Monday, November 06, 2006

Greed, Gluttony and Consumerism Kills

AMERICAN children and teens were growing ever fatter tummies, a sign they were at even more risk of heart disease and diabetes, US researchers said.

They found that the belly fat of children and teenagers had increased by more than 65 per cent since the 1990s - directly in line with rising obesity rates. (The Advertiser)

This is not news at all - Americans are fat, every culture touched by American pop culture of unbridled consumerism is fat or rapidly getting fat. Even here in Korea folks are getting fat.  When I first came here in the late 1980's everyone was thin; not so any longer.

All the same, it is generally easy to spot an American - not by their clothes or attitude specifically (although that definitely helps), as I said Americans are fat.

Why are our children (and women, and men, and even old folks) so fat?  Simple, we live unsustainable and greedy lives. We are free to do everything except those things that men that are not free yearn for. We are free to shop at corporate mega fat dispensers and purveyors of genetically enhanced, pesticide and chemical fertilizer laced quasi-food products.

Do I sound like an eco-whack?  So what, there must be a balance in life between what is consumed and what is produced.  When it is possible to cram an entire day's worth of calories into one's mouth in one super-sized bag of garbage something is out of balance.

When people prefer super-sized, bland gelatinized mush over a hearty meal cooked by a real person that takes time to order, time to eat and time to enjoy something is wrong. The fast-food joints of the world are not evil, they are just convenient; in this case convenience is evil - it feeds not only big bellies but corporate giants too.

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