche. The shepherd eats the sheep and then realizes that it just ate itself. So there we have it. Enlightenment is just auto oral gratification??? This is bullsh$t!! I want my money back!!!!

I think it'd only be fair if you could also tax the ignorant for not paying attention, the stupid for not learning, and aggressive people for not being more calm, and dishonest people for not telling the truth. These are all factors that go into costs that society has to pay the price for...

Originally posted by neformore

Is it fair to fine fat people for not dieting?

www.bbc.co.uk

Overweight welfare claimants in the US state of Arizona face paying $50 (£31) fines if they don't follow a dietary regime laid down by their doctor. Is that fair?

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
theweek.com
www.lisajohnsonfitness.com
www.latimes.com

Ummm..........Only if.....you really, really...like... the idea that the government is authoring, engendering and enforcing discrimination against a whole segment of society.........I dont like it.......not one bit...and I'm not even overweight....
This might as well be a proposition to fine people who refuse to apply sunscreen, or who happen to have a finer shade of tan than the norm........You just cant make this stuff up.............WTF?

YouSir

Scientists find "master switch" gene for obesity
Mon, May 16 2011
LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have found that a gene linked to diabetes and cholesterol is a "master switch" that controls other genes found in fat in the body, and say it should help in the search for treatments for obesity-related diseases.

In a study published in the journal Nature Genetics, the British researchers said that since fat plays an important role in peoples' susceptibility to metabolic diseases like obesity, heart disease and diabetes, the regulating gene could be target for drugs to treat such illnesses.

"This is the first major study that shows how small changes in one master regulator gene can cause a cascade of other metabolic effects in other genes," said Tim Spector of King's College London, who led the study.

More than half a billion people, or one in 10 adults worldwide, are obese and the numbers have doubled since the 1980s as the obesity epidemic has spilled over from wealthy into poorer nations.

In the United States, obesity-related diseases already account for nearly 10 percent of medical spending -- an estimated $147 billion a year.

Type 2 diabetes, which is often linked to poor diet and lack of exercise, is also reaching epidemic levels worldwide as rates of obesity rise.

Scientists have already identified a gene called KLF14 as being linked to type 2 diabetes and cholesterol levels, but until now they did know what role it played.

Spector's team analyzed more than 20,000 genes in fat samples taken from under the skin of 800 British female twin volunteers. They found a link between the KLF14 gene and the levels of many other distant genes found in fat tissue, showing that KLF14 acts as a master switch to control these genes.

They then confirmed their findings in 600 fat samples from a separate group of people from Iceland.

In a report of their study, the researchers explained that other genes found to be controlled by KLF14 are linked to a range of metabolic traits, including body mass index, obesity, cholesterol, insulin and glucose levels.

"KLF14 seems to act as a master switch controlling processes that connect changes in the behavior of subcutaneous fat to disturbances in muscle and liver that contribute to diabetes and other conditions," said Mark McCarthy from Britain's Oxford University, who also worked on the study.

"We are working hard...to understand these processes and how we can use this information to improve treatment of these conditions."

(Reporting by Kate Kelland, editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: www.reuters.com...

I had a gastric bypass and lost over 125 pounds.

In order to keep the weight off I am limited to under 1,000 calories a day and must power walk over 1 mile a day.

My mother and father both were big and I never ever saw them eat a piece of cake, candy, pie, ice cream or other snack food.

My mother would have:

AM One cup of black coffee
Noon: one Peanut butter sandwich on Wonder bread and one apple
Dinner: a tablespoon of a meat, a tablespoon of a starch and a table spoon of vegetable.
Bedtime: 1 beer.

I asked my sister because my mother died when I was 9 if maybe she snuck food and her reply was: "No, mother could live on air. If you want to remain thin in our family - don't eat.

Sorry Charlie, some folks are doomed.

I have a girlfriend that is as thin as a rail and she eats like a pig, morning, noon and night............no she doesn't purge or exercise at all.

My husband, while he runs every day and does weights every other day faithfully eats three to four times as much as I do easily.

I am now thin, but in order to remain thin, I cannot eat over 1,000 calories and must count every single thing I put in my mouth.

My doctor says that yes some people just have lucky genes...................it's all DNA/genes.

Penalizing someone for their poop arse luck of having rotten genes is not fair.

And it's now politically correct to be prejudice against fat people.

