Supersize Me - anybody seen it?

[nursers]

Hey stop bagging the office workers! I walk to the fax machine at LEAST once a day

[Super 8]

So, does this film deal with McDonalds constantly fucking up my order at the drive-thru???

 

There's a GREAT way to cut calories. Go to the drive-thru, order what you want, take what you get!

[eh steve]

y0 s8,

 

you have to go through a fast food drive thru like you do at a bank. don't drive away until you count your money.

 

they'er really doing you a favor when they forget to throw the fries/hash-browns in the bag though.

 

eat good and smart most days of the week. eat whatever the fuck you want every once in a while.

 

bamm!

 

[Raymar]

And the "make a buck" food industry could care less about anything but sales.

That sounds very familiar.....the record industry perhaps?

 

If I ate three meals per day exclusively at my local italian restaurant I would be as grossly fat as the maker of this film.

 

it's the three square meals a day ideology that is flawed IMO.

This is too true. If I did a triathlon everyday and ate three meals of even the healthiest of foods I'd gain weight. By contrast, if I watched the tube all day and ate one meal I'd lose weight. Its all in the diet.

 

Now what about Coffee and Cigarettes?

 

BTW, has anybody ever had to deal with people that take offense at you're not accepting offered food? I remember one time a few years back I was on a diet and cut out sugar, lost quite a bit of weight and repeatedly explained this to a co-worker that just used to pig out, we were about the same weight at one time. Then he had to quit and on his last day a cake was brought in for him and I wouldn't have a piece and he was really hurt that I didn't. To me that piece of cake is like a cigarette to a ex-smoker.

 

Steve

[John Sayers]

So McDonald's, one of the biggest corps in the world, has their nutrional information right on their own website (and avaible in every store, btw). Hmmm, how can we make people more aware of this? The secret's out.

they're even printing the information on the paper wrapping here

 

A couple of serves of maccas a week isn't going to hurt anyone - unfortunately if all the other serves per week are from other fast food outlets you are going to be obese.

 

cheers

John

[Nawledge]

hi, don't want to make any judgements about you so I'll ask, how do you feel about people being saved from evil doers?

 

also regarding mickyddddddzzz and only mickyddz, not any other restaurant on the planet. Do you think they try to manipulate people children or otherwise, to eat amounts of their products that

could be proven to be knowingly unhealthy to a human being by medical science?

 

I've ejoyed the debate so far, this is really interesting and I paticularly like the way you want your questions to be directly answered without pivoting to the right or left or beating around the bush so to say.

looking forward to your response.

[Dan South]

Hey Tedster,

 

I don't know whether this will help or not, but over the years, I've eliminated various foods from my diet, and now I don't miss them at all.

 

I started with chocolate, because it made my face break out. After a while, you don't miss it. I still like the SMELL of chocolate, but I never, ever crave the taste.

 

Later, I cut out all processed sugar. My only exception is Gatorade, and I drink that only when I'm running, hiking, or working out. This pretty much eliminates all "goodies," candy bars, donuts, and soda pop (I don't eat any artificial sweeteners, either).

 

If I want something sweet, I munch on raisins or fruit salad.

 

When I was still in high school, I stopped eating hot dogs. I used to eat them for lunch and then go to track practice. If you want to eliminate ANY food from your diet, eat it, and then immediately go out and run three to five miles in hot weather. After you get done vomiting, you'll never want to see that item again. As the years went by, I expanded this ban to include all sausage-type meats and lunch meats (except high quality ham or turkey).

 

I eat no hydrogenated oils, so that eliminates all mass produced cookies, crackers, and just about any other junk that's not eliminated by the sugar ban.

 

I rarely eat deep fried foods, but I will permit myself a couple of exceptions a month. French fries and potato chips go straight to my middle, though, so I'm motivated to avoid them.

 

I don't eat onions, because they've always done nasty things to my digestive system. My family and friends like me better without the onions.

