Thanks for your challenging and thoughtful comment... it might be the closest thing to dissent on the comment board thus far!
I am not arguing that people are not accountable for their personal choices. I'm arguing that it is counterproductive to narrow a complex set of circumstances down to an arbitrary, black and white determinant of who is blameworthy and who isn't. Everyone's responsible for what they choose to do. But few people are individually and directly responsible for the context of their choices, i.e. for the options they have to choose from. Handing down judgments, blame, and moral comparisons is no way to run a health care system. The idea of demonizing fat people, as Judy says, is arbitrary, irrational, and ultimately counterproductive. I am suggesting that if we are really interested in providing health for all people, we will start addressing the roots of unhealth.
Do you and I have some common ground here? My hope is that people on all sides of the debate can find that with each other and work toward long-term solutions that make us all better off, even though we all sometimes eat a piece of pizza.
I see you arguing for systematic change but not recognizing the power that people have in their own everyday choices. While some people do not have a choice about the food they eat, I think that a majority of the middle class does have a choice. They just choose not to eat as healthy as they could (me for example, I just a had a cosetta Pizza slice, so yummy and not healthy). I also have to make it a priority to exercise so that I stay in shape. I don't always like to do it, but I do it anyway.
If privledged people take personal accountability for the choices that they make, then industry will hopefully respond. I think that is why there are so many co-ops in the twin cities. People are consciously choosing to eat differently. One thing I debate often with my friends is how do you get people to take personal responsibility for the choices they have made in life? We all must take into considersation culture, situation, access to resources, etc. But what I want to learn more about is resiliancy. So many people are successful in spite of the odds (and that is definately not easy).
You are SOOOO RIGHT about the food pyramid and schools. What a big lie the food pyramid is. How the food Pyramid is tied into research done by the government that subsidizes the product is rediculous.
Great Commentary! In thinking about food choices-fresh vs processed- where do we, in cold climates, find decent fresh produce in , say, November thru April? Our grocery stores in Duluth, a relatively large Northern MN town, offer little decent, fresh stuff in summer, let alone winter. Produce shelves are loaded with sub-standard-quality, imported goods. Our choice of stores is very limited with the Coop offerings too pricey for many. Summer farmers markets are finally becoming popular, but their choices are not nearly what you have in Minneapolis and St Paul.
Nice work, Amy. And a great comments section too. I agree with what has been said here about food production, costs and nutrition education. The food industry and the health care industry being profit based have caused a lot of damages, none of which will be easily rectified. Please forgive me if my comments seem to swerve away from the topic of food, but there is so much more to the story.
I would like to state that a focus on "fat" in any discussion on health care is myopic. Not every fat person is inherently unhealthy, nor is every thin person healthy.
I eat a healthy diet. Well into middle age my cholesterol is on the low edge of the normal range, my sugars are fine, my blood pressure is on the high side of the preferred range, but not bad when looking at my genetic background. Eating good food makes me feel good, too! My point: I am overweight, and also healthy.
Using Fat-Blaming as an argument against a national health care policy is a despicable attempt to cash in on people's prejudices. It shifts the conversation away from the topic and feeds an emotional response. Consider this: Should we monitor alcohol consumption and charge higher premiums to drinkers because such behaviors can lead to an increase of certain medical conditions? Smoking? Heritage? Shall we charge more to people with anorexia/bulimia because they are unhealthy, or do they get a pass because they are thin?
Healthy food choices help make people healthy. Some people don't have a choice much of the time. Some people don't realize the difference. Education. Accessibility. Affordability. I couldn't agree more thoroughly with the points that Amy and her commentators have made. The focus of the discussion on health care reform should be on health: attaining it, maintaining it, and caring for people in the process, rather than marginalizing (or scapegoating) the weak/poor/sick/fat.
Wow! All sorts of good, smart comments. Thanks so much for, um, weighing in. The experiences you mention are great ones, and raise important points related to our food system, our behavior, and what we've learned and experienced. Our current healthcare system does not differentiate between those who make good and bad decisions, and until we start doing a better job with education and policy, it's clear that we'll all continue to pay one way or another.
I had an interesting experience this year. My wife wanted to have some workout mates so I rented a local gym and purchased everything she needed to do an aerobics class. My main concern was my wife's health and not the profit so we offered it for free to anyone who wanted to participate. We only had a few people who tried and gave up.
I actually speculated in advance that this would be the result. Good intentions don't really account for much it's the result that matters.
So regardless of our good intentions, whether eating right or exercise, if peoples behavior don't change then obesity is going to remain a problem. The question is where do we draw the line when dealing with other peoples behaviors. As a county we've educated people about diet and exercise and I think that's about as much as we should do. Taxing the poor seems ridiculous to me.
Great article and I couldn't agree more about eating healthy. That is why I buy local produce and order premium organic breakfast cereals from Serial Cereals at http://www.SerialCereals.com
Hey, Healthy in the
Hey, Healthy in the Heights--
Thanks for your challenging and thoughtful comment... it might be the closest thing to dissent on the comment board thus far!
