Body Shaming

kjl wrote: »

There needs to be policy put in place that would allow cheaper access to healthy food. I have proposed a sugar and saturated tax on this forum before and was basically told to go and sh1te, but it doesn't change the fact that we live in an economy that promotes unhealthy living.

I have not read much on it - but I think that is essentially what Jamie Oliver is putting his face on the campaign for right now? He is essentially looking for some restructuring of the tax system to shift the price differentials between healthier foods and obesity fuelling convenience foods?

I would be all for it - if it works. Certainly restructuring costs to make better foods more appealing to the consumer is at least a more useful avenue of approach than self hating bafoons looking for a social high targeting lone obese people on the street with hit and run leaflet actions.

However - Devils Avocado time - mostly to highlight my own ignorance on the economics of these things - - -

While increasing the costs of crap food in this way might have an impact - I have to admit I have seen few studies and figures to warrant putting too much confidence in it. How much impact has - for example - the steadily rising costs on cigarettes and alcohol really actually had on their consumption in Ireland? Any? Does this show the increases do nothing? Or slow increases rather than a sudden hard hitting massive one do nothing? Or what?

As for making the healthier food cheaper - is that also easier said than done? Do we already not have farmers moaning - or being heavily subsidised - because the money they see off their produce is steadily reducing? What is the actual capacity there to genuinely push costs on such foods down any more? Where in the supply chain could this be done other than - as I said above - restructuring the tax so taxes on such foods are lower - while higher on the "bad" foods.

I would also extend on something you have said -

kjl wrote: »

Added to the fact that the average person works 40+ hours a week and doesn't have time to exercise.

- as what many also do not have time for is cooking decent foods and meals. The success of convenience meals are not just do to low price - and high sugar and salt content making them palatable. There is also the time factor.

I for example eat very healthily indeed. Never have processed foods. Farm my own eggs and vegetables and stuff like that. And even make my own bread and pasta where possible. Food wise there are not going to be TOO many people in the country doing better than we are for health in my house. But it takes time and effort.

Now I am an extreme sure - but even then many people do not have the time - or the will sometimes - after a long week to be investing effort in cooking and eating well. And I am not sure how best to combat that either at a government level - do you?

The only reason I can invest the time I do in it is that I have put my career on freeze and do not accept promotions or advancement to more stressful or time consuming roles. I accept a lower pay and career success than I know I am capable of attaining - very much because I want to keep that work - life balance at a level where I feel healthy and life healthy.

And on top of all that - while it is easy to say "If you are fat just cut down the sugar" to people. But in a stressful and resource demanding world this is easy to say and harder to do. Because such people - while in the long term want to be healthier - have the day to day addiction to their "comfort food" to contend with. Usually late in the evening when will power - motivation - and feelings of self worth are at a low.

tomwaterford wrote: »

Who exactly is behind/dreamt up these cards

Oh I am sure there are a few sources of that. There are a few people in the "blogosphere" who have made a name for espousing this sort of thing. And they get quite a following.

Roosh V would be the best known name I think. He has advocated strongly for this kind of fat shaming. He was interviewed on the subject here. As others in the thread have noticed however he - like many - only seem to want to focus on obesity in women. It is always about women.

Actually most things appear to be about women for him. He is also a well known advocate of the "PUA" stuff. He has also - more recently - started campaigning to have rape not be a crime on private property. In that he feels that the moment a woman accepts an invitation onto private property with you - such as your apartment - then she has automatically consented to anything and everything you might do to her.

So it might be worth - for those advocating the kind of behaviour this thread is about - to consider the sources of it - and the type of people who are advocating it publicly. It might not really be the kind of movement you want to be associated with outside of the reddit-sphere.

Penn wrote: »

Sounds about right, tbh

They're only concerned about their health, ffs!