 

And my most recent ban (the last years or two) is all dairy products - cheese, milk, yogurts, etc. I had to ease into this one, but I feel so much better now that it's not difficult to maintain. They look at you funny when you order pizza with no cheese, but man, I swear I could eat cheese-free pizza and go out for a jog an hour later. Don't try that with cheese! I miss ice cream sometimes, but I can always have a fruit sorbet.

 

Nature offers plenty of sweet, tasty treats. Grapes, apples, bananas, watermelon, sweet corn, beats, sundried tomatoes - the list goes on an on. I eat tasty, satisfying stuff every day, and it's HEALTHFUL stuff, not monosodium glutimate enhanced hydrogenated, sugar coated, saturated fat.

 

Take it little by little, one sugar pack at a time, and you can kiss all of those "yummy" foods goodbye. You'll never miss them. Because once you get away from them, then when you eat them, they make you feel nauseous. Give it a try, brother. Food is GOOD, as long as it's good FOR you.

[Jeebus]

Just saw the movie, and while it certainly isn't a scientifically controlled experiment by any means, a few things did stand out in my mind. The fact is that McD's is all about hooking kids at a young age. They have the play areas, the happy meals, and marketing campaigns specifically geared towards young kids. And we wonder why there's rampant obesity in children these days. Not to mention that the SIZE of the portions are also becoming ridiculous. I guess the strategy is that if they sell you the largest possible amount of food, they can make more money. Simple. Back in the day, McD's originally offered only ONE size fries and ONE size drink. The old size is now the current small size for both items, while the super size is something like 6 times that amount.

 

Back in the 50's, a regular cup of coffee was smaller than the smallest available coffee you can now get at Starbucks. Everyone now needs Super, Tall, Grande, and uber-big sized drinks. a 7-11 big gulp is a half gallon, a particularly obscene amount of sugar-water and certainly more than any human should consume in one sitting.

 

The Sodexho information he talked about was also interesting. Sodexho provides the food service for countless schools, private schools, prisons, and even an arena that I once worked at. The feature meals are always frozen boxed and highly processed, high fat, high carb entrees. Fruits/vegetables and healthy choices are very few, and sometimes non-existant. When you're young and impressionable, eating poorly throughout your school days will likely carry into your adult life.

 

The movie was obviously an extreme experiment, and while it was over the top, it did provide some interesting perspectives. I don't think McD's or any one corporation is to blame for the world's obesity problems, but the lack of healthy choices available in schools, coupled with fast food ads being shoved down your kid's throat 24-7 certainly isn't helping.

[Super 8]

Originally posted by Dan South:

I've eliminated various foods from my diet, and now

I started with chocolate,

Gosh, Dan.... No wonder you're such a fusspot all the time.

[Lee Flier]

Originally posted by zzzzzzzzz:

You are ignoring the point I was making by moving to a differnt topic about fad diets. Is this a debate class tactic. You were trying to say I was being contradictory, but I wasn't, why can't you admit that?

Sorry, I've never taken a debate class. I thought you WERE being contradictory, then you clarified yourself in your last post, so I attempted to accept your explanation at face value and move on. I see now that apparently I still don't understand what you were trying to say.

 

Some do sort of. Really? Show me a study. Show me facts of that anywhere on earth. Is there anyone on this board who didn't know that?

I think Tedster has answered this point better than I could, and you haven't bothered to reply to any of his very thoughtful posts.

 

Of course very young children wouldn't know, it's absurd to think they would, but those young kids parents know. If the parents don't, show me the facts from anywhere.[/qb]

Again, please read Tedster's posts.

 

I posted an article, though, which had a slightly different point of view, saying that this stunt, and the focus on fast food, might OBSCURE the idea that it's not just fast food, but calories and over eating in general. You were compelled to tear it apart piece by piece. How can an article be bad if it motivates somebody to change their diet for the better?[/qb]

It's bad because it obscures the other health issues addressed in the film (other than overeating) and falsely states that the film didn't emphasize that overeating and lack of exercise are a general problem. It also seems overly focused on trashing the movie rather than providing the kind of information that would help someone change their diet for the better. Still, if the article actually did improve anybody's life I'd say it wasn't bad.

