A Rebuttal by CG Brady

Bigger Fatter Politics is the most visited fat acceptance site of all time but when I Fat Bastardo posted a Fat Tax cyber debate between CG Brady and me Fat Bastardo I suspect that the servers at Google melted. One of our long time contributors to Bigger Fatter Politics Dr Gerald "Teddy" Bear took great umbrage at the comments made by CG Brady. Knowing that a fat tax or obesity is not only a hot button issue but a socially important issue, I Fat Bastardo will continue a series of discussion on this subject. The following is a rebuttal from CG Brady.

A Rebuttal to Fat Bastardo's Assertions that Obesity and Gluttony is An Economic Stimulus

Fat Bastardo asserts that gluttony is good for the economy because it creates so much more bussiness and increases sales of nearly every resource. That would be true if we were exporting these resources to other obese country but the greatest consumption by American  fatlings is food and medical care. The US medical system is a huge drain on our economy and the biggest perpetrator of fraud of all other American industries combined. In fact Blue Cross Blue Shield reports that 33% of every dollar spent on healthcare in the US goes to cover waste and fraud.

FOOD! Most of the food consumed in the US is consumed by fat people. Do the math Bastardo. 75% of Americans are fat or obese. The average fatling consumes twice as much as the average healthy sized person. Because of this over consumption America is importing more and more food. Trade deficits wreck economies.

Low wages! The food industry in the US is huge but they pay their workers poorly. They millions of low paying food jobs hurts the economy.

Absenteeism! Fat people get sick more often and have more sick days. Lower production hurts the US economy.

Presenteeism! Fat people while at work are simply less productive.

Sloth and Gluttony are Choices

Everything a fatling crams into his or her pie hole is a CHOICE. Sure there are a lot of greedy food companies working hand in hand with the medical and drug industry but is all boils down to one undeniable fact. What you put in your shopping cart, order at a restaurant and eventually shove into your pie hole is a choice. When it comes to feeding themselves fat people are just plain irresponsible.

I see you fatlings in your power scooters rooting around Walmart and when your shopping for your pig food is over you waddle to your car. I see you with a caravan of shopping carts being pushed by your chubby and dirty kids.

When fatlings blame their sloth and gluttony on anything and everything but themselves it certainly calls in to questions their character. Sloth greed and gluttony is what ended the Roman Empire and the US will meet the same tragic fate.

To my detractors:

What anti obesity advocates say is unpopular because the truth hurts. We get accused of being Nazis, fat haters, racists, right wingers, Republicans, tea baggers, evil ect ect ect... but the truth is we are telling the truth and offering opinions based on fact. The very types of people that we get accused of being i.e. Nazis, fat haters, racists, right wingers, Republicans, tea baggers, ect are almost always fat!

It's said but true, many fat people are big babies.

They eat themselves into infirmities and then cry about it and blame everything and everyone.

They eat themselves into ugliness and then go out and hate attractive people.

They eat themselves into immobility and with maniacal hate they launch vitriolic rants against people who are athletic and fit.

Fast Fat Facts: Economic Costs of Obesity

 

Healthcare Costs

• Obesity-related medical treatment costs between $147 and $210 billion a year, or nearly 10 percent of all annual medical spending (based on 2006 data). The majority of the spending is generated from treating obesity-related diseases such as diabetes.¹ Of the $147 billion, Medicare and Medicaid are responsible for $61.8 billion. Medicare and Medicaid spending would be 8.5 percent and 11.8 percent lower, respectively, in the absence of obesity.² Obese people spend 42 percent more on healthcare costs than healthyweight people.³
• Childhood obesity alone is responsible for $14.1 billion in direct costs.⁴
• Annually, the average total health expenses for a child treated for obesity under Medicaid is $6,730, while the average health cost for all children covered by Medicaid is $2,446. The average total health expenses for a child treated for obesity under private insurance is $3,743, while the average health cost for all children covered by private insurance is $1,108.⁵
• Hospitalizations of children and youths with a diagnosis of obesity nearly doubled between 1999 and 2005, while total costs for children and youths with obesity-related hospitalizations increased from $125.9 million in 2001 to $237.6 million in 2005, measured in 2005 dollars.⁶
• In California alone, the economic costs of overweight, obesity and physical inactivity are estimated to cost $41 billion a year.⁷

Decreased Worker Productivity and Increased Absenteeism

• Obesity-related job absenteeism costs $4.3 billion annually.⁸
• Obesity is associated with lower productivity while at work (presenteeism), which costs employers $506 per obese worker per year.⁹
• As a person's BMI increases, so do the number of sick days, medical claims and healthcare costs associated with that person.¹⁰

Higher Workers' Compensation Claims

• A number of studies have shown obese workers have higher workers' compensation claims.^{11,12,13,14,15,16}
• Obese employees had $51,091 in medical claims costs per 100 full-time employees, costs for medical claims for healthy-weight workers was $7,503. And obese workers had $59,178 in indemnity claims costs per 100 full-time employees; healthy-weight indemnity claims cost $5,396.¹⁷

Health and Emergency Safety Costs

• Emergency responders and healthcare providers face unique challenges in transporting and treating the heaviest patients. According to one study, the number of severely obese (BMI ≥ 40) patients quadrupled between 1986 and 2000 from one in 200 to one in 50. The number of super-obese (BMI ≥ 50) patients grew by a factor of five, from one in 2,000 to one in 400.¹⁸
• A typical ambulance outfitted with equipment and two emergency medical technicians (EMTs) that can transport a 400-pound patient costs $70,000. A specially outfitted bariatric ambulance that can transport patients weighing up to 1,000 pounds costs $110,000.¹⁹
• A standard hospital bed can hold 500 pounds and costs $1,000. A bariatric hospital bed that can hold up to 1,000 pounds costs $4,000.²⁰

Where Is This Money Going and to Whom?

This one is a no brainer. The only people reaping rewards from the gluttony bloom and the fat bonanza are the greedy corporations. Is that good for the US economy? NO!