The Truth is Radical

Tags

anti-healthist, fat acceptance, taking a stand

When you’re first exposed to fat acceptance in a culture like ours, it feels so wrong. It is too extreme. We have been conditioned our whole lives to think that weight and health are inextricably linked. Others believe that, even if weight is not particularly relevant to health, diet and exercise are, to a large extent.

Suffice it to say I do not think that people eat nearly as badly as everyone thinks they do, nor is there an epidemic of inactivity, in young people or any other age group. I think that the “epidemics” of junk diets and sloth are every bit as fictitious as the obesity epidemic.* Many of you will take exception to that claim, and that is TOTALLY okay. I am not going to promote my point of view or argue yours. I will, however, bring it up for illustrative purposes later on.

I see it all the time, even among FA activists. Sometimes we feel the need to concede that being fat does exacerbate some health problems, or that fat people are at higher risk for certain health conditions because of their fat. The idea that maybe, just maybe, being fat is no different from being gay, Jewish, black, or some other natural variation in the human condition is too much to bear.

When I first was exposed to fat acceptance in 2008 through Junkfood Science, I was one of those people. I had never insulted or hated fat people for being fat, but I still held on to the belief that fat was a disease and that it was largely controllable with the right lifestyle. My response was to pity them instead of hate them. I felt that being overweight or moderately fat was okay, but obvious obesity was not, could not be okay. I read blog post after blog post that insisted that fatness, even superfatness, is not a disease and that correlated health risks have nothing to do with fat, but with dieting, genetics, and lower social status. Still, I thought to myself, “Well, she totally has a point, but I think she is being a bit extreme here. Of course being a superfat isn’t okay. Of course diet and exercise impact weight and a person’s health. They have to.”

Instead of feeling liberated with the knowledge that I was not a failure or defective because of my weight, my health, or my lifestyle, I insisted on holding onto my prejudices, not just against others, but myself.

Why would someone do this?

The reason is two-fold: One is that we still want to hold on to “The Fantasy of Being Thin” that Kate Harding discusses. The other, more subtle, one is that we can’t bear to face it. To face it would be to realize just how thoroughly people hate us and how pervasive fat hatred is, inserting itself in every area of life, held by virtually all people in our culture, and knowing there is no escape for it. It’s hard to face by its very nature, knowing how hated you really are and being almost powerless to stop it, through advocacy or failed attempted after attempted at weight reduction.

Over time, it sunk in. The obesity epidemic was fictional. Fat is genetic. Health is largely a function of stress, class, and genetics. The reason it is so popular to believe truisms about weight, health, and fitness is because there is a cultural and financial payoff for keeping us down. I overcame my initial shock at the real nature of all these “epidemics,” I stopped being sad and started getting angry.

I had been radicalized by the truth.

Something I keep seeing is the refusal to fully embrace the message of fat acceptance because it is too radical. We must tone down our rhetoric, even if doing so means diluting the message down to nothing, ignoring scientific fact, and the real cultural forces at work. Here is my message to you:

Forget about being “too radical.” The truth is radical. The truth is not determined by, and does not care for, what is moderate vs. what is radical. Those are cultural constructions. The truth is what it is, and to deny it because it does not adhere to the dictate of our culture is to deny the very nature and purpose of science.

Speaking of radical, maybe it is not the truth, but our culture, that is radical. The truth is that health, weight, and fitness are somewhat influenced by lifestyle, but it is far more influenced by factors outside of our control. Furthermore, healthy is a fluid concept and it is not limited to those with the right bodies or perfect health indices. Lastly, your health should not reflect your worth as a person.

Those pronouncements don’t sound radical to me. They sound like common sense. We cannot isolate ourselves in bubbles in our homes. Injury and illness are an annoying but manageable part of life. People are worthy because they are people and a singular trait-like fat or health-should not define them. Is that really all that radical?

No. It is our anti-fat, healthist culture that is radical. It refuses to acknowledge any factor in health, fitness, or weight besides lifestyle. It refuses to allow people with socially stigmatized bodies and lifestyles to exist. It refuses to allow them any measure of worth, intelligence, or morality. It seeks to deny basic rights and social support.

Believe what you want over good foods vs. bad foods, health, exercise, weight, or whatever topic you like to focus on. You may be right or wrong, I may or may not agree with you, but promise at least this:

Believe what you do because, in your heart of hearts, you believe it and can find some support for it. Don’t let it be because the alternative is too radical.

*If you want to recommend that I read Michael Pollan or Eric Schlosser, watch Morgan Spurlock, or some other health/lifestyle 101 reference, please don’t. I’m not stupid, I don’t live in a cave, and I know very well what’s being said by these people. Guess what, I take issue with it anyway.

Quick Hit: How the Vatican Operates

Tags

Catholicism, humor

Someone comes along and states the obvious within earshot of a bishop. The bishop is offended and tattles on said person to Rome.

Rome gets offended.

Person states her case and does not back down.

Five days later, a papal bull arrives stating, “You are hereby excommunicated, you heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church and you should burn in Hell forever and ever!”

Five weeks later, the heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church who should burn in Hell forever and ever presents herself for communion at another parish. She is denied, with the parting comments:

“You are excommunicated you heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church and you should burn in Hell forever and ever!”

