Free to be fat
October 7, 2009The Washington Post tells us that Americans are dying due to lack of health coverage.
In 1997-1998, the United States ranked 15th in preventable deaths out of 19 industrialized countries. In 2002-2003, the nation fell to 19th, even as costs continued to rise. Up to 100,000 lives could be saved if the country’s health-care system performed as well those in nations such as France, Japan and Australia, according to the Commonwealth Fund study, which was based on World Health Organization statistics.
It has little to do with a lack of health care, however. Americans are dying at rates greater than the people of other countries because we can. We live how we want to live and that means we live like this:
How many people who look like this pair believe themselves to be living healthy lives? How many believe that their the source of their poor health is lack of medical care? They know that being obese is unhealthy. They have made a life choice: it is better to be able to have two full bags of Oreos and a five pound bag of chips and four liters of of Mountain Dew every afternoon than to live long healthy lives. So be it. That is what it means to be free people. If you would rather live short fat life than a long lean life, that is your business.
We could make everybody live longer if we had national mandatory daily calisthenics, bi-annual physical fitness tests enforced with fines for failure, legislated height and weight standards and had monthly weigh-ins down at the court house. That, however, would be totalitarian tyranny. Americans are unhealthy by choice and in a free country, you are free to make that choice.
R.D. Walker :
Date: October 8, 2009
Yeah, it is a lack of socialized medicine that is killing Americans.
BaconNeggs :
Date: October 8, 2009
Free to be Fat?
Now the cute lady in the photo would probably say RD. I need them “cushins for the pushins”
Still it looks from the photo, that not only does she have the cushions, but the whole damn sofa as well.
R.D. Walker :
Date: October 8, 2009
Don’t misunderstand me, I don’t support people shoving so many moon pies down their gullet that their asses are wider than the tailgate of my pickup. I support people being free to live their lives as they see fit. If that means packing it in until you look like an L-1011 Widebody, so be it.
Tatersalad :
Date: October 8, 2009
To the Democrats in Congress who don’t quite get it: I want to offer a personal pledge. I – and a lot of other people – have every intention of removing you from Congress in the next election if you stand in the way of health care legislation that the people want. That is not a hollow or idle threat. We will come to your district and we will work against you, first in the primary and, if we have to, in the general election. We do not want the “Public Option”…..period!