Ugh, The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance

FitLink

This country has gone to hell. God forbid we should set good examples! Instead we practice "acceptance" so no one has to do anything hard. Nothing great was achieved without hard work and it's no surprise that we are falling behind in every single category.

Faaawk.

Exactly.
A few years back I read an article in a parenting magazine showing the results of a poll done many years ago as opposed to a current one. What did the parents want now? For their children to be "happy". The older poll showed "good character" to be what they most wanted for their children. There really is a difference.

So you're saying fat people have bad character?

WhitneyAnnabelle

Honestly, I wish Disney would serve healthier foods within their parks.




And beer.

^hahaha. I think you NEED beer to go to Disney, and I haven't been there since I was 11.

FitLink

...ffs I hit reply instead of quote... Anyway, no it's not a real organization to the person who asked. xD It's from an episode of Family Guy.

The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA) most certainly is a real organization and they have been around for more than 30 years.

http://www.naafaonline.com/dev2/about/index.html

FitLink

Why not suggest all kids should eat healthfully, instead of implying only fat kids have to?

It's my understanding that predominately the fat kids that aren't eating healthy.

Your understanding is wrong. My niece is a size 00, 5'8" teenager who has the most atrocious eating habits. Most kids eat a lot of junk. Some get fat, some don't. The problem with Disney's display is that all the fat people are villains and all the skinny people are heros. That's just not true, and it shames fat kids.

annbennett

I would encourage anyone to eat healthier and to lose weight if they need to. I think the point that is being missed by all of you is that a great deal of society think it is OK to discriminate and speak disparagingly to overweight individuals. Yes I am overweight and work on my weight. I was also slimmer and hotter than most of you when I was twenty. I've been on both sides. Having taught school, many of you may have overweight children who you will struggle with getting them to eat healthy and surprise know they don't eat a lot of junk food but still struggle with their weight and self esteem. I know I am going to get a lot of trash from this post; but look at your title It says basically UGH to anyone who says they are accepting themselves the way they are. Obesity is not just a matter of controlling what you eat. I have not lost weight in a year. Essentially I have been told that I have reduced my metabolism to a starvation mode. I can't bring myself to eat the amount I am told I should eat. I still remember a lecture from a co-worker about I needed to stop eating fast food to lose weight. She did not believe that I had not eaten a hamburger in two years. It is so much that peopel feel free to dump on you when you are overweight. You need to walk in someone's shoes before you feel so free to discriminate and especially where people go to get help for obesity. Maybe you need to join shallow , I flatter myself.com.

FitLink

I teach my kids not to eat too much junk, and to get exercise, so they don't get fat. I'm a monster.

You are a monster if that's your reason. If you are concerned for their health, that's a good reason to teach good eating habits. The key is to decouple the appearance from the healthy.

kelseyhere

There's a reason people get judged for being fat, and it's because it's bad for them and not normal. I'm not saying we all need to be a size zero or have washboard abs, but we don't need an association to promote unhealthy behaviors -- it's ludicrous! There is also a big difference between being "a little fat" and "obese." "A little fat" is my cousin who enjoys pizza and beer a couple nights a week. He probably couldn't run a marathon, but at least I don't have to worry about him getting type 2 diabetes. "Obese" is my other cousin who I'm seriously worried about because he's not even 25 and at the rate he's going, I doubt he'll make it to 40, and that makes me sad. He can't even walk across the room without getting totally winded. I accept my cousin and love him for who he is, but I do not support his lifestyle choices. Any mature adult should be able to understand why I'm not in favor of Carl's Jr. super size meals at 2 a.m. every night of the week, he certainly does. If you ask me, The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance is only doing one thing, advancing stupidity.

I think I'll go start the "National Association to Advance Smoking to a Pack-Day per American" or maybe the "National Association to Promote Drunk Driving."

annbennett

delete post

Silverkittycat

This country has gone to hell. God forbid we should set good examples! Instead we practice "acceptance" so no one has to do anything hard. Nothing great was achieved without hard work and it's no surprise that we are falling behind in every single category.

Faaawk.

Exactly.
A few years back I read an article in a parenting magazine showing the results of a poll done many years ago as opposed to a current one. What did the parents want now? For their children to be "happy". The older poll showed "good character" to be what they most wanted for their children. There really is a difference.

So you're saying fat people have bad character?

Nope. You hear what you want to hear.

FitLink

Bollocks. The issues getting in people's way, the majority of the time, are their self control. I'm perfectly fine with a sedentary lifestyle filled with crap food being demonized. It's much better than ignoring the problem or promoting it as a perfectly fine lifestyle choice.