Five months later, she goes to yet another parish, STILL not repenting for the sin of dissent, and she gets the same response: “You are excommunicated you heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church and you should burn in Hell forever and ever!”

Five years later, after being in hiding, she moves to a remote village and attends Mass there. She presents herself for Communion and the priest says, “The Body of…wait, are you the heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church who should burn in Hell forever and ever?”

Five decades later, people are mourning her death and some people continue to hold a grudge against her. However, some are starting to ask, “You know, she was a bit of a rabble-rouser and I’m not sure I agree with her, but was she really a heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church who should burn in Hell forever and ever?”

Five centuries later, a parade and a lavish feast are held at the Vatican in the name of the heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church who was going to burn in Hell forever and ever with the parting comments: “Today we celebrate the life, legacy, and miracles of this faithful, obedient, humble woman of God who we know, and have ALWAYS known, of course, is being rewarded in Heaven forever and ever!”

Brought to you by your favorite heretic, apostate, schismatic stain on the sanctity of the Holy Church. Who of course will burn in Hell forever and ever.

Oh, by the way, I was invited by church officials to a bonfire, but you have to bring your own kindling. Who’s with me?:)

Food Feeds People

Tags

food issues, self-care, snobbery

Food feeds people. This is hardly a radical statement on its face, but in our culture, it needs to be said again and again.

Food feeds people, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

Today, admitting that you like food and the act of eating is tantamount to admitting to a love of heroin and the act of shooting up. We are not allowed to enjoy food or eating because then we might overeat and become fat. If we allow ourselves to enjoy stereotypically unhealthy foods, we will eat ourselves into disability. An inability to stop oneself from moderate eating is viewed as addictive behavior. (The fact that food is necessary for life is not considered.) Anyone who is aware of the physiology and psychology of addiction knows better than to equate an enjoyment of food, even to the point of eating *gasp* seconds, with addiction.

Then again, I paid good money for this pitchfork and I aim to use it.:)

I can’t decide who is more insufferable-those who bemoan their inability to not enjoy eating or those who have successfully conquered their desire to eat, moreso when the foods being given up are “bad” foods. This is how the conversation generally goes:

Person A: Do you want any pizza/ice cream/insert naughty food item here?

Person B: No, I’ve given up all that stuff.

Person A: Really? Why?

Person B: I’m on a diet/want to get healthier.

Person A: Wow, isn’t it hard?

Person B: No, I don’t miss it. It’s all garbage anyway and you realize once you’ve eaten real food how unnecessary it is.

Person A: You have so much willpower! I’m so jealous.

I hate these conversations. More than anyone will ever know. I can’t say anything, of course, because then I am just another jealous fat-ass who wants to justify her gluttony and tear down that poor courageous dieting soul for being so much better than I am.

No one is obligated to like anything too sweet, sour, bitter, salty, too filling, too light, or anything else that doesn’t strike your fancy or meet your feeding needs. If I offer someone a sip of my mocha latte and she declines because it is too sweet for her, I am not personally offended by this. If you tell me, a die-hard chocolate lover, that you don’t eat chocolate because it is too bitter or too filling, that wouldn’t bother me.

What does bother me is that in these conversations, the only foods that are attacked are those foods considered “bad” by our culture and the comments are more than just expressions of personal taste. They are veiled insults aimed at those that do like those foods. Anytime someone offers a comment that pretends to be an opinion but that is really a personal attack on someone else is an occasion to take offense. However, in our virulently healthist culture, these comments take on a whole new meaning entirely.

Under any other circumstances, you might roll your eyes and fight the urge to tell them to zip it. We’re trying to have a good time here and no one cares anyway. There’s a time and place to bitch and there’s a time and place to let it go and relax.

Healthist comments in and of themselves are mere annoyances at which you just roll your eyes and kindly reply, “Let it go.” When healthist comments are made against the backdrop of a deeply healthist culture, they are so much more. They are personal attacks that cut into your worth as a person. The implication is that you are too stupid to know what is good for you and too incompetent to keep away. You are too degenerate to care about the damage you are causing yourself and others, even if no damage is in evidence, or to at least admit you are wrong. You are too lazy to make the effort to be as righteous as I am. You are what you eat, and if what you eat is junk, then…

Healthism disgusts and infuriates me. Those who feel that the need and the desire to eat are sins that must be overcome make me sad. Those who cannot or will not enjoy eating make me sad, too. You have only one life, and there is so much joy to be found in what life has to offer, big or small. Food is one of those small, and for those fortunate people who don’t live in poverty, easily accessible pleasures. Food feeds people, and it can feed you too.

Food feeds people physically. It provides you with the energy and nutrients you need to survive, thrive, and lead an active life. It relieves hunger pains, dizziness, and fatigue. It is essential to the management of countless medical conditions like diabetes. Filling, flavorful foods make mealtimes easier for those who suffer loss of appetite because of illness or who conditions restrict what they can tolerate. For those who find eating painful or otherwise difficult, having a few culinary treasures makes the effort worthwhile.

Food feeds people mentally. Food gives us the energy to think and remember. When food is restricted, it becomes an obsession and our obsession makes us depressed, irritable, and irrational. When we feed ourselves regularly, we are allowed to have lives outside of food and to have control over our emotions. Food is intellectually stimulating for those preparing it. It is