Poll: Should being obese be considered a disability?

[Wintermoot]

nope! being obese is just being fat, they should get help losing that weight so that they can do normal jobs (also Genes and obesity are as far as I know unrelated in most cases)

 

[Random berk]

Its less a disability, more a self inflicted injury. The military always took a dim view of anyone who shot themselves in the foot to get themselves sent home. Why should society reward someone who is too lazy or gluttonous to avoid turning into Jabba the Hutt?

-snip-

Wait a minute - are those his balls sticking out of the sides of that towel?

That's disgusting.

OP: No, obesity shouldn't, even in the case of that picture that the fellow I quoted posted, no. Not unless someone has a disease or condition that won't allow them to lose weight, and then it's generally a symptom. No, obesity should never be considered a disability. If a person wants it gone, they need to get off of their ass.

I THINK thats supposed to be a woman, so probably not.

Exactly, if you are so fat that you think you need disability, you need to do one of three things. 1) See a doctor, (should probably do this one anyway), 2) Exercise, 3)Drop dead.

Yes to the first two. The last one... might be a little extreme, but having said that, if I ever managed to get that fat, I think I'd try and kill myself. Being too much of a blob to move, wash yourself, being confined to one spot for your whole life, what kind of pathetic eexistance is that? It'd be impossible to have any kind of dignity or self respect, and you couldn't even be a complete recluse because you'd need helpers to feed you, hose you down and remove your waste.

 

[theriddlen]

Obesity being a disability? Hell no.

Reminds me of that Ricky Gervais stand-up.

 

[RabbidKuriboh]

no way in hell , i'm obese because i'm a lazy bastard

 

[noodles loves you]

god no, you're obese it's on yours and your family's head.

 

[Samwise137]

If you're obese due to a non-medical condition, you should have to park as far away from the store as possible just to get some exercise. By no means should you be granted the handicapped spaces (and yes, I've seen this before).

 

[Iwana Humpalot]

No as long as you can walk on your own legs, it is not a disability.
It is a choice, yeah because of your genes it might be harder for you to lose weight, but it is not a disability.

It just annoys me when really fat people blame their genes when they are eating their 3rd. family-sized pizza of the day.

 

[irani_che]

no
you do not have an excuse to be obese. Treat fat people the way you would a smoker or alcoholic.

There are genes that make people fat, and some medical conditions that result in gaining weight.

some people are genetically inclined to become dependant on smoking and drugs.
Many races see higher rates of alcoholism because they genetically cannot tolerate alcohol (Indigenous peoples of Australia and Canada.

I was a fat kid when I was younger, I am still a heavily build individual, but i can run down most people no problem and I am a good boxer. there is no excuse

 

[Marowit]

No, absolutely not. Sure you can be genetically predisposed to gaining weight, or might have psychological issues that predispose you to being so, but it should definitely not be considered a disability.

To me it just seems ridiculous to call the lack of self-control, call me harsh, as a disability - we're not talking about Tourrets here people, we're talking about someone eating too much...

 

[Marowit]

no
you do not have an excuse to be obese. Treat fat people the way you would a smoker or alcoholic.

There are genes that make people fat, and some medical conditions that result in gaining weight.

some people are genetically inclined to become dependant on smoking and drugs.
Many races see higher rates of alcoholism because they genetically cannot tolerate alcohol (Indigenous peoples of Australia and Canada.

I was a fat kid when I was younger, I am still a heavily build individual, but i can run down most people no problem and I am a good boxer. there is no excuse

Wait what? You say you're still fat despite being in shape and then you say there's no excuse to be fat?

Did I read that correctly?

People can be "overweight" and still be at their natural weight.

Being at your natural weight will never be 300lbs+ though. For example though, my younger brother a natural weight (doesn't over eat or eat garbage and exercises regularly) and weighs 225lbs, where according to things like BMI charts he should be closer to 190 to be "normal".

I would be that this is what the person you quoted is trying to say.

 

[SanguineSymphony]

No.

Slightly off Topic: Is Alcoholism considered a Disability? I thought for a while there was a push to make it one... But I sort of assumed it didn't pan out. For the same reasons this shouldn't. Anyways if it DID I guess you could go on that precedent.

 

[irani_che]

no
you do not have an excuse to be obese. Treat fat people the way you would a smoker or alcoholic.

There are genes that make people fat, and some medical conditions that result in gaining weight.

some people are genetically inclined to become dependant on smoking and drugs.
Many races see higher rates of alcoholism because they genetically cannot tolerate alcohol (Indigenous peoples of Australia and Canada.

I was a fat kid when I was younger, I am still a heavily build individual, but i can run down most people no problem and I am a good boxer. there is no excuse

Wait what? You say you're still fat despite being in shape and then you say there's no excuse to be fat?

Did I read that correctly?

confusion in the definitions.

I am a big guy, heavy set, with the frame and genetics that make me predisposed to be fat.
However, I am still very much in shape and active.

An equally heavy guy who spends his day on the sofa and gets tired after walking a couple blocks really has no excuse for the state of his affairs.

Some people are born and bred to be heavyset. No one is predisposed to be unhealthy, and the thought of someone wanting disabled status for their fat seems like the height of cheek

 

[robert022614]

i think if it is because a serious physical disorder like maybe something severely slowing metabolism or something similar i can understand. On the other hand people being mentally weak, over eating, and not doing any kind of workout should not be society's problem as in the end they are choices. I smoke a cigarette every once in awhile, if i got lung cancer i would not blame others or ask for special treatment as it would be my own fault. If anything i would try to keep it quite as i would be a little ashamed.

 

[Lunar Templar]

um... no, it means they donno when to stop eating

why no i don't have sympathy for fat people, since it's SELF INFLICTED through poor diet, lack of exercise or just flat not stopping.

i relies that sometimes you can't help but put on weight but there's such a thing as damage control

I'm a little over weight my self, don't eat right, BUT i also ride my bike 14 miles a day to and from work, before some one wants to get on my case

 

[SanguineSymphony]

No.

Slightly off Topic: Is Alcoholism considered a Disability? I thought for a while there was a push to make it one... But I sort of assumed it didn't pan out. For the same reasons this shouldn't. Anyways if it DID I guess you could go on that precedent.

It is where I live, and yes, the Canadian Supreme Court did site that as an example when they ruled that being mobidly obese can be a disabilty requiring accomidation and that there should be an assumption that it be treated as a disability. (Morbidly obese people travelling by plane within Canada get a second seat free as a result of this ruling. The same ruling gave a second seat free to those travelling with medical or personal care attendants, including those that are family, because of a disabilty).

thanks for that.

I can always use more of an ego stroke...

 

[godfist88]

hell no.
the reason why most people are obese in the US is because they just keep eating, and don't ever bother exercising. no offense to any fat people out there, but giving disability status to someone for something they easily have control over, is just bull$%&!.

 

[conflictofinterests]

I sense a lot of hostility towards obese people. Yeah there are a lot of them, maybe they're people too, though. Plenty of people eat their feelings, and being stressed out makes it harder to loose weight (need to save it for stressful times!) I'm just saying, repeating "SELF INFLICTED CONDITION" over and over doesn't change the fact that no man is an island unto himself. Maybe they eat more because of abuse, or because a family member died, or because of postpartum depression, all problems that ultimately have to be resolved BEFORE someone can keep weight off.

Maybe it's not on the level of a physical disability, but hey, obesity is very possibly a symptom of mental health issues as well.