 

Oh christ, it was an obvious implied question. More debate bullshit from the second grade.

Sorry, but I didn't find it obvious at all. Really. If you're sincerely interested in communicating with me, perhaps you might be more straightforward, in consideration of the fact that I have a hard time picking up on your implications. This is normally not a problem for me, but it is with you apparently.

 

The average person where? How many average people?

Where do you get your facts from?

From observation and general reaction to the film.

 

So McDonald's, one of the biggest corps in the world, has their nutrional information right on their own website (and avaible in every store, btw).

Actually that was another point brought up in the film (and quite true in my observation as well): although the nutritional information is SUPPOSED to be available in every store, it isn't. The filmmaker looked for it repeatedly in different restaurants, and asked for it when he couldn't see it plainly visible which was most of the time, and in many cases the manager could not produce it.

 

So you're already aware, but you think that someone changing their diet to an obviously unhealthly one, and their exercise habits abruptly, is a test of value. Well I'm aware, too, and I think it's of little to no value.

Well you're certainly entitled to your opinion, even if you haven't even seen the damn movie. But lots of people don't agree and found the movie of value, and an eye opener.

 

Is there someone promoting a high sugar, high fat processed diet as a health regimen somewhere? Where did you do aid work where this was done, and why was it done? How many people developed liver dysfunction?

I've done aid work mostly on Indian reservations and in other depressed rural areas. Occasionally in other developing countries too, and I remain in touch with a large network of aid workers in third world countries who are still active. The pattern is pretty much the same with all of them. Many of these people have lived on government-issue bulk food which is mostly white flour, sugar, and lard (or nowadays, hydrogenated vegetable oil which is worse than lard). It could just as easily and cheaply be something more nutritious but that's what it is. These same people are also heavily marketed to by soft drink companies, candy bar companies and other purveyors of junk food. They are not well educated or not educated at all, are unused to the diet in most cases and no counterinformation is offered to them suggesting it's not healthy for them.

 

The movie suggests that if current trends go unabated, 1 in 3 children born in 2000 will develop diabetes. I can say from personal experience this is already a reality on Indian reservations. Liver dysfunction has also skyrocketed, many Indians die or are hospitalized for liver failure. Outsiders unaware of their diet tend to blame alcoholism for the rampant liver problems, and alcoholism IS a problem on reservations too, but we're talking about people drinking a few beers and having liver failure.

 

It's not so much a question of anybody telling people this stuff is good for them, as failing to tell anyone exactly how bad for them it is and how addictive it is, while doing their best to ensure that people get "hooked" by the time they find out. What little nutritional information is available is not even necessarily worded in a way people understand, and it doesn't stand much of a chance against the onslaught of marketing in its favor. I had no idea either until I saw the film that such things as Little Debbie Snack Cakes are now available in school lunch programs, and often that's all kids eat - no one is necessarily supervising them in their lunch choices. I took the liberty of confirming this with some neighborhood kids today.

 

And people wonder why their kids are hyperactive and have ADD, for which the drug companies are happy to prescribe them pills. I can tell you right now, and I'm sure most people over 30 would confirm this, that kind of crap wasn't available to kids at lunch when I was in school. We didn't even have soda. But obviously people are NOT making the connection between their kids' diet and the "sudden" and quite recent onslaught of ADD, adolescent obesity and early adult onset diabetes. People are peripherally aware that junk food is "fattening" but still seem largely unaware of the other health consequences or the incremental rise in obesity.

 

It occurred to me that you had no right to tell me not to comment. It's your attitude, which you have displayed before. Condescending. That's my opinion. You have no problem commenting all the time on everything with which you have a personal problem, or you just don't like. Are you trying to tell me that you only comment on thing's you have seen??? Besides, I have seen information on this movie, I have read articles, and I have read interviews, and my impression was, and is, that the stunt is dumb, and it appears that the guy is using McDonald's. And I have the right to make that comment here, just as you have your right to constantly state your ongoing relentless point of view.

