22-01-2004, 08:54 AM
Joan, I find your attitude very disappointing. Looking at a fat person and assuming they are that way because they overeat is like looking at a blonde and assuming she is stupid, or looking at an Afrikaner and assuming he is an inbred racist. Stereotypes with little validity behind it. I would have expected a more enlightened view from someone who is otherwise so obviously intelligent.
As to those overweight people who are that way because they overeat, I would ask you to look beyond the obvious and ask yourself why they overeat? Very often that too is the result of an emotional problem, be it insecurity, fear, or something else - eating becomes a comfort blanket, something to hide behind or find solace in.
These things are not as simple as you and some other apparently ill informed individuals would like to believe. What I have seen here is just more of the casual arrogance of people who have never bothered to try and understand why others are the way they are. Very disappointing indeed.
As to those overweight people who are that way because they overeat, I would ask you to look beyond the obvious and ask yourself why they overeat? Very often that too is the result of an emotional problem, be it insecurity, fear, or something else - eating becomes a comfort blanket, something to hide behind or find solace in.
These things are not as simple as you and some other apparently ill informed individuals would like to believe. What I have seen here is just more of the casual arrogance of people who have never bothered to try and understand why others are the way they are. Very disappointing indeed.