# Fat Bashing and Sizeism **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 24, 2003, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922 "2003-04-24T18:51:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Witch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@Witch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Witch)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/21 "2003-04-24T22:31:06Z")
And, among my many other sins, I can’t get my coding right today either. ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/22 "2003-04-24T22:32:37Z")
You don’t need insurance to walk a few miles a day. I noticed in Europe that nearly everyone walks or bikes to go places, Americans get in their cars to go a few blocks - no shit we’re fatter. For myself, I can diet until the cows come home and still seem to maintain my weight. If I cut out the car trips and walk/bike instead, the weight comes off. Simple. Take a walk after dinner instead of turning on the TV or getting on the computer, and the weight will come off. ---
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/23 "2003-04-24T22:34:23Z")
I never said laziness I said lack of will power, lack of self control, and lack of desire to make a difficult sacrifice. Please show me a cite that shows that the growing trend of obesity in America is due primarily to factors beyond one’s personal control. ---
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/24 "2003-04-24T22:35:35Z")
My post was directed to **Mockingbird** ---
**Author:** ![DeskMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f14d63/32.png) [@DeskMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeskMonkey)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/25 "2003-04-24T22:38:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mockingbird \* > \*\*Gee. > > You people have had the PERFECT solution the entire time. > > Wow. > > I am _stunned_. > > I am more stunned by the hostility and vitriol thrown at fat people. \*\* I suspect some of that vitrol is exasperation because for as many solutions people offer, there are a plethora of excuses as to why it won’t work. It’s like that with a lot of situations where people are unhappy with themselves or their lives who are surrounded by peole who wish to help in some way. Whether it’s to make the sufferer feel better or just so you don’t have to listen to them complain anymore is up for debate. But when people start scraping for excuses as to why they can’t lose weight, or why they can’t change any number of unhappy circumstances intheir lives when the answers seem so obvious, it’s very frustrating. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/26 "2003-04-24T22:38:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Witch \* > \*\*I can sort of see your point **fin\_man** but I see it like this… > > First off, food is NOT addictive in the way nicotine is addictive…it may be addictive psychologicaly but it certainly doesn’t have the chemical addictive properties that nicotine has. So there’s one difference. > > The other difference is in this day and age I, your average smoker, cannot annoy, affect your comfort, or risk your health by indulging my habit in public places. In other words,\* my smoke isn’t going to spill over into your airplane seat\*. \*\* _Wrong_. Colas and many other sodas have extra caffeine added(which comes from the process of decaffinating coffee). Soda is one of the largest sources of empty calories. In the most obese people I have known(and I’ve seen the flocks of gamers at DragonCon to see them en masse), one of the largest sources of calories is the massive intake of Coke, Pepsi, or Mountain Dew. From [http://spurious.biz/~pkremer/dev\_zero/caffeine.html:](http://spurious.biz/~pkremer/dev_zero/caffeine.html:) - Soft drinks have become the favorite caffeine containing beverage in the United States: 12 oz. can of soft drink may contain 30-72 mg of caffeine. Less than 5% of this caffeine is from the kola nut; manufacturers add the other 95%, using the extract obtained from the decaffeination process. The level of caffeine found in a particular brand is consistent from can to can because of strict manufacturing controls. Only those soft drinks containing caffeine will show it as an ingredient on the product label. To compare brand names, see the chart below. You may be surprised at how many soft drinks contain caffeine and the amount in your favorite beverage. \* After this, different sodas and their caffeine contents are listed. [http://www.montana.edu/wwwfood/nutrit/caffeine.html](http://www.montana.edu/wwwfood/nutrit/caffeine.html) [http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/press/2000/AUGUST/000814.HTM](http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/press/2000/AUGUST/000814.HTM) My weight loss began after I gave up drinking soda and changed to coffee. That was 450 empty calories removed from my diet(3 sodas a day). ---
**Author:** ![Fin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fin_man)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/27 "2003-04-24T22:38:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Witch \* > \*\*My apologies fin-man, i misconstrued your point, as my eyes started to glaze over in the other post after a certain point(can you guess when/ I bet you can!) so I retreated over here. \*\* Apologies accepted but not necessary 🙂 However, as for your coding issues, inexcusable. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/28 "2003-04-24T22:39:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fin\_man \* > \*\* > Activitiy----------Likely outcome---------Unlikely outcome > Playing polo-----------A fun day--------------------Broken Neck > Skiing ------------------A fun day--------------------Broken Neck > Going for a walk------A nice day-------------------Shot in the spine > Smoking----------------Lung cancer ----------------Healthy as a horse > Eat too much ---------Become overweight------- Stay thin > Not exercising---------Become overweight-------Stay healthy > \*\* I’ll extend your table. Take drugs---------Become a junkie ----------- Stay healthy Drink Heavily ------Become alcoholic -----------Stay healthy In both these cases, society crowds around, patting the poor “victim” on the back while screaming to the detractors about how this is a disease. Insurance & public assistance comes to your aid. In the food case, everybody spits on you and tells you to take a hike, literally. As a end to my participation in these threads - because I’ve become weary of the argument - I’ll admit once again that I could eat & excercise & be better off for it. I just don’t want all this judgement for either not doing it, not doing it well enough, or not doing it to the satisfaction of the height/weight chart. I don’t want to be referred to as having “blubber”, being “gelatinous”, or as “fatty” in the meantime. ---
**Author:** ![DeadlyAccurate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@DeadlyAccurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeadlyAccurate)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/29 "2003-04-24T22:43:04Z")
1. 40% body fat doesn’t mean so big you need two seats. I was at 40% just this January, and I was by no means so big that I would bother anyone in the next seat with my weight. 2. Move your ass is great advice. I’ve done that 6 hours a week for 7 years. I walked, ran, used a stairclimber, elliptical, incline trainer and weight machine. And I gained almost 70 lbs in that time. The answers aren’t always as simple as that. 3. Contrary to popular belief, you do not in any way, shape or form have to go hungry to lose weight. You do not have to eat fat-free this and that to lose weight. And you can reach a point where you actually don’t crave food and only want to eat enough to be not hungry and then go about your life. ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/30 "2003-04-24T22:46:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by adam yax \* > \*\*Care to expand on this comment? I’ve never read about cops harrassing 300 lbs people just because they were 300 lbs. \*\* I’ll ammend my statement to change “illegal” to “immoral”. ---
**Author:** ![Fin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fin_man)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/31 "2003-04-24T22:47:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mockingbird \* > \*\*_Wrong_. > > Colas and many other sodas have extra caffeine added(which comes from the process of decaffinating coffee).\*\* Well, is caffeine addictive? Some say no, like [OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT COFFEE AND HEALTH](http://www.coffeescience.org/other.html) which says "Is caffeine addictive? A: Addiction is a strong dependence on a drug characterized by three elements: 1) severe withdrawal symptoms; 2) tolerance to a given dose, or the need for more and more of the substance; and 3) the loss of control, or the need to consume the substance at all costs. Addicts may exhibit anti-social behavior or even commit crimes to perpetuate the abuse. Evidence shows that coffee drinkers do not exhibit these symptoms of addiction. " while some say yes, like [Caffeine Addiction](http://www.freedomyou.com/addiction/caffeine%20addiction.htm) which says “Caffeine is highly addictive. Quitting coffee can cause withdrawal symptoms such as headaches, sleepiness and irritability.” Given the ease which people can and do stop caffeine cold turkey without anti-social behavior, I say it isn’t addictive. ---
**Author:** ![Witch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@Witch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Witch)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/32 "2003-04-24T22:47:44Z")
**Mockingbird** …everyone in my family is overweight or obese except for me and my kids. EVERYONE. So the “food is love” and all that isn’t going to wash with me. I’m not fat. My kids aren’t fat. They(my family) don’t have to be fat either. And they DO just sit around on their asses. It’s their own fault they are the way they are. It doesn’t mean I love them any less, but we all come from the same upbringing and experiences, and the pyscho-babble angle is crap, at least in this case. And don’t get me wrong, I know there are people that have medically valid reasons for their weight problems, but such people are in the minority. I’ve been overweight. I’ve gone up and down my whole life. I’ve been anywhere from 130 to 200 pounds. But for the past 7 years, I’ve managed to maintain a stable heathly weight. You know how? I stopped making excuses. I stopped blaming it on our culture. I stopped blaming it on my family and my genes. I stopped talking about it. I stopped bemoaning the fact I couldn’t afford WW. I stopped WHINING and I got off my ass and I DID something about it. And **Boscibo** hit the nail on the head…I lost all that weight by walking. didn’t cost me a cent. No more excuses. ---
**Author:** ![DeskMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f14d63/32.png) [@DeskMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeskMonkey)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/33 "2003-04-24T22:48:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Belrix \* > \*\*As a end to my participation in these threads - because I’ve become weary of the argument - I’ll admit once again that I could eat & excercise & be better off for it. I just don’t want all this judgement for either not doing it, not doing it well enough, or not doing it to the satisfaction of the height/weight chart. I don’t want to be referred to as having “blubber”, being “gelatinous”, or as “fatty” in the meantime. \*\* Beautifully stated. That is a wonderfully honest and entirely reasonable response. No excuses, just an expectation of respect and I will honor it happily. