Last night my husband stumbled upon a web page titled something like "Cops You Can Easily Outrun" (or something along those lines). The web site depicted pictures of morbidly obese law enforcement officers in uniform. This sparked a conversation between DH and myself.

He made the comment about how the weight of the officers impacted their ability to do their jobs properly and how there should be some sort of physical standard that should be met in order for people in law enforcement to be able to keep their jobs. While I agree that the weight of these individuals was almost certainly impacting their ability to preform their duties, I took issue with the website all together.

I argued that the website and others like it do not function to promote awareness of the impact of obesity or to promote fitness, but rather to make a spectacle of overweight people. I feel that websites like these have a mocking tone and encourage people to leave comments making fun of the individuals pictured, or to comment on how disgusted they are by other people's bodies.

I know it's the internet and people can say whatever they want and all sorts of immoral things are posted and blah blah blah... But it still bothers me that people use it to make fun of people with weight issues. I imagine a good chunk of the people laughing at these websites and commenting on them wouldn't have the nerve to laugh at those officers to their face. It annoys me that people hide behind the anonymity the internet provides in order to be cyber bullies.

Ok, rant over. Thoughts?

I agree with you and what you're saying. We tend to make a spectacle of the morbidly obese. Even I catch myself taking second glances at someone who is huge out in public. I hate to say it, but it's almost second nature. Although, it even bothers me on the news, when they talk about pork fat or some health issue, and they show the "chest down" montage footage of fat people walking around and fat people shopping and fat people sitting. LOL. Because honestly those aren't the only people eating too much fat, and I'm sure plenty of people who aren't all frumpy and lumpy have heart attacks from their pork fat too. Anyways that news footage is at least trying to draw attention to an "issue" - I don't think we really need to do it that way.

I don't like discriminating anyone on their body size. I feel so uncomfortable when I know I'm being judged. It goes back to grade school - it's just not nice to call someone fat. There's confiding into someone that they have a problem and that you think they are being self destructive, and then there's just ridicule.

Your husband is right that the physical qualifications they have to pass initially need to be regularly reassessed over their careers for the safety and efficacy of them and their fellow officers. And you're right that such websites serve no good purpose other than to demean, but that's the case with most humor websites online.

They're two completely separate issues and I don't disagree with either conclusion.

Totally agree about physical standards. That being said, I know a couple 300 pound guys that look like they couldn't bend down to tie their shoes but could easily outrun and out lift most of us. The issue of the website though is an entirely different thing.

The internet has taken mockery to a whole new level. While I've never seen the site in the original post, I'm familiar with one that posts pictures of people shopping in a well known world wide store. They're invariably overweight, poorly dressed etc, and then the site comments become a hate fest. It's extremely disturbing and upsetting and I believe it is just bullying plain and simple. you look at some of these people and you know they're doing their best. Who wants to be mocked by strangers on a website who had no business taking those photos in the first place.

i totally agree, on both points...i had a facebook friend who used to post pictures from a site mocking people at walmart...i cant remember the name of the site but it was pictures of people poorly dressed, or fat, or both - usually both - and making fun of them, laughing at them...that kind of stuff just IRKS me to no end and i actually took that guy off my facebook list because he wouldn't stop posting those pics and mocking them

I equate discrimination on the basis of weight as being no different to that on the basis of gender or race.

Society isn't just smart enough to realise it yet.

i saw a picture somewhere, maybe on facebook, that showed images basically saying "salad + water = hot bikini girl" and underneath "mcD food + large soda = morbidly obese girl".....and i was just like "Noooooo" there are so many many other reasons for weight gain....it's mental, it's physical illness, it's all kinds of reasons....and i HATE it when people assume that someone is fat because "they must eat mcdonalds all day"....maybe that fat person is eating salad and running farther than YOU can....

wow i'm awfully opinionated this afternoon

The worst thing I saw on Facebook was a picture of a nude obese woman, sitting down, juxtaposed with a picture of Homer Simpson, the conclusion being that her torso looked like his face. Of course underneath was a symphony of "ew gross" etc. I reported the photo to Facebook under their nudity policy, and was told it didn't qualify as nudity. People are so cruel.

I agree with all statements above.

I agree with the OP but I disagree with this, assuming Ian is referring to discrimination in the workplace. Some jobs have certain physical demands that must be met. For example, in order to be an astronaut you need to be physically (and mentally) fit for obvious reasons. That shouldn't change and police who are out patrolling really do need to be in decent shape.

However, mocking people online is mean-spirited.

But do we not all judge?

I did get upset when recently on Ask prudence, an advice column I read recently posted an accomanying video which depicted a child on her way to obesity as a pig. There was an outcry, and the website kept it up, stating it was simply satire.

I'm an Incentive Travel planner and organize every detail for huge corporate programs. At my work I don't get sent on VIP programs because the Girls who work the actual ground on these programs need to be 5'9 and 130 lbs. We outsource my complicated job and fly waitresses and hostesses around the world to run 500k - 2 mil Travel programs because with my looks, I'm just not suitable to speak to a guest and tell them "The dinner buffet opens at 7"...when I'm the one who knows every item on the menu and the 5 people with allergies! Iget upset and offended every time I don't get to travel to Japan or Hawaii or whatever.

Yet...while I certainly struggle with my weight, I DO judge. My friend complains and complains about her weight, but I want to tell her "maybe you should get to a gym and stop eating pizza 4x a week". I wouldn't want to go to an overweight personal trainer or nutritionist.

It sucks yes, but I think that it is a fact of life that we all judge and are judged.

This^^