Overweight persons beware. The Health Reich is after you.
The Ad Council and the US Department of Health and Human Services have produced three new television spots targeting obesity. "But," laments MSNBC News, "the government’s new batch of obesity spots declines even to show a fat person, let alone wag a finger for gluttony or sloth." Michael Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest calls the ads’ approach "namby-pamby."
Jocobson says people shrug off calm and thoughtful messages. What’s the better approach then? MSNBC notes: "The ads targeting smoking are not as tame. A recent one by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene shows smokers’ decayed and tumored bodies. Young viewers pay more attention to ads that evoke feelings of personal loss, sadness, anger, disgust or fear, according to an analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."
While advocating fear and disgust MSNBC says: "No one is advocating public service announcements that ridicule fat people." Ridicule may evoke mere laughter. That’s not what the anti-obesity "experts" and their media friends want. Fearful disgust can only be engendered by arch vilification. This is what we’ve seen, regarding smokers, and what we shall be seeing more of, regarding fat folks. Hate is what the Healthists want.
It is the Healthists that are hateful. Columnist Norman Kjono takes a close look at their miserable outlooks and methods.
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