First of all, if I have any "ongoing relentless point of view" it's only because I personally feel constantly pummeled by the quite literally ongoing relentless point of view of advertisers, developers, and other people quite seriously hell bent on taking over the world. Whatever I have to say on an Internet forum is a mere drop in the bucket compared to that, and anyone has the option to not read what I write if they don't want to hear it. I very often DON'T have the option to "turn off" the relentless messages of popular culture or their frequently harmful consequences.

 

Second, lots of us on these forums present strong opinions and argue. But most of us who've been here awhile also care a lot about each other, have helped each other out, have discussed many positive things as well as arguing or venting about stuff. Many have even become friends or colleagues in "real life." You, however, have never given a damn thing to this community. You only show up to criticize other forum members (or Internet forums in general) for being condescending, boring, or otherwise not meeting with your favor. If we're so distasteful then why do you continue to hang around? You've been here for years, but have participated in very few actual discussions about music, have not reached out to anybody in friendship, but have only come crawling out of the woodwork to express your disdain. Oh, but you're only joking, or we've failed to accurately read between the lines of what should have been an "obvious" implication, or you're "only expressing an opinion." Sorry, I call bullshit. I think you're displaying the same kind of superiority complex you accuse others of doing, and that's just about ALL you do around here. But yes, you certainly have the "right" to do that, this is only an Internet forum and not after all a totalitarian state seeking to limit your freedom of speech, or choices in music or fast food. Nobody's denying that, I just don't get why anyone would do that.

[Lee Flier]

Originally posted by Dan South:

I don't know whether this will help or not, but over the years, I've eliminated various foods from my diet, and now I don't miss them at all.

Dang, you cut out a lot of stuff!

 

It seems obvious that people's body chemistry is different and different foods bother different people. Processed sugar and hydrogenated oils seem to pretty universally suck, whereas fresh fruits and veggies are universally good (excepting specific ones you might be allergic to). But people have varied levels of tolerance for most other foods, and I found what agrees and doesn't agree with me by eliminating different things from my diet at different times to see what effect it had on me. Your mileage may vary - everyone else's seems to!

 

Incidentally, there was a guy in the "Supersize" movie who ate 2-3 Big Macs a day. He was not overweight and his cholestorol level was 140. Interestingly he didn't partake of the fries or sodas. Don't know what else he eats besides Big Macs or how much he exercises either, but it was funny.

[Jeebus]

Originally posted by Lee Flier:

Incidentally, there was a guy in the "Supersize" movie who ate 2-3 Big Macs a day. He was not overweight and his cholestorol level was 140. Interestingly he didn't partake of the fries or sodas. Don't know what else he eats besides Big Macs or how much he exercises either, but it was funny.

Although he wasn't overweight, something definitely seemed, 'wrong' about him, though I can't quite pinpoint what it is. It may or may not have something to do with the thousands of Big Macs he's consumed.

[Tele Kinesis]

I'm going to wait until I can rent the movie at the McDonald's down the street:

 

http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2004/05/24/daily1.html

 

"McDonald's renting DVDs

Burger giant McDonald's Corp. will begin renting DVDs at all 105 of its stores in the Denver area.

 

The summerlong test pits two of the more ubiquitous names in American consumerism against each other -- McDonald's vs. Blockbuster.

 

McDonald's already has tested renting DVDs in the D.C. and Las Vegas areas, with some success, and the new test in Denver should prove to the company whether to roll the idea out nationally.

 

The McDonald's video rental program is more loosely structured, and cheaper, than what Blockbuster has to offer. The DVDs can be returned to any McDonald's, and at $1 a day is less expensive than the $3.99 Blockbuster charges to rent a DVD for three days.

 

Blockbuster will offer a larger selection of DVD titles, however. McDonald's will only carry the 30 most popular titles.

