With 33% of adults and 17% of children obese, the U.S. is facing an obesity epidemic. A major risk factor for expensive, chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, it costs our health care system nearly $150 billion a year. Should government intervene, or is this a matter of individual rights and personal responsibility?
For: Dr. Pamela Peeke
For: Dr. David Satcher
Against: John Stossel
Against: Paul Campos
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Oh my god this was an awful debate. The team for the motion failed in such a simple task, and the team debating against the motion somehow got from making sure the schools give the kids healthy meals, to the goverment coming to your house, making you exercise by gunpoint. Awful, awful.
I have a better idea, how about we stop subsidizing sugar?
Edit: Brazil isn’t a wealthy country per capita, yet they have the best soccer players in the WORLD!
Fat people eat too much and die young. .. Truth is always good. ..
The way you win this debate isn’t fair. Changed minds doesn’t prove who is right or wrong
One of the worst debates… on both sides…. why on earth did nobody bring up tax subsidies on animal products, the leading cause of obesity? And i cannot believe that the opposition was getting away with suggestion fat is healthy and it is just a body type. Just a failure of a debate on all fronts.
Satcher said absolutely nothing besides one funny joke in his opening statement
Government is going to build safe places for 330 million people? Sounds like few more trillions in taxes.
So, the government is going to control obesity by lowering the crime? Good luck with that.
The private-public partnership means more tax money being shelled out to WebMD and other corporate cronies.
1:29:12 I actually agree with the against position, but this guy is a terrible debater, he keep throwing out absolute bs. The “health”of Americans as far as death and illness from infectious disease is far better now, but as to life expectancy the rise is only minimally at the top end, most of the gains are due to the elimination of much of our infant and child mortality (from pre antibiotics era infections) which shifts the average higher. Additionally more than half American children have a chronic condition which is a NEW phenomenon as is the glut of autoimmune and inflammatory disease. We are not “healthier” simply because we no longer die of cholera in our youth and his choice of stats to demonstrate his point reveals his disingenuity or ignorance.
1:20:40 best question of the night
Why isn’t this shit on the TV. This should be on discovery channel or natgeo rather than fucking aliens exist or not.
It’s the animal fats people
If the government didn’t tell people to eat more grains and less fat, we wouldn’t even have this issue in the first place.
It is very critical that the speaker noted that ‘at the very least, the government should do no harm’ because, at this point, I do not think that there is enough attention and action against obesity as there should be. Not that the government should get so involved in their citizens’ lives and dictate what they eat but they should ensure that the society we live in should have fruits and vegetables that are at least the same place, if not cheaper than junk food. People do not necessarily eat these unhealthy foods because they want to. Many cannot afford the healthier foods or are so overworked, they do not have time to cook. This is a clear by-product of the 24-hours economy that is so common in western societies. When the FDA had all food vendors issue the calorie content of their foods, this was a substantial step taken by the federal government which the public has tried to match by becoming more interested in fitness and nutrition but these seem more like a fad than anything else. I think obesity is definitely the government’s business. They are in a position to implement policies which would be favorable to people’s health and will also see a decline in the number of people seeking disability due to obesity. It is in their best interests to fully address this issue.
lit up like kioto in night time?from us citizen??
I love how Paul is trying to convince people in exactly the same way in which he says it would be useless were the government to do so. He is educating the audience and referring to academic research in hopes of enlightening them, but he doesn’t support the education of children? How does he think the general population is going to get the information each side espouses to make an informed decision?
Obesity is not the Government’s business for one simple reason, self-governance. Sure the government can try to “reduce the obesity epidemic” by regulating what get put on food labels but is it really going to impact us as a whole? Maybe a couple people who are weight conscious but not everybody. It really depends on your own views of yourself and what you eat. The government is regulating most things we do. They don’t need to regulate what we eat and how much we workout. The government is supposed to make laws that keep us safe from outside sources not from ourselves. It is our own choice if we want to be fat, skinny, full of muscle or weak. We all know in our minds what is ideal for us but we don’t necessarily have to follow it if we don’t want to. Information on what we are consuming could be helpful but, like John Stossel said in the debate, it doesn’t necessarily reduce the number of calories someone eats. Some people even ate more because “oh, its just 100 more calories”. To fix the obesity epidemic, it does not require the help or guidance of the government, it requires the will of the obese person. The only person that can improve physical activity and healthy eating is themselves. We have to change the habits of the young adults now because most kids get their eating and physical habits from their parents because that’s all they know. By changing young adults’ habits, it will better the health of generations to come. It is a mindset that needs to be changed by the person; not by the government. The government can try to regulate and encourage but it’s up to the individual.
Bottom line is this country is fat because we have too much. This country isn’t concerned with cutting back on anything because we have too much to choose from. Our county’s concern anymore is getting more and more and more. Until this self entitled attitude is put in check things will only keep getting worse and something is finally going to give and things will eventually come crashing down on us. Education can wake people up but sadly education is not on the forefront of the majority of todays youth.
suggestion fo the lady stop subsidising roads and people will start walking
All debaters hurt their own side by failing to acknowledge that they are NOT the only country in the world.
They all take domestic examples from throughout their own history and pin those up against each other without recognising that it is that type of thinking which contributes to the vicious cycle which got them into this ‘lifestyle of obesity’ mess in the first place.
Would it be such a novel idea to look at other countries which rank higher in terms of overall health and the lifestyles which they practice?
Take France for example; the French are not known for eating carrot sticks and exercising off those extra calories. Rather, they are known for having a rich diet from food sources which are [for the most part] not genetically modified. Ie. There is government influence on the quality of food in their country.
