Got really really irritated today.

There was a discussion on a fb group that I belong to about effective appetite suppressants. I posted that as far as I was aware surgery was the most effective tool that we currently have for losing and maintaing weight loss although it is not a magic wand.

A lot of the posts on the thread were very flippant and unsympathetic but the one that really got to me was some guy that posted this "I think surgery is a stupid idea. Free up some hospital beds and poor overworked staff and go for a run".

A bit further along one of the mods then came out and said she had had lapband surgery and that a lot of the comments upset her. I responded that I thought that there were a lot of nasty bigots and geez then the **** really hit the fan. Apparently it is far worse to call someone a bigot than it is to say a fat person should just go for a run.

At no point did any of the other people in the group come out in support of me and what I had said .

So in summary.

When discussing weight loss and effective appetite suppressants it is ok to :-

be flippant

suggest smoking

crystal meth

tapeworms etc

Imply that a person is fat because they are lazy

Imply that weight loss is easy , all it takes is to eat less and move more

Imply that fat people are parasites that are clogging up the hospital system

But it is not Ok to call someone a bigot for having those opinions.

If anyone wants to read the whole thread it is the "Australian Skeptics" group on facebook. You can t post unless you are a member but it is an open group so anyone can read what has been posted.

It's just jealousy! The lap band is the most hated (due to jealousy) of all the weight loss surgeries, don't know why.

Going forward I would just keep quiet and let them eat their tape worms, and take crystal meth to keep their weight down..

_{People never like success when they don't have any. Some folks feel better about themselves when thy have put some one else down. I usually say it is stomach repair the never is not in the right place and the band repairs that making dieting a success. It's a diet exercise that works .}

It's just jealousy! The lap band is the most hated (due to jealousy) of all the weight loss surgeries, don't know why.

Going forward I would just keep quiet and let them eat their tape worms, and take crystal meth to keep their weight down..

The link to the research studies which validate the: " It's just jealousy! The lap band is the most hated (due to jealousy) of all the weight loss surgeries, don't know why" can be located where?

Inquiring minds want to know...

The link to the research studies which validate the: " It's just jealousy! The lap band is the most hated (due to jealousy) of all the weight loss surgeries, don't know why" can be located where?

Inquiring minds want to know...

Since you seem to be a **** starter, I guess you answered your own question.

Since you seem to be a **** starter, I guess you answered your own question.

No link provided...I guess that invalidates your previous statement that paraphrased "everything I post can be supported with research online".

Another incredible broad generalization posted...not intending to start anything, but I seriously did want to know the origin of the research which indicates bands are most hated because of jealousy.

I had never read that before...just curious. I believe that is your opinion. I never read/heard anything to that effect.

Best wishes...

Fat is one of the few acceptable things to discriminate against openly. Whether it's flippant comments, sneering looks, or rejected access to planes, buses, and rides alike... it's just easier to keep pointing fingers, laughing, and rejecting opposed to sympathizes and understanding.

There is absolutely no reason to get upset. The first reason being most peoples assumptions to why someone is overweight is inaccurate. Second, their knowledge on how to lose and maintain weight loss is absurd. Third because without awareness and education there will always be discrimination and ignorance.

Best to let this one go...can't change the world, only yourself. AND don't let the world do the changing for you!

It's so very easy for a thin, healthy person to comment negatively about obesity. However, most thin people have never faced obesity, if they're making such harsh comments. They've never walked in an obese persons shoes to know that illness and medication is also a cause of being overweight. The spinal injuries, surgeries, steroids, etc...and lack of ability to exercise due to injury. Or the persons with auto-immune diseases that cause people to be on high dose steroids for years at a time, which causes weight to increase. So it seems a lot of thin, healthy people that have the health and ability to eat whatever they choose and are able to workout at the gym see all obese people as lazy over eaters that have no self control. These people are only closed minded and ignorant to the facts that obesity has many causes, each person has their own story as to how they became a bandster. But the bottom line is, we are all concerned enough to do something about it, if it's safe and works and we regain our health, who cares what vehicle it is that helps us attain our goal and cross the finish line. I wonder if the same people that criticize the band, would think twice about ditching their eyeglasses or contacts and having Lasix surgery to correct their imperfect eyes. I highly doubt it, as it's another option to get them to their goal of healthy eyesight. And P.S. Soujourner, yes this is only my opinion, I can provide no links, as this is a forum that is mixed with personal journeys and opinions, with some occasional proven statistics. Best wishes everyone.

so what do you think about my comment and the way I was treated?

Is calling someone a bigot really worse than telling a fat person to stop wasting hospital resources and just go for a run?

so what do you think about my comment and the way I was treated?

Is calling someone a bigot really worse than telling a fat person to stop wasting hospital resources and just go for a run?

I looked for the post on FB, and was not able to locate it.

The comments you received seem to be motivated by a moral model that uninformed people often subscribe to.

Casting those type of aspersions should never have happened.

so what do you think about my comment and the way I was treated?

Is calling someone a bigot really worse than telling a fat person to stop wasting hospital resources and just go for a run?

I read that FB post a couple of times yesterday. The guy who made the comment, has the opposite problem; can't gain weight, but needs to. Clearly, he doesn't understand about obesity, nor does he understand what a ridiculous/ignorant comment that was to make. It would have pissed me off, too. But you know what they say about opinions......they're like A-holes; everybody's got one Best to just let this one go.....

I think the word "bigot" pressed a huge button. No one likes to think of themselves that way, but a distaste for the obese is no different than distaste for any particular race, religion, etc. I think you hit a nerve (not a bad thing), and that's what brought on the barrage of retaliation. It's human nature, that when someone feels attacked, they attack back. We see it all the time on this site

so what do you think about my comment and the way I was treated?

Is calling someone a bigot really worse than telling a fat person to stop wasting hospital resources and just go for a run?

I don't think one is worse than the other.

However, in MY opinion, you stooped to their level of name calling. I don't blame you, I have done it (and probably will in the future)! But, I think the best thing you can do is educate rather than respond out of emotion. I have a younger sister with Down Syndrome and have spent my whole life listening to horrible things said, and have only just realized that when I attack back, I am no better than the attacker.

Unfortunately, there are too many people out there that are close minded and don't want to hear the truth! And, yes, I just resorted to name calling! ???‰

OK I shall have to put it on my list of words to only use with extreme caution.

so what do you think about my comment and the way I was treated?

Is calling someone a bigot really worse than telling a fat person to stop wasting hospital resources and just go for a run?

No its defiantly not. Some people don't even view overweight people as human so talking badly about them is not even considered discrimination. That poster was clearly a bigot. Society makes it Ok for this unfair and unhealthy treatment also. Buying plus size clothes at Wal-Mart has at least an extra $2 charge. Why? They don't discount as the sizes go down for less material being used. It's ok to abuse the overweight. Who will listen to us anyways......