First, it's not really up to you what I do with my life. Second, I'm really happy for you that you have the self confidence right now to look at yourself, say "Poo, I probably ought to slow down eating this crap and move around a bit more, I'm filling out a bit around the middle". Really, I am. That's not sarcasm. I'm glad that you are there. My point is that a lot of people are not there, and telling them that their self-control is the problem is, again, calling them lazy. It's not going to make them feel better, it's not going to make them deny the one thing that they can rely on to give them comfort, and it's certainly not going to motivate them to get up and move around.

If you'd spent your entire life being told your "insert body part here" was horrifically ugly and you should be ashamed of it, you'd believe it. If I've spent my entire life being told I'm just lazy, imaging how good I'd feel about myself, how motivated to take care of myself, how inspiring that must be for me. My self-worth would be rock bottom. Why would I bother to change it?

(To the hypothetical person you are speaking of)
This is why: To prove to others and MAINLY yourself that NO you are not lazy, and NO you are not ugly. The self defeated attitude doesn't hinder anyone else but yourself. It isn't what other people call you, but what you answer to. You can't depend on others for motivation, it comes from yourself. And there are many of people on this site that wouldn't necessarily say they are motivated every day, and sometimes they feel like *kitten* and don't want to continue but they do. You can't wallow in self pity forever, eventually you are going to have to change it. And i personally won't feel sorry for somebody that feels sorry enough for themselves. I can be sensitive to obesity, but i cant be sensitive to self defeated attitudes. That's just lame.

Ah, so THIS is why it's okay to shame kids? Because if the Disney cartoon shows all skinny kids that are heros and all fat kids that are bad, and kids take away that they're bad if they're fat (and almost worse, that they're automatically a hero if they're skinny) it's their fault they have a "lame defeated attitude?"

Coyla

I'm not the kind of person who feels that it's okay to be lazy and eat junk food. But I know what has worked for me to get me on the path to being healthy, and it was NEVER being insulted or treated like a second-class citizen because of my weight. It took me accepting and loving myself *as is* before I could drop a single pound.

Tough love works for some people. For other people--those of us who are perfectionists for instance--it just defeats the purpose.

HonkyTonks

The exhibit should take shots at the parents but they're the ones spending the money so that's not going to happen.

Personally, I agree with this.

Whilst the exhibit did sound ok it is really obese kids who will bear the brunt of the teasing / stigma rather than the parents who are making poor choices on their behalf.

"Shaming" children won't work except in the minority of case in my view.

As an overweight kid who was bullied to the point where I tried to take my own life at the age of 14, I agree with not shaming kids/teenagers about their weight. I agree with not making a big spectacle of obese people. I hate seeing obese people made fun of so much in the media. I went from being a chubby kid to an obese teenager and young adult because I was miserable and binge ate. It took making some good friends, finding a good job and a couple of other factors to find a mental state in which I could learn to like myself enough to WANT to lose weight.

I don't agree that we should just accept unhealthy lifestyles. I just don't think telling obese people they're lazy and lack discipline or pointing and laughing at them really helps the situation. Nor is it necessarily true. Some people are lazy that is true. But binge eaters usually have a mass of emotional issues that make them want to overeat, these should be dealt with using CBT or other types of therapy in my opinion.

saragato

You think that's offensive? You should hear how they treat their employees...

Personal crap aside, I'm wondering where in Epcot that was because just last year I was there for two days and walked the entire park and never saw anything like that. But y'know maybe it's just me but some of the newer generations of parents get offended if you look at them wrong. I mean look at the uproar a couple parents caused over a My Little Pony character because she had wonky eyes and was referred to as "derpy", something they instantly said was the equivalent of "retarded" and therefore offensive to mentally challenged/disabled kids.

The world today...

tigersword

Bollocks. The issues getting in people's way, the majority of the time, are their self control. I'm perfectly fine with a sedentary lifestyle filled with crap food being demonized. It's much better than ignoring the problem or promoting it as a perfectly fine lifestyle choice.

First, it's not really up to you what I do with my life. Second, I'm really happy for you that you have the self confidence right now to look at yourself, say "Poo, I probably ought to slow down eating this crap and move around a bit more, I'm filling out a bit around the middle". Really, I am. That's not sarcasm. I'm glad that you are there. My point is that a lot of people are not there, and telling them that their self-control is the problem is, again, calling them lazy. It's not going to make them feel better, it's not going to make them deny the one thing that they can rely on to give them comfort, and it's certainly not going to motivate them to get up and move around.

