# Saw a disturbing picture on Facebook today **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 24, 2016, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039 "2016-04-24T22:31:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2016, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/1 "2016-04-24T22:31:12Z")
A former co-worker whose two teenage daughters are in the Rainbow Girls (a Masonic organization for teenage girls, if you didn’t know) posted a photo of the group today. ALL of the girls, a dozen or so, were morbidly obese; her daughters were probably the least hefty of the bunch. ☹ These were not girls who were a bit chubby; most of them probably weighed twice as much as they should have. I sure hope this kind of thing is not the new normal. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2016, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/2 "2016-04-24T22:51:57Z")
Not only is it the new normal, it’s only going to get worse. Remember “Fit Mom”- she caught a lot of flack because she dared to post photos of her great post-pregnancy figure (after doing a lot of hard work), and having the temerity to suggest that others could do it, too. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/3 "2016-04-25T00:54:18Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > . . . she caught a lot of flack because she dared to post photos of her great post-pregnancy figure (after doing a lot of hard work), and having the temerity to suggest that others could do it, too. I not sure how this relates to the OP . . . but, the CDC has [a lot of data about this](http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/index.html). From what I can see, there seems to be a correlation with income. However, maybe there’s something about the Rainbow Girls in particular that led to this disturbing photo. ---
**Author:** ![spamforbrains](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@spamforbrains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spamforbrains)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/4 "2016-04-25T01:17:54Z")
> [@](#): > > it’s only going to get worse. childhood obesity rates have stopped climbing for several years now. They are aren’t going down, but they aren’t getting worse. There’s a definite geographic pattern, with very high rates in Texas and several southern states and lower rates in some western states. For ALL of the kids in a photo to be obese, though, perhaps something that particular group does is contributing to the problem, or maybe they only recruit among the obese? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/5 "2016-04-25T01:18:21Z")
It’s a glandular thing. They can’t help it. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/6 "2016-04-25T01:49:36Z")
For all of them? Really? ---
**Author:** ![bb49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b38774/32.png) [@bb49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bb49)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/7 "2016-04-25T02:30:24Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > It’s a glandular thing. They can’t help it. Glandular? Really now? That seems to be the excuse for most obese people when the real reason is life style: lazy, inactive, poor choice of food and too much of it. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/8 "2016-04-25T03:13:45Z")
> [@bb49](#): > > Glandular? Really now? That seems to be the excuse for most obese people when the real reason is life style: lazy, inactive, poor choice of food and too much of it. Woosh. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/9 "2016-04-25T03:25:25Z")
Oh no! Fat people are taking over! ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/10 "2016-04-25T17:41:05Z")
Because masonic organization for teen girls screams cool kids who easily make friends. ---
**Author:** ![WildBlueYonder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@WildBlueYonder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildBlueYonder)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/11 "2016-04-25T17:49:15Z")
Gosh, I look at all the people where I go and half or more are overweight. I just started noticing it a few months ago, not saying they werent there before, I just started taking notice. I hope its not the new normal but look at what they are exposed to daily. Just saw a new ad for richer and sugary treats at IHOP. We as a nation are not getting the health issue, we are bombarded by food ads. Its every age we need to work on, not just children I’d like to start at where there is a law to restrict the candy at the check out to a length of reasonable size! Too too handy! Course it would not make sense to retailers but we all need to work together, there has to be some sort of extra help to get our waist sizes under control! Put the shame of being fat into the past Exercise facilities are not feasible to the poor masses. Plus too far between and few. And yet another industry held hostage by the big oil, just keep pushing easy transport! ---
**Author:** ![yellowjacketcoder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/4bbf92/32.png) [@yellowjacketcoder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowjacketcoder)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/12 "2016-04-25T17:50:54Z")
> [@sitchensis](#): > > Because masonic organization for teen girls screams cool kids who easily make friends. Hey, when I was in high school I dated a girl that was in Rainbow! Your description is way more accurate to her and her group than I want to admit. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/13 "2016-04-25T17:56:51Z")
When I was a kid and young adult we went the beach on a regular basis. Then I went decades without going. Last summer I went and hung out all day for the first time in a very long time. Very few people were “trim”. I wouldn’t be shocked to find to the best 10 percent of today would be matched/bested by 90 percent of the folks of of yesteryear. And like the OP, it was the youngest/er age groups that made me go :eek: ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/14 "2016-04-25T18:03:21Z")
It’s all part of the “Harrison Bergeron” syndrome. Everyone wants to be considered above average, and not have to do any work to improve themselves. It used to be that gym teachers would push the un-athletic kids to push themselves (I know, I was one of them), now there [often isn’t any PE](http://study.com/articles/Lack_of_Mandatory_PE_is_Making_Our_Kids_Fat.html). ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/15 "2016-04-25T18:09:23Z")
Go do an image search for “Rainbow Girls”. Every once in a while, a waist or two can be sighted. A shot of the girls in theirs colored dresses (together, they form a “Rainbow”) in Alaska was downright scary. Maybe there is something to that “You are what you eat” and these folks eat a lot of blubber. (yes, I’m a bad person) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/16 "2016-04-25T18:15:49Z")
Down with this sort of thing! ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/17 "2016-04-25T18:24:26Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Not only is it the new normal, it’s only going to get worse. > Remember “Fit Mom”- she caught a lot of flack because she dared to post photos of her great post-pregnancy figure (after doing a lot of hard work), and having the temerity to suggest that others could do it, too. no, she caught flak because of the “what’s _your_ excuse?” bullshit. as if anyone was making “excuses” to her, or needed her opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/18 "2016-04-25T18:35:39Z")
> [@bb49](#): > > Glandular? Really now? That seems to be the excuse for most obese people when the real reason is life style: lazy, inactive, poor choice of food and too much of it. Yeah, that’s it. :rolleyes: Do you really think people _choose_ to be the object of so much ridicule? A lot of people never learn to eat correctly in the first place and then don’t know what that actually is. In another thread we were discussing weighing food and what actual portion sizes are. It’s a shocker how small they are compared to what we have marketed to us. It’s going to take a lot of education, not ridicule, to fix this problem. Your shaming will make it worse, not better. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/19 "2016-04-25T18:37:43Z")
> [@WildBlueYonder](#): > > Exercise facilities are not feasible to the poor masses. Plus too far between and few. It’s not so much a question of exercise, but rather a (IMO) marketing driven derangement of portion sizes, combined with high calorie food being cheaper than ever before. People used to flat out eat less back in the day. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2016, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039/20 "2016-04-25T18:56:27Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > Yeah, that’s it. :rolleyes: Do you really think people _choose_ to be the object of so much ridicule? > > A lot of people never learn to eat correctly in the first place and then don’t know what that actually is. In another thread we were discussing weighing food and what actual portion sizes are. It’s a shocker how small they are compared to what we have marketed to us. It’s going to take a lot of education, not ridicule, to fix this problem. > > Your shaming will make it worse, not better. The evidence points to the contrary. The current trend to excuse obesity and focus on “education” has only led to an ever-fatter population. I say, bring back the shaming! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-a-disturbing-picture-on-facebook-today/753039.md?page=2)