I am not arguing that people are not accountable for their personal choices. I'm arguing that it is counterproductive to narrow a complex set of circumstances down to an arbitrary, black and white determinant of who is blameworthy and who isn't. Everyone's responsible for what they choose to do. But few people are individually and directly responsible for the context of their choices, i.e. for the options they have to choose from. Handing down judgments, blame, and moral comparisons is no way to run a health care system. The idea of demonizing fat people, as Judy says, is arbitrary, irrational, and ultimately counterproductive. I am suggesting that if we are really interested in providing health for all people, we will start addressing the roots of unhealth.
Do you and I have some common ground here? My hope is that people on all sides of the debate can find that with each other and work toward long-term solutions that make us all better off, even though we all sometimes eat a piece of pizza.
I see you arguing for
I see you arguing for systematic change but not recognizing the power that people have in their own everyday choices. While some people do not have a choice about the food they eat, I think that a majority of the middle class does have a choice. They just choose not to eat as healthy as they could (me for example, I just a had a cosetta Pizza slice, so yummy and not healthy). I also have to make it a priority to exercise so that I stay in shape. I don't always like to do it, but I do it anyway.
If privledged people take personal accountability for the choices that they make, then industry will hopefully respond. I think that is why there are so many co-ops in the twin cities. People are consciously choosing to eat differently. One thing I debate often with my friends is how do you get people to take personal responsibility for the choices they have made in life? We all must take into considersation culture, situation, access to resources, etc. But what I want to learn more about is resiliancy. So many people are successful in spite of the odds (and that is definately not easy).
You are SOOOO RIGHT about the food pyramid and schools. What a big lie the food pyramid is. How the food Pyramid is tied into research done by the government that subsidizes the product is rediculous.
Fun to read, thanks for making me think.
Great Commentary! In
Great Commentary! In thinking about food choices-fresh vs processed- where do we, in cold climates, find decent fresh produce in , say, November thru April? Our grocery stores in Duluth, a relatively large Northern MN town, offer little decent, fresh stuff in summer, let alone winter. Produce shelves are loaded with sub-standard-quality, imported goods. Our choice of stores is very limited with the Coop offerings too pricey for many. Summer farmers markets are finally becoming popular, but their choices are not nearly what you have in Minneapolis and St Paul.
Nice work, Amy. And a great
Nice work, Amy. And a great comments section too. I agree with what has been said here about food production, costs and nutrition education. The food industry and the health care industry being profit based have caused a lot of damages, none of which will be easily rectified. Please forgive me if my comments seem to swerve away from the topic of food, but there is so much more to the story.
I would like to state that a focus on "fat" in any discussion on health care is myopic. Not every fat person is inherently unhealthy, nor is every thin person healthy.
I eat a healthy diet. Well into middle age my cholesterol is on the low edge of the normal range, my sugars are fine, my blood pressure is on the high side of the preferred range, but not bad when looking at my genetic background. Eating good food makes me feel good, too! My point: I am overweight, and also healthy.
Using Fat-Blaming as an argument against a national health care policy is a despicable attempt to cash in on people's prejudices. It shifts the conversation away from the topic and feeds an emotional response. Consider this: Should we monitor alcohol consumption and charge higher premiums to drinkers because such behaviors can lead to an increase of certain medical conditions? Smoking? Heritage? Shall we charge more to people with anorexia/bulimia because they are unhealthy, or do they get a pass because they are thin?
Healthy food choices help make people healthy. Some people don't have a choice much of the time. Some people don't realize the difference. Education. Accessibility. Affordability. I couldn't agree more thoroughly with the points that Amy and her commentators have made. The focus of the discussion on health care reform should be on health: attaining it, maintaining it, and caring for people in the process, rather than marginalizing (or scapegoating) the weak/poor/sick/fat.
Wow! All sorts of good, smart
Wow! All sorts of good, smart comments. Thanks so much for, um, weighing in. The experiences you mention are great ones, and raise important points related to our food system, our behavior, and what we've learned and experienced. Our current healthcare system does not differentiate between those who make good and bad decisions, and until we start doing a better job with education and policy, it's clear that we'll all continue to pay one way or another.
What happened to Adam and his
What happened to Adam and his recipes? No sign of him for a few weeks now.
I had an interesting
I had an interesting experience this year. My wife wanted to have some workout mates so I rented a local gym and purchased everything she needed to do an aerobics class. My main concern was my wife's health and not the profit so we offered it for free to anyone who wanted to participate. We only had a few people who tried and gave up.
I actually speculated in advance that this would be the result. Good intentions don't really account for much it's the result that matters.
So regardless of our good intentions, whether eating right or exercise, if peoples behavior don't change then obesity is going to remain a problem. The question is where do we draw the line when dealing with other peoples behaviors. As a county we've educated people about diet and exercise and I think that's about as much as we should do. Taxing the poor seems ridiculous to me.
Even better than buying
Even better than buying cereal, make your own granola from oats, seeds, and nuts from the bulk section of your local co-op!
Great article and I couldn't
Great article and I couldn't agree more about eating healthy. That is why I buy local produce and order premium organic breakfast cereals from Serial Cereals at http://www.SerialCereals.com
Great American Plan. Charge
Great American Plan. Charge people to make themselves sick and fat on lousy food, then charge them for "cure" or punish them and withhold "cure."
This is the profit-motive run amok!