If you'd spent your entire life being told your "insert body part here" was horrifically ugly and you should be ashamed of it, you'd believe it. If I've spent my entire life being told I'm just lazy, imaging how good I'd feel about myself, how motivated to take care of myself, how inspiring that must be for me. My self-worth would be rock bottom. Why would I bother to change it?

(To the hypothetical person you are speaking of)
This is why: To prove to others and MAINLY yourself that NO you are not lazy, and NO you are not ugly. The self defeated attitude doesn't hinder anyone else but yourself. It isn't what other people call you, but what you answer to. You can't depend on others for motivation, it comes from yourself. And there are many of people on this site that wouldn't necessarily say they are motivated every day, and sometimes they feel like *kitten* and don't want to continue but they do. You can't wallow in self pity forever, eventually you are going to have to change it. And i personally won't feel sorry for somebody that feels sorry enough for themselves. I can be sensitive to obesity, but i cant be sensitive to self defeated attitudes. That's just lame.

Ah, so THIS is why it's okay to shame kids? Because if the Disney cartoon shows all skinny kids that are heros and all fat kids that are bad, and kids take away that they're bad if they're fat (and almost worse, that they're automatically a hero if they're skinny) it's their fault they have a "lame defeated attitude?"

Have you seen the entire exhibit? Do you have any idea what it's actually about, or are you just going off the really ambiguous write up in the article? How do you know it's skinny vs fat? How do you know it's not healthy teaching unhealthy how to be healthy?

Silverkittycat

Bollocks. The issues getting in people's way, the majority of the time, are their self control. I'm perfectly fine with a sedentary lifestyle filled with crap food being demonized. It's much better than ignoring the problem or promoting it as a perfectly fine lifestyle choice.

First, it's not really up to you what I do with my life. Second, I'm really happy for you that you have the self confidence right now to look at yourself, say "Poo, I probably ought to slow down eating this crap and move around a bit more, I'm filling out a bit around the middle". Really, I am. That's not sarcasm. I'm glad that you are there. My point is that a lot of people are not there, and telling them that their self-control is the problem is, again, calling them lazy. It's not going to make them feel better, it's not going to make them deny the one thing that they can rely on to give them comfort, and it's certainly not going to motivate them to get up and move around.

If you'd spent your entire life being told your "insert body part here" was horrifically ugly and you should be ashamed of it, you'd believe it. If I've spent my entire life being told I'm just lazy, imaging how good I'd feel about myself, how motivated to take care of myself, how inspiring that must be for me. My self-worth would be rock bottom. Why would I bother to change it?

(To the hypothetical person you are speaking of)
This is why: To prove to others and MAINLY yourself that NO you are not lazy, and NO you are not ugly. The self defeated attitude doesn't hinder anyone else but yourself. It isn't what other people call you, but what you answer to. You can't depend on others for motivation, it comes from yourself. And there are many of people on this site that wouldn't necessarily say they are motivated every day, and sometimes they feel like *kitten* and don't want to continue but they do. You can't wallow in self pity forever, eventually you are going to have to change it. And i personally won't feel sorry for somebody that feels sorry enough for themselves. I can be sensitive to obesity, but i cant be sensitive to self defeated attitudes. That's just lame.

Ah, so THIS is why it's okay to shame kids? Because if the Disney cartoon shows all skinny kids that are heros and all fat kids that are bad, and kids take away that they're bad if they're fat (and almost worse, that they're automatically a hero if they're skinny) it's their fault they have a "lame defeated attitude?"

Why does it have to be someone's fault? Can't people accept it, move on and DO something about it?

I create my world. If I wanted to I'm sure I could find something/someone to blame, that made me see the world as unfair or made me feel like a victim, inadequate. Can't we all?

I choose not to.

FitLink

There's a reason people get judged for being fat, and it's because it's bad for them and not normal. I'm not saying we all need to be a size zero or have washboard abs, but we don't need an association to promote unhealthy behaviors -- it's ludicrous! There is also a big difference between being "a little fat" and "obese." "A little fat" is my cousin who enjoys pizza and beer a couple nights a week. He probably couldn't run a marathon, but at least I don't have to worry about him getting type 2 diabetes. "Obese" is my other cousin who I'm seriously worried about because he's not even 25 and at the rate he's going, I doubt he'll make it to 40, and that makes me sad. He can't even walk across the room without getting totally winded. I accept my cousin and love him for who he is, but I do not support his lifestyle choices. Any mature adult should be able to understand why I'm not in favor of Carl's Jr. super size meals at 2 a.m. every night of the week, he certainly does. If you ask me, The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance is only doing one thing, advancing stupidity.