That’s just one example of many. But I think it starts there. In which case, I would argue that it is a Governments issue in that they need to provide the funding as a starting point for researchers to look into what other, more successful countries are doing in order to keep their citizens happy and healthy.
From there, they will have the knowledge to take necessary action in improving the lifestyles of their own people.
I hate the stereotype that the United States is an arrogant nation. However, when ‘professionals’ like these panellists fail to think and look outside of the box of their own nation, they will remain ignorant, and continue the cycle of unhealthy lifestyles in the minds, bodies, and souls of their people.
“the hinterland is one big park” lol srsly people can also work out in their living rooms.
I think obesity should not be considered an ‘epidemic’. Because of the terminology, I used to think it was some sort of virus that anybody could catch! Now, I see it as more of a symptom than anything else, caused by different internal and external factors, and sometimes a combination of them. As for some external factors, the panel talked about safety and government support of big businesses regardless of health. These are government issues, and if these, along with others, are dealt with, obesity rates should go down.
I agree with the side against the motion, but I do NOT agree with much of what Paul Campos asserted. Which diseases is he talking about? I am under the impression that type 2 diabetes, for example–shown to be associated with unhealthy eating habits–is at an all-time high. Maybe I’m wrong?
This is not the government’s place to intervene in people’s lives. It already controls too much in this country and does not need anymore power over its citizens. Individuals should be in control of their own weight. Putting their weight problem on the government is just blame shifting for them not taking care of their body and their lives. We cannot have this mentality that, “Oh well the government will take care of me so I can eat Doritos all day with Mt. Dew.” Take control of yourself before the government believes that they MUST intervene.
I do not think obesity is one hundred percent the governments business. I do believe that the government could raise awareness to the citizens on affects of obesity, but I do not think it should be completely their business. Everybody has the right to do what he or she wants with their bodies, the government should not be allowed to force people to eat certain foods based on their weights or tell them how much they need to exercise each week. By just raising awareness this will get into the heads of the obese people who actually want to get healthy and loose weight. This relates to people who smoke; the government does not tell you that you cannot smoke but public health movements raise awareness that it is not good for you. Just like people who smoke cigarettes, people who are obese know what they are doing to their bodies and the negative affects that they can have on their bodies. I just do not understand how it would be ok for the government to take away basic rights that people have and set restrictions on what they can and cannot eat. Like they said in the debate the government has already grown so big and has a lot of control over people. If the government starts restricting certain foods, what else will they be able to decide for people? Overall, people who are obese need to want to change and need to make lifestyle changes for themselves.
I think both sides make really good points, and their opponents make some really bad points. All that aside, though, if not government intervention, what can we do about the obesity epidemic? Nothing?
I so agree with the woman doctor, with stress you can’t lose weight as much as you want, so true!
I love this debate. Is so funny!
I find it astounding that the very well-credentialed people arguing for the pro side couldn’t do something as simple as argue why their position is correct. The only point I heard in their combined 14 minutes that did so was the woman’s point that government-funded research can lead to helpful discoveries about what things cause obesity. But this wasn’t even explicitly stated.
It’s very simple: yes, obesity is the governments business, and (the part they largely missed) here’s why.
The first speaker did not say a single word about why the government should play a role in preventing obesity. He wasted his breath.
The good doctor says government is the only actor then contradicted himself and said their needs to be a combined effort to combat obesity.
What resources does the government have? OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY. It has no resources other than what it takes by force from taxpayers. How about not taxing so much and let grassroot initiatives thrive.
There is nothing the government can solely do that the private sector cannot except use force.
You have to have money to play soccer? Yes, and I suppose the government is going to dig in its reserve to pay for it. Oh wait, it can tax the tax payer further. Yeah, the crony capitalists will pay up. Let’s stick it to the rich. But who lobby’s the government? Rich people!
We are not the government. That is a terrible … terrible thing to say. Such a disconnect from what America is based upon.
“I feel that pain and passion”
Yes, emotions drive government policy. Big government do gooders are dangerous.
SERIOUSLY,
What AMERICAN DOES NOT OWN A @#[email protected]#$ING TV? What American cannot DO PUSH UPS IN THEIR OWN HOUSE?
It is so frustrating to hear this nonsense. Blame poverty then. Can the government fix poverty? How many social programs have been passed to end poverty?
“there is no opportunity to get active”
“no parks … no playgrounds”
Wow. I have heard a lot of bogus arguments for government growth but this one takes the cake. Is there a study that actually shows that building more parks is lowering obesity significantly?
How exactly is the government to decide what kind of food are you to eat? And how is that not supposed to get politicized? Dairy is bad for you but the only reason we have so many milk campaigns it’s because it brings 3.8 billion in income. That same with sugar. How exactly are we supposed to decide what people are supposed to eat? And what of your allergic that food? Are they supposed to like shave it down your throat.
People tend to personalize this issue. But in the end it is a social issue because obesity impacts health and those people will drive healcare costs up. All of us are going to end up paying for this obesity epidemic in rising diabetes, heart attacks, cholesterol, etc…
i’m a libertarian so obviously i’m against the motion, but what the fuck? this guy just said “we cannot make fat people thin.” what? if we can’t make fat people thin, then why can we make thin people fat? why can fat people lose weight? fat people can get thin if they want to, i doubt government can help. but there’s a fucking REASON that 33% of adults are obese now, when for the vast majority of human history NOBODY was obese. obesity isn’t a “body type,” our situation is not “body diversity.”
That lady pulled at heartstrings to carry the point. That’s not how you debate. This wasn’t even a debate, it was a mashup of opinions.