Isn't that astonishing? I'm all for both the proper use of government and for an end to the obesity crisis, but that's stepping over into privacy and exercise of free will and beyond the bounds of where governmental power ought to go. With that proposed bill, is the lawmaker also planning to then provide those deemed-obese people with referrals and support into weight loss programs, to bariatric surgeons, jaw-wiring clinics, and to gyms? Of course not. Is he going to legislate the fat, portion size and calorie content of restaurant food? Nope. (There might be a better place to address the obesity epidemic, though.) I know for sure he's not going to do something more constructive like educating restaurant staffs in preparing foods with healthier oils, lower sodium, and more nutritious food or providing more far-reaching nutritional information, diabetes prevention, or weight loss education. And he wouldn't for an instant consider certain types of tax credits for restaurants or food suppliers that exercise restraint in what they're serving to the public. THAT would be a real way of incenting change and yet leaving personal freedoms in place.

Mississippi is one of the states with the worst obesity problem in the U.S. if I remember what I read in a recent public health article correctly. It's also one of the states with the greatest poverty problem. (Poverty and obesity are often close companions, and that problem will likely get worse. Research is increasingly finding that poor folks can't afford the most nutritious, healthy foods.) I think everyone will have to attack that problem together, from parents to teachers to schools to doctors to restaurants, but I don't think that particular legislation is the key.

Thanks for sharing that, Reb. Very interesting.