 

© 2004 American City Business Journals Inc."

 

Actually, I can't stomach those gray-burgers at ANY of those fast food places. Always seems like that stuff is trying to crawl back up my gullet.

 

Tele

[The Studio Pet-Rock]

pssst, zzzzzzzzz

 

you seem pretty angry. Could be caused by a bad diet. You might wanna make some changes there.

[Lee Flier]

Originally posted by Jeebus:

Although he wasn't overweight, something definitely seemed, 'wrong' about him, though I can't quite pinpoint what it is. It may or may not have something to do with the thousands of Big Macs he's consumed.

LOL.

[antimatter]

double post

[antimatter]

Last Friday, I took the kids to Wendys for lunch. It could have been McDonalds, but Wendys was closer. They all got these Chicken Nugget happy meal things. Comes with fries, drink and this Frosty shake thing. Oh, and a toy. They eat most of the chicken, between 1/4 and 1/2 the small fries, hardly any of the drink (1 lemonade, 1 Sprite, 1 milk), and 1/2 of the Frosty thing. They just want the toy!

 

Fast food for us is a convenience treat. We're totally aware that the nutritional value in that meal sucks (It's amazing how one of those meals screws up my whole digestive system). That's why it's only once in a while. It means we don't cook that meal, and the kids, well, they get the toy!

 

I do want to see the movie though. It reinforces my commitment to turn my kids on to good healthy cooking.

[Kaz]

Originally posted by The Studio Pet-Rock:

pssst, zzzzzzzzz

 

you seem pretty angry. Could be caused by a bad diet. You might wanna make some changes there.

I think it's my internet addiction. Sitting there like a zombie for hours on end, eyes glazed, worrying about whether Britney Spears is a suicidal whore, and seeing endless messages subconsciously

influencing me to cut my balls off. I don't think it's too healthy.

[Kaz]

Originally posted by Lee Flier:

If we're so distasteful then why do you continue to hang around?

First, what is this "we" thing. I'm talking to you, not everybody here. I don't see what your long diatribe against me has to do with anything. What difference does it make to you what I say, when I say it, or how I say it? Sounds like when people say, "if you don't like this country, get the fuck out!"

[Kaz]

Originally posted by Tedster:

Modern society sends people two conflicting messages...

Tedster, I was not ignoring your posts (according to Ms. Thing, I was), nor am I even sure if you were looking for some response from me. I didn't respond because I didn't really see anything that you said that I disagree with.

[Kaz]

Originally posted by Nawledge:

hi, don't want to make any judgements about you so I'll ask, how do you feel about people being saved from evil doers?

 

also regarding mickyddddddzzz and only mickyddz, not any other restaurant on the planet. Do you think they try to manipulate people children or otherwise, to eat amounts of their products that

could be proven to be knowingly unhealthy to a human being by medical science?

 

I've ejoyed the debate so far, this is really interesting and I paticularly like the way you want your questions to be directly answered without pivoting to the right or left or beating around the bush so to say.

looking forward to your response.

Is this aimed towards me? If it's not, oh well.

 

I'm not sure I understand the evil doers question. In general, yes, of course, if someone is being attacked, then saving them is good. But that phrase comes from Bush, and I jokingly used it because it's unclear whether Bush is doing good or not so good in his zealous bid to rid the world of evil doers.

 

I think McDonald's is trying sell hamburgers and fries and Cokes. A lot of people like them. Jack Daniels sells booze. Yamaha sells motorcycles. There are a lot of potentially dangerous things for sale. Buyer beware.

 

I suppose I should add that I don't think brands like McDonald's or Coke should be hawked in schools for young kids, nor do I think that McDonald's is just an innocent little burger joint. Obviously, they are a huge corporation with a lot of influence. I'm all for rules and regulations that fight to make food safer, I'm all for kids being taught what is healthy, etc. etc.

[Mats Olsson.]

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0060938455.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

Have anyone here read this book?