When I was fat I was picked on, ostracized and made to feel like I was a worthless human being.

Notice your thread has a lot of hits......................and my guess is most of them are hateful towards "fatties".

Being hateful, or prejudice against anyone is wrong.

No, obese people should not be penalized, they should be helped, supported and treated nicely.

125 years ago it was blacks, negros, people of color that were picked on............why do we always have to pick on someone?

Why can't people be nice.

When I see a obese person enter the room, I really feel for them - been there and it's no picnic.

I am always hungry - I dream about food. I am always cold except when I power walk and for one hour afterwards.

You have no idea what living on 1,000 calories a day is like.

I give up dinner in order to have a glass of wine at night.

Shows how there is no such thing as free money.

To the person above saying that it's all DNA and genes, I think you are applying the your own experience to too many people who doesn't deserve to be classified as such.

Some people simply eat ruthlessly and that is the main cause of their problem.

Ok let’s set the stage first.

Some of you will not agree with me but hey the truth we all seek is found in being honest.

!st. I am prejudice against fat people.

2nd I am prejudice against most welfare recipients. Especially those that feel that they are entitled to suck off my tax paying teat.

To clear my feelings up…. If you are a fat welfare recipient you are being fed way too much for what you are contributing or giving back to society.

Now here is the rub. Knowing my true feelings about this matter, we as a nation should not go down this road or slippery slope. One of these days the same could be said about those of us who do not have blue eyes and blond hair. Its been done before. And can happen again.

Think about it guys. This is a place we should not visit.

Originally posted by neformore

Is it fair to fine fat people for not dieting?

www.bbc.co.uk

Overweight welfare claimants in the US state of Arizona face paying $50 (£31) fines if they don't follow a dietary regime laid down by their doctor. Is that fair?

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
theweek.com
www.lisajohnsonfitness.com
www.latimes.com

Not just unfair, but illegal. Our constitution had to cover this type of harassment somewhere. This is very NAZI-esque

Definitely not fair to fine people for being fat, its free will and there right to be fat if they want aslong as its not harming other people. If they want to be unhealthy and die before there time it should be up to them.

reply to post by ofhumandescent


I'm in support of you on this. I had gastric banding a year ago and my weight loss has stalled in spite of low calorie intake. There is absolutely NO way quantity of food/lack of exercise by itself is responsible for all obesity. Our bodies are so complex. Some people are prone to be larger regardless of taking in less calories, just like others are prone to be smaller regardless of eating a large quantity. Even with my band, I've accepted that to lose my last 50 lbs, I am going to have to work for it.
That being said, I also blame the food industry and food additives for a lot of our health problems. I am fairly certain that fast food is addictive. Before my surgery, I ate fast food every day for lunch. I craved it, thought about it obsessively, and planned my next lunch excitedly. Since my surgery, I can no longer eat most fast foods because the breads stick in the stoma created by my band. I have pretty much given up fast food because it isn't worth it to me to spend money on something I can't eat half of anyway. Cravings are gone. I rarely even think about a restaurant anymore. It drives my husband nuts, because I never want to go out to eat unless it's a place where I can get home-cooked type foods. I'm sure my local Hardees misses me. They even knew what I wanted when I walked in.

reply to post by Komaratzi11


Good post.

My doctor told me, if there was a mini ice age or nuclear winter me and my two of three sons would easily survive. We are like bears. We pack on the weight and somehow could survive as millions of other humans thoughout history have starvation times.

He said that I could literally live on air for longer than the mainstream populace.

But I still dream of turkey, gravey, potoatoes with sour cream, pumpkin pie with real whip cream, dressing, cream cheese cake, pizza, cheese, cheese and more cheese, chocolate dripped ice cream, hot dogs, pizza, every night I dream of food..................yet control myself.

If half of you thinnies had the hunger switch always on you couldn't survive my world.

I am a master at control.....................a sheer master.

You have no idea of the constant hunger I have to fight.

"Is it fair to fine fat people for not dieting?" Yup. Safety first... food and beauty secondary... Fat people are a "burnden" to society. They eat more than necessary, get sick and need "treatment" just to get better. They should be ashamed of themselves --- the extra food could have gone to those who are STARVING!!!

reply to post by neformore


If they are on welfare.


Then yes.
This is purely economical. Healthier people have a greater potential and likely drive to be more productive. Which will help them get off welfare.