I think I'll go start the "National Association to Advance Smoking to a Pack-Day per American" or maybe the "National Association to Promote Drunk Driving."

The obsession with other people's health is unhealthy in itself. You are responsible only for your own health, not every adult in the world's health. I really have never understood the vilification of smokers either. I don't smoke, but, as Tim McGraw says, "I got friends that do." I'd have no issue with the National Association to Advance SmokER (not smokING) Acceptance, and even the National Association to Advance DrinkER Acceptance. We needn't accept drunk driving, which clearly does affect other people's health, but really, how, hypothetically, does my being fat affect your being healthy? Would I not still be entitled to dignity and equality? In fact, bringing in drunk driving to bias this argument is just like bringing "marrying your dog" into a same sex marriage argument. It's not a fair comparison and it's done in an attempt to emotionally blackmail.

You seem to think the NAAFA promotes being fat or staying fat. They don't. What they DO advocate is granting ALL people, regardless of size, dignity and equality.

Silverkittycat

FitLink, make up your mind. Are you a victim or the one taking responsibility for your choices?

The obsession with other people's health is unhealthy in itself. You are responsible only for your own health, not every adult in the world's health.

FitLink

Bollocks. The issues getting in people's way, the majority of the time, are their self control. I'm perfectly fine with a sedentary lifestyle filled with crap food being demonized. It's much better than ignoring the problem or promoting it as a perfectly fine lifestyle choice.

First, it's not really up to you what I do with my life. Second, I'm really happy for you that you have the self confidence right now to look at yourself, say "Poo, I probably ought to slow down eating this crap and move around a bit more, I'm filling out a bit around the middle". Really, I am. That's not sarcasm. I'm glad that you are there. My point is that a lot of people are not there, and telling them that their self-control is the problem is, again, calling them lazy. It's not going to make them feel better, it's not going to make them deny the one thing that they can rely on to give them comfort, and it's certainly not going to motivate them to get up and move around.

If you'd spent your entire life being told your "insert body part here" was horrifically ugly and you should be ashamed of it, you'd believe it. If I've spent my entire life being told I'm just lazy, imaging how good I'd feel about myself, how motivated to take care of myself, how inspiring that must be for me. My self-worth would be rock bottom. Why would I bother to change it?

(To the hypothetical person you are speaking of)
This is why: To prove to others and MAINLY yourself that NO you are not lazy, and NO you are not ugly. The self defeated attitude doesn't hinder anyone else but yourself. It isn't what other people call you, but what you answer to. You can't depend on others for motivation, it comes from yourself. And there are many of people on this site that wouldn't necessarily say they are motivated every day, and sometimes they feel like *kitten* and don't want to continue but they do. You can't wallow in self pity forever, eventually you are going to have to change it. And i personally won't feel sorry for somebody that feels sorry enough for themselves. I can be sensitive to obesity, but i cant be sensitive to self defeated attitudes. That's just lame.

Ah, so THIS is why it's okay to shame kids? Because if the Disney cartoon shows all skinny kids that are heros and all fat kids that are bad, and kids take away that they're bad if they're fat (and almost worse, that they're automatically a hero if they're skinny) it's their fault they have a "lame defeated attitude?"

Why does it have to be someone's fault? Can't people accept it, move on and DO something about it?

I create my world. If I wanted to I'm sure I could find something/someone to blame, that made me see the world as unfair or made me feel like a victim, inadequate. Can't we all?

I choose not to.

Because when children see people who look like them portrayed as villains, they DO get the idea that at least some people think they are villains. And the fact is, not all skinny kids eat healthy either. Why SHOULD all the evil unhealthy eating characters in this be fat?

ashleab37

Fat acceptance is a load of bull****, but this exhibit is just as stupid.

Negative reinforcement against being overweight will not work - EVER. How many children have lost weight due to being bullied? I can probably count them on one hand.

Positive reinforcement is what is required. Show the healthy kids leading a good life, not the fat kids as being evil.

HonkyTonks

Fat acceptance is a load of bull****, but this exhibit is just as stupid.

Negative reinforcement against being overweight will not work - EVER. How many children have lost weight due to being bullied? I can probably count them on one hand.

Positive reinforcement is what is required. Show the healthy kids leading a good life, not the fat kids as being evil.

Wonderfully said

Note - I haven't seen the exhibit