[Dan South]

Originally posted by Lee Flier:

Dang, you cut out a lot of stuff!

Yeah, I did, but it's amazing what's left to eat, and everything that I DO eat is so much better in terms of both taste and healthfulness than all of the crackers and Trinkies and Pepsis and Big Macs.

 

Retail food is a huge business. It's main products are mass produced. They aren't engineered to taste great or make you feel well, they're engineered to have a long shelf life and make a profit. I no longer eat mass produced food except for some juices. I eat REAL food, and it tastes better than the factory assembled variety. Real food costs money to make and to transport and to store. It's less profitable than mass produced food, so you don't see advertisements for bananas or fresh fish or homemade pasta dishes. You see ads for Whoppers and Coke and Lay's Potato Chips.

 

When you eat crap, you're killing yourself and making someone else rich at the same time.

 

I found what agrees and doesn't agree with me by eliminating different things from my diet at different times to see what effect it had on me.

The important thing is to keep the change in force for a while. I tried cutting back on dairy several times, but I never noticed a difference until I went cold turkey for three or four weeks. Then I had a slice of pizza, and my sinuses started killing me, just as they had in the past. I could eat cheese and take Claritin and let the two fight it out in my body, but I find that I feel way better just eliminating dairy completely. Plus I'm not clogging my arteries with fat. Lovely!!!

[jeffbayson]

Originally posted by Mats Olsson.:

Have anyone here read this book?

I read it. I recommend it. It's an entertaining piece of muckraking. My main complaint about the book was that the author didn't even pretend to present any opposing viewpoints, much less refute them. Not that I'm apologizing for that industry's sins. Rather, I found myself playing devil's advocate while reading the book, and thinking of what an industry PR spokesperson might have said in their defense. The author would have made a stronger case had he acknowledged the industry's perspective.

 

zzzzzz: I think you're preemptively warding off a call for regulation that nobody has made. Nobody has called for any draconian food laws here. You say, "use at your own risk." Fine. So this guy made a film outlining the risks. So what?

 

Having said that... there is a time and a place for regulation. I'm not sure if this is it, but I'm open to the idea. The government has restricted the tobacco industry, with positive results for the nation's health. Has this limited people's freedom to buy cheap cigarettes and smoke them wherever they choose? Yes. But it has also freed a lot of people from cancer and heart disease.

 

My main complaint with the libertarian argument (and I don't know whether you're making this argument, zzzzz - I don't want to put words in your mouth) is that it only acknowledges the government as a controlling agent. Huge mega-corporations have just as much power. Sure, we need to be wary of giving the goverment too much control of our behavior, but shouldn't we be wary of corporations as well? Again, the cigarette companies are a convenient example. If a government taxes a product, that's restricting my freedom - but if a corporation constantly bombards me with advertising, they're not? I don't buy it.

[Kaz]

This is interesting. In the Times today, what a coincidence:

 

"Adults acknowledge weight issues: Overweight Americans are well aware of the need to shed some pounds and get some exercise, but few are stepping on the treadmill and doing something about it. And the majority believe that they themselves, rather than the government or food industry, are principally to blame for their extra pounds ."

 

To be fair, and not misleading in any way , the article goes on to say that Americans are concerned about many of the various issues brought up in this thread, advertising to children, etc.

 

Of course, this article and poll is probably a great manipulation by the grinch, the blue meanies, and the evil doers .

[Lee Flier]

Originally posted by eljefe:

zzzzzz: I think you're preemptively warding off a call for regulation that nobody has made. Nobody has called for any draconian food laws here.

Exactly.

 

You say, "use at your own risk." Fine. So this guy made a film outlining the risks. So what?

Exactly. I can't fathom why anyone would bitch about a few small dissenting voices against an avalanche of marketing.

 

My main complaint with the libertarian argument (and I don't know whether you're making this argument, zzzzz - I don't want to put words in your mouth) is that it only acknowledges the government as a controlling agent. Huge mega-corporations have just as much power. Sure, we need to be wary of giving the goverment too much control of our behavior, but shouldn't we be wary of corporations as well? Again, the cigarette companies are a convenient example. If a government taxes a product, that's restricting my freedom - but if a corporation constantly bombards me with advertising, they're not? I don't buy it.