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Fin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fin_man)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/34 "2003-04-24T22:51:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Belrix \* > \*\*I’ll extend your table. > > Take drugs---------Become a junkie ----------- Stay healthy > Drink Heavily ------Become alcoholic -----------Stay healthy > > In both these cases, society crowds around, patting the poor “victim” on the back while screaming to the detractors about how this is a disease. Insurance & public assistance comes to your aid. > > In the food case, everybody spits on you and tells you to take a hike, literally. > > As a end to my participation in these threads - because I’ve become weary of the argument - I’ll admit once again that I could eat & excercise & be better off for it. I just don’t want all this judgement for either not doing it, not doing it well enough, or not doing it to the satisfaction of the height/weight chart. I don’t want to be referred to as having “blubber”, being “gelatinous”, or as “fatty” in the meantime. \*\* As for your additions, I think it is bullshit that society pampers the poor “victims”. However, the threads were not saying “I can’t believe this person was so fat”, it was “I can’t believe this fat person invaded my personal space.” I would have been equally supportive (as I’m sure most of the people would) if it was “I can’t believe this alcoholic kept spilling his drink on me” or “I can’t believe this druggie kept spilling his coke lines on me”. Now I have read all the post with accuracy but I don’t remember anybody referring to you as having blubber, being gelatinous, or as a fatty. ---
**Author:** ![Fin\_man](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@Fin\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fin_man)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/35 "2003-04-24T22:55:21Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fin\_man \* > \*\*Now I have read all the post with accuracy but I don’t remember anybody referring to you as having blubber, being gelatinous, or as a fatty. \*\* OOPS!! I have **NOT** read all the posts with accuracy. Sorry. And as for what **DeskMonkey** said, I second that. I will treat you with respect (and I believe I have) and I hope you will do the same. However, if somebody (large or otherwise) fails to respect my personal space, they should beware. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/36 "2003-04-24T22:58:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DeskMonkey \* > \*\*I suspect some of that vitrol is exasperation because for as many solutions people offer, there are a plethora of excuses as to why it won’t work. It’s like that with a lot of situations where people are unhappy with themselves or their lives who are surrounded by peole who wish to help in some way. Whether it’s to make the sufferer feel better or just so you don’t have to listen to them complain anymore is up for debate. But when people start scraping for excuses as to why they can’t lose weight, or why they can’t change any number of unhappy circumstances intheir lives when the answers seem so obvious, it’s very frustrating. \*\* The problem is that the answers are not obvious to you or the person who needs to see them. Often, it is little different than dealing with an alcoholic who needs to see that they are destroying themselves but cannot see the forest for the trees. While the tools surround all of us, it is the act of admitting that one has a problem and getting the necessary tools that makes the change. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/37 "2003-04-24T23:00:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mockingbird \* > \*\*_Wrong_. > Colas and many other sodas have extra caffeine added(which comes from the process of decaffinating coffee). And they still come up a fraction of the amount of caffine in coffee. Even “Jolt” cola doesn’t come close. ---
**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/38 "2003-04-24T23:04:19Z")
**DeadlyAccurate** , I said 40% or more which is cited as an unhealthy level. And true, you don’t have to go hungry to lose weight, but for at for me, celery and air popped corn just don’t satisfy a hankering. **Belrix** , this is the last time I’ll say it drugs and alchol are physically addictive, food (that hasn’t been doped with caffeine as **Mockingbird mentions** ) are not. > [@](#): > > I’ll admit once again that I could eat & excercise & be better off for it. I just don’t want all this judgement for either not doing it, not doing it well enough, or not doing it to the satisfaction of the height/weight chart. I don’t want to be referred to as having “blubber”, being “gelatinous”, or as “fatty” in the meantime. No one is judging you for being fat. We are judging you for saying your weight is mostly beyond your control and that the government or your job should have to pay to help you do something you are perfectly capable of doing yourself. It’s about personal responsibility. However, I do agree that hurtful names are uneccessary. ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/39 "2003-04-24T23:05:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fin\_man \* > \*\*Now I have read all the post with accuracy but I don’t remember anybody referring to you as having blubber, being gelatinous, or as a fatty. \*\* At the risk of being sucked back into this mire that I was going to leave… While not referring directly to me, these are all terms for fat people from posters in the original thread. I detail them [here.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&postid=3326181#post3326181) ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2003, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922/40 "2003-04-24T23:06:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Belrix \* > \*\*At the risk of being sucked back into this mire that I was going to leave… > > While not referring directly to me, these are all terms for fat people from posters in the original thread. I detail them [here.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&postid=3326181#post3326181) \*\* Never mind. I see your later retraction. Peace. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fat-bashing-and-sizeism/170922.md?page=3)