Is talking trash about fat people a form of racism?

[Theo]

If people ridicule fat people (like myself) do you think that's a form of discrimination?

How much do ya weigh? And how tall are ya?

 

[Buzzetta]

My FDNY friends have told me how on a few occasions they have answered calls where they have to respond to a medical emergency in someone's home only to find that the person is so large they are unable to make it out of their own home.

There is difference between chubby, fat, obese and the point where if you eat one more twinkie then you are going to explode.

 

[the more you explore me!]

There is difference between chubby, fat, obese and the point where if you eat one more twinkie then you are going to explode.

then you need the Bomb Squad!

 

[Buzzetta]

then you need the Bomb Squad!

You would be shocked. I mean I understand the difference between someone who is genetically predispositioned NOT to be a Calvin Klein model.

However... I was told one story by this girls husband at work. Her husband answered a call where the guy was so big that he thought he was having a heart attack. They could not get him through the doorframe on a stretcher so he had to walk out. He was so exhausted after trying to walk out under his own two feet (the distance of a regular hallway) that he had to rest. This guy was so big that when he leaned on the railing to hold himself up that he was suffocating himself. He was so large that when he leaned on the railing the weight did not allow him to breathe. He was already weak so he could not straighten himself up.

THATS large.

At what point does one get that big that they shrug it off and say... hell pass me the twinkie?

 

[Cassius]

How much do ya weigh? And how tall are ya?

You made me laugh.

 

[SouthpawGlamour]

A few people said they missed my rants, so here goes :>

Weight loss and diets do NOT work, a self-evident truth! Psychological intervention does work and if somoene feels they would like to be slim, some self-hypnosis using Neuro-Linguistic programming will do the trick. I know it sounds like hogwash, but there really is no such thing as
''willpower'. Physical desire will always overpower the 'will', the human body is designed that way therefore all addiction recovery requires the individual to change their beliefs and behaviours.

When a person brags about 'willpower' they are usually not addicted to anyhting, so how do they know they have 'willpower'.

NLP is all the rage now, but we used it in psychiatry 15 years ago!!! Alternatives are Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or any therapy that challenges beliefs and behaviours.

In terms of discrimintion, ALL human beings discriminate ALL the time. We make judgements based on looks ALL the time.

I am tall and 'scary' looking to some people, that has advantages and disadvantages. I have to accept that some people don't like the look of me and some do. Some people decide I am not a nice person because of my appearance. Should I moan and demand that people see the real me, the kind gentle soul?

No, what's the point? People can make an effort with me or not bother, it's their choice.


I am tired of people's 'surprise' when they realise that I am a nice person, am I supposed to be a serial killer because I am 6'6"? I am tired of 'gentle giant' I am no more gentle than everyone else I know nor am I am giant.

In summary, you can lose weight if that's an issue for you.

All people discriminate ALL the time, including them original poster.

Every person on this board could write examples of discrimintion based on appearance and what about when people find out you are a Morrissey fan?

 

[Dave]

and what about when people find out you are a Morrissey fan?

Good point!

I disagree with most of the rest of that though. Willpower does exist, and so does addiction. Both vary in strength.

 

[SouthpawGlamour]

Good point!

I disagree with most of the rest of that though. Willpower does exist, and so does addiction. Both vary in strength.

Willpower does exist but it cannot overcome addiction and any clinician will tell you that. if you find me one reputable study that proves otherwise I will give you a coconut!

 

[Dave]

I guess it all depends how you define your terms. It is true that to overcome an addiction you must want to overcome it. Your suggestion of hypnotherapy, I agree, is not boosting willpower, but lessening the psychological factor of the addiction. In other words, it's making you want it less, not giving you more strength to overcome it.

Also, there is a difference between a habit and an addiction.

I just wanted to say that changing your thought patterns is very important, and I don't think that people should allow themselves to feel helpless to an addiction. While willpower may not beat addiction, a positive outlook and belief in your ability to overcome a bad habit is very important. Basically we agree, I guess, except that I am a strong believer in willpower, maybe because I wish I had more control of my own.

 

[Stoner Kebab]

i got willpower. i can do whatever. im not kidding.

