Why We Hate Fat People

Our culture is obsessed with how we look.  We are endlessly searching for the right products and diets that will make us beautiful.  We spend endless amounts of money on the right clothes, makeup, diets, and even surgeries just so we can become our “ideal” self.  But in all of this, no one is actually paying attention to how healthy we are.  Most people, myself included, don’t really give any thought to what we are doing to the inside of our bodies, just as long as the outside is deemed acceptable. As the Oliver article states, our “hatred of fat people” really stems from the fact that we are afraid of becoming “fat” ourselves. This mindset is causing major problems in our society.  While overweight individuals can certainly struggle with their weight and desire to change, not everyone is going to take kindly to someone telling them to lose weight “because I don’t want to see so many fat people.”   To affect greater change, we need to get across the reasons why change is necessary.  Obesity should be a problem of health, not jean size.  If educators can get this point across and outline the specific dangers of obesity, we will make much more progress.  All that said, I think it’s important to note that just because a person looks good on the outside, does not mean he or she is healthy.  If you look at me, most people will assume that I am a generally healthy person.  But in reality, I haven’t worked out regularly for five years and I eat a lot more desserts than I should.  So does the fact that my BMI falls in the normal range mean that I am more healthy than a person who is considered overweight and works out every day and eats properly? I don’t think so.  Keeping all of this in mind, I believe that making healthy choices is what should be promoted, not maintaining a certain “size.” 

A League of Their Own

Double standards definitely exist when it comes to the differences between men’s and women’s athletics.  While this is not necessarily a good thing, the fact remains that these standards are somewhat self-perpetuated and will require large scale societal change if they are to be eliminated.  Since the inception of Title IX, society has tried to say that “yes, women and men should, and do have equal opportunities in sports.” But I don’t think that this is truly the case.  All it takes to see this is a look at the disparities in men’s and women’s pro sports.  For example, the WNBA and the NBA couldn’t be any more different.  The NBA gets millions and millions of dollars in revenue from ticket sales, merchandising, and television and radio deals.  News of trades and other goings on circulate the media year round, even during the off-season.  Now think for a minute.  When was the last time you heard ANYTHING about the WNBA? The same goes for the WTA, LPGA, and the now defunct WUSA.  All of these leagues lacked, and still lack the money and attention bestowed on their male counterparts. But why does this occur? You can’t place the blame solely on men because women make up half of the population and therefore make up half of the audience.  I think a large part of the problem is from our conflicting attitudes about women in sports.  While our society professes to be okay with women excelling in traditionally male arenas, we still struggle with stepping outside of societal norms.  Women in sports are simultaneously required to perform at high levels and maintain their femininity.  The problem comes in when you look at some complaints about women’s basketball.  Detractors of the league declare that women’s basketball is “too slow, too boring, and too girly.” But if women basketball players suddenly started looking, dressing, talking, and playing like men, there would be a public outcry.  The reality of the situation is that social norms call for women to excel on the same level as men, as long as they don’t act “too” much like men. This is shown clearly in Molly George’s article on the women’s soccer team.  Most of the women on the team struggled with body image because of how the rest of society expected them to look.  Looking manly was the ultimate crime and heterosexuality was almost enforced. And unfortunately, this isn’t going to change any time soon.  In the past, men set the standards of dress and conduct and women still feel the need to uphold those standards, even if it is not on a conscious level.  While I don’t necessarily believe this is right, it is just the way things are in this society.

Our culture is obsessed with how we look.  We are endlessly searching for the right products and diets that will make us beautiful.  We spend endless amounts of money on the right clothes, makeup, diets, and even surgeries just so we can become our “ideal” self.  But in all of this, no one is actually paying attention to how healthy we are.  Most people, myself included, don’t really give any thought to what we are doing to the inside of our bodies, just as long as the outside is deemed acceptable.  This mindset is causing major problems in our society.  While overweight individuals can certainly struggle with their weight and desire to change, not everyone is going to take kindly to someone telling them to lose weight “because I don’t want to see so many fat people.”   To affect greater change, we need to get across the reasons why change is necessary.  Obesity should be a problem of health, not jean size.  If educators can get this point across and outline the specific dangers of obesity, we will make much more progress.  All that said, I think it’s important to note that just because a person looks good on the outside, does not mean he or she is healthy.  If you look at me, most people will assume that I am a generally healthy person.  But in reality, I haven’t worked out regularly for five years and I eat a lot more desserts than I should.  So does the fact that my BMI falls in the normal range mean that I am more healthy than a person who is considered overweight and works out every day and eats properly? I don’t think so.  Keeping all of this in mind, I believe that making healthy choices is what should be promoted, not maintaining a certain “size.”

54 Grand???

Rookie hazing is a huge part of the NFL.  Always has been, always will be.  So back in August, when Cowboys rookie receiver refused to carry the shoulder pads of veteran Roy Williams, there were going to be consequences.  And boy did they make him pay.  Bryant took the team out to dinner and was told to pick up the tab.  As a joke, the approximately 55 people at the dinner rang up a bill of 54,000 dollars, an amount that totals to more than the average teacher’s yearly salary.  Is this right? Does the fact that Dez Bryant can certainly afford to pay the tab somehow make it okay?  I don’t think so.  What those players did was extremely wasteful and was in poor taste.  When punishing players for breaking a variety of rules, the governing authority usually cites the fact that the athlete has “not upheld the standards of conduct” of that particular league.  Similarly, the media and fans make their voices heard, often in outrage, over whatever that player has done.  But why does anyone even care? It is because, whether it is “proper” or not, athletes are held to a higher standard.  They are seen as role models and community leaders. My question is this…”How is ringing up a 54,000 dollar tab as a joke, conduct befitting of such men?”  In short, it’s not.  Particularly when some of these same men are demanding more and more money.  Good luck convincing the rest of America that you need more money when you have 54 grand to blow on dinner.