Fat Shaming

[Shooby]

  Scholar promotes "fat shaming" to help curb obesity:

todayhealth.today.com/_news/2013/01/24/16664866-fat-shaming-may-curb-obesity-bioethicist-says?lite

 

[thyme4change]

I'm in.

Let's start with me.

Boo - thyme - put down that donut, you lardo!

[Shooby]

We could start a "shame thyme" thread.

[Shooby]

Look in the mirror uggo before you scarf down that dough ball!

[thyme4change]

Jan 24, 2013 7:45:00 GMT -5 Shooby said:

We could start a "shame thyme" thread.

What a great idea!  I've got so many problems, maybe a little public shame would inspire me.

[Shooby]

Well, fear and shame are great motivators.  Let's face it, in some ways it does prevent people from doing certain things for fear of that.

[Shooby]

  Instead of actually exercising this morning, i did sit and watch Jillian Michaels workout Infomercial, does that count?  I did contemplate ordering it.  That should have burned a few calories.

[Deleted]

Jan 24, 2013 7:56:15 GMT -5 Shooby said:

Well, fear and shame are great motivators.  Let's face it, in some ways it does prevent people from doing certain things for fear of that.

It's kind of sad it has come to this. but what ever works.

[Waffle]

 I hope this doesn't catch on - fat shaming will lead to suicides which will lead to an anti fat shaming campaign.  Much like the anti-bully campaign that is going on now.  Really isn't fat shaming, just another form of bullying?

[Shooby]

  Not everyone is meant to be a skinny minny.  We are all different.  Some people are chihuahuas and some people are bulldogs.  We can't expect everyone to have the same body type.  And, there are medical issues and medications that cause obesity or weight gain.  However, it does seem that "fat shaming" is acceptable.  Seems they can make jokes about "fat people" and that is accepted.

[Deleted]

The beauty is eyes of beholder.

[Green Eyed Lady]

The people I know who are overweight know they are overweight and already feel pretty crappy about it.  There is no way I could even hint at shaming them.  What's next?  Making fun of someone's big nose so they go get plastic surgery?  It's just mean.

[Artemis Windsong]

I agree GEL. 

If you want to be shamed and made to pay for it, hire a trainer.

I saw on TV where there is a gym that you have to be 50 lbs or more overweight to get in. 

The question this week on our chalk board is:   what keeps you motivated to go to the gym?  I put - I love you Gramma.  I need to be a role model for the grandkiddies.  Someone put a huge smiley under it.

[Colleenz]

All fat shaming will do is prevent people with weight problems from asking for help.

Do we "drug shame" for addicts?  Until and unless the negative consequences of a lifestyle choice become not worth it, the poor lifestyle choice will continue.

[Golden Cavalier]

I find this to be very disturbing. As GEL said, people who are overweight (or obese) already know it and feel pretty crappy about it. They are ALREADY being shamed by ignorant people who think they have a right to judge. And as Waffle has pointed out, publicly shaming people who may already feel bad about themselves will only lead to increases in suicide.

Why would anyone feel they have the right to judge or shame others for any reason? Would I be justified in walking up to a total stranger and telling them that I find their outfit or shoes to be totally egregious and they that they really need to go home and change? Should I plaster a picture of the offending outfit on a billboard in the middle of Times Square with the caption "don't let this happen to you"? Or should I just put it down to "different stroke for different folks"? Their outfit (or shoes, haircut, weight, etc.) has no bearing on my life whatsoever and if I find it to be an insult to my sensibilities, well, that's just too bad for me. Why should anyone change anything about themselves for me or you or anyone else? Answer: They shouldn't.

Bottom line: Daniel Callahan needs to STFU and mind his own business. I'm sure there are things about him he should change, too, but he wouldn't want to see it plastered on a billboard.

[Sum Dum Gai]

“For him to argue that we need more stigma, I don’t know what world he’s living in,” said Deb Burgard, a California psychologist specializing in eating disorders and a member of the advisory board for the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance.

“He must not have any contact with actual free-range fat people,” she added.

What the hell  Like half the country is overweight or obese, how much more acceptance do we really need?  And what the hell is a free-range fat person?  I didn't know I was so out of the loop.[/p]

[Reckless Roselia]

I enjoy watching The Biggest Loser USA but then I find the trainers are a bunch of meanies. Though it motivates the contestants that are very much obese to lose the flab. 

[thyme4change]

I don't think "fat jokes" are that much more acceptable than racist jokes, or anything else like that in real life. There are plenty of comedians and television shows that say things that you should never say in real life. I would no sooner make a joke about a fat person than I would make a Jewish joke or a woman joke - so, yes, I've made all three. In general, I find that my fat friends will make jokes about themselves, just as my Mexican friends will make Mexican jokes. I only make white people jokes. They don't go over that well either.

[Deleted]

White peeps aren't funny.

[thyme4change]

[Deleted]

I wish I had speakers on my computer right now. 



I lied. The Whitest Kids U'Know were pretty funny. 

[genericname]

This guy is a buffoon. I'm still carrying around a few pounds from the baby, does he think I don't know it? Like people have said, people who are larger (whatever you call them) are aware that they don't have the body of Giselle. A lot of them already feel shame about it. Why compound someone else's feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, shame, etc? That's just mean. Positive reinforcement is a much better way of training animals, can't we find some positive reinforcement to help people lose weight? I would be all over that!

I like the trainers on Biggest Loser, but then again, I respond to being challenged like that, so their program would work for me. That type of training doesn't work for everyone. 

It seems like making fun of fat people is the last frontier where it is acceptable. That's a shame.