 

[Stoner Kebab]

and talking trash about fat people (women , children, teenagers, lower income adult males) is not cool. however if the fatty in question is an affluent male who has a fat ass then you should continually mock them for being lazy and fat and useless and grotesque!
this is my personal opinion.

 

[bogdana]

people who are so fat that they cannot fit through the door are actually suffering from severe mental illness and its not so much that they like twinkies a lot, but its they are past the point of rational thinking.
and it does happen slowly. and they dont like being fat. but they are mentally ill and irrational and using food as an escape.

 

[SouthpawGlamour]

I guess it all depends how you define your terms. It is true that to overcome an addiction you must want to overcome it. Your suggestion of hypnotherapy, I agree, is not boosting willpower, but lessening the psychological factor of the addiction. In other words, it's making you want it less, not giving you more strength to overcome it.

Also, there is a difference between a habit and an addiction.

I just wanted to say that changing your thought patterns is very important, and I don't think that people should allow themselves to feel helpless to an addiction. While willpower may not beat addiction, a positive outlook and belief in your ability to overcome a bad habit is very important. Basically we agree, I guess, except that I am a strong believer in willpower, maybe because I wish I had more control of my own.

No, the NLP provides the knowledge and tools to overcome the negative behaviour. it doesn't need to be done under hypnosis, but it is thought to be more effective.

NLP is not really in the dock, with respect, it's used in rehabiliting offenders as well.

'Willpower' is an 'old wives' tale, no-one ever beats addiction without changing the underlying behaviour that led to the addiction and that takes work and commitment.

The difference between 'habit' and 'addicition' is irrelevant, because it's up to the individual to decide what behaviour they wish to change and when.

A problem for one person may not be a problem for another. A comedian may choose to be fat as it is part of their act. A person may rationally decide that they love food and will be fat as a calculated risk. It's all legitimate. BUT if someone wants to fight addiction, they won't do it with so-called 'will power' and there is no research to suggest otherwise.

 

[SouthpawGlamour]

people who are so fat that they cannot fit through the door are actually suffering from severe mental illness and its not so much that they like twinkies a lot, but its they are past the point of rational thinking.
and it does happen slowly. and they dont like being fat. but they are mentally ill and irrational and using food as an escape.

yes, that is correct.

 

[Cassius]

I don't think that people react as negatively to fat people as they used to. It's more acceptable to be fat now, in America anyways. Just look at all the overweight ladies on T.V., proclaiming that they look "like a real woman", and all the negative hype towards thin celebrities on the cover of magazines. America doesn't really care if people are fat or not anymore. We are desensitized to it.

 

[Cassius]

You would be shocked. I mean I understand the difference between someone who is genetically predispositioned NOT to be a Calvin Klein model.

However... I was told one story by this girls husband at work. Her husband answered a call where the guy was so big that he thought he was having a heart attack. They could not get him through the doorframe on a stretcher so he had to walk out. He was so exhausted after trying to walk out under his own two feet (the distance of a regular hallway) that he had to rest. This guy was so big that when he leaned on the railing to hold himself up that he was suffocating himself. He was so large that when he leaned on the railing the weight did not allow him to breathe. He was already weak so he could not straighten himself up.

THATS large.

At what point does one get that big that they shrug it off and say... hell pass me the twinkie?

My brother had an aunt who was so overweight she had to be taken out of the house by a fire crew using that thing they carry beached baby whales on. No joke. She weighed 800 pounds at her heaviest. When she died her family was told she could not be cremated because over 500 pounds is a fire hazard. You'd think as children, we'd have made fun of her, but we realized, even at that age, that there was something wrong with her mentally to allow herself to be like that. It wasn't as simple as "I'm jonesing for a Snickers"; she had a real mental problem.

 

[thewarroom]

Fat is not a race.

If you were to call someone, say, a "fat jew*" or something, then that could be construed as racist.

*= not a racist remark

 

[PregnantForTheLastTime]

She weighed 800 pounds at her heaviest. When she died her family was told she could not be cremated because over 500 pounds is a fire hazard.

I'm missing something here, I think...

 

[Cassius]

I'm missing something here, I think...

What do you mean?

 

[PregnantForTheLastTime]

Never mind.