Yes, you nailed it.

[Nawledge]

Originally posted by zzzzzzzzz:

 

I suppose I should add that I don't think brands like McDonald's or Coke should be hawked in schools for young kids, nor do I think that McDonald's is just an innocent little burger joint. Obviously, they are a huge corporation with a lot of influence. I'm all for rules and regulations that fight to make food safer, I'm all for kids being taught what is healthy, etc. etc.

I totally agree. I also think that using entertainment to edutain is a good way to help encourage 'buyer bewareness', I saw a little of that movie, I hope the guy does the sequel on breakfast cereals.

[jeffbayson]

Originally posted by zzzzzzzzz:

And the majority believe that they themselves, rather than the government or food industry, are principally to blame for their extra pounds ."

 

To be fair, and not misleading in any way , the article goes on to say that Americans are concerned about many of the various issues brought up in this thread, advertising to children, etc.

 

Of course, this article and poll is probably a great manipulation by the grinch, the blue meanies, and the evil doers .[/b]

Dude. You've obviously been brainwashed. By THEM. You know who I'm talking about.

 

(I'm joking.)

 

Look, I agree that people are ultimately responsible for their own behavior. I don't have a weight problem, and if I did, I wouldn't blame it on McDonald's, because I don't eat there. I don't hold the government or food industry wholly responsible for the obesity epidemic. When those overweight teens sued McDonald's for making them fat, I rolled my eyes along with everybody else.

 

BUT.

 

The United States faces a serious health crisis right now. Many people in this country need to change their eating and exercise habits, or they will DIE. I would like to do something about that. Wouldn't you?

 

People need to exercise more. Absolutely. People also need to cut down on the amount of over-processed shit they eat. The industry spends billions of dollars every year pounding the message into our heads that "this food is good." One guy made a movie saying, "hey, this food is actually shit." You say, "we knew that already." So fault him for unoriginality. Is he a charlatan who used a gimmick to promote his career? Perhaps. Did he present a balanced view of the industry? Probably not (can't say for sure - I haven't seen the film). The fast food industry inundates us with unfair, unbalanced POSITIVE messages about their food. Do you fault them for that?

 

It would be a gross oversimplification to blame the obesity epidemic solely on the fast food indsutry. But they ARE partly responsible. I don't think they are evil. They sell junk food, and they want to sell as much of it as possible. I understand that. But you have to acknowledge the consequences of their success.

[Lee Flier]

[Jeff Klopmeyer]

Originally posted by zzzzzzzzz:

I suppose I should add that I don't think brands like McDonald's or Coke should be hawked in schools for young kids, nor do I think that McDonald's is just an innocent little burger joint. Obviously, they are a huge corporation with a lot of influence.

Perhaps more than you realize.

 

MTV refused to air ads for the film, for fear of upsetting one of their biggest advertisers. And of course, MTV's demographic represents a huge market for McDonald's... kids and teens.

 

However, perhaps the film is doing some level of good: McD's just announced that by the end of 2004, Supersize will no longer be available except in certain promotions. If someone wants to be a pig after that, they can just order two meals and suck them both in.

 

One last thing: as a person whose genetics and metabolism keeps him thin without having to really work at it at all (little exercise, eat whatever I want and so on), it's probably MORE dangerous for me, since there's no one putting pressure on me to alter my diet. They have no idea what's going on on the inside, where it counts.

 

But despite some people's defensive attitude regarding the film's message, no one will stop you from deciding for yourself regarding what and how much to eat (if you're more than 12 years old and Mommy can't stop you). But don't get angry because the fact is brought to your attention. Even things that seem obvious to some people are lost on others due to ignorance and habitual behavior. There's nothing wrong with a little wake-up call in this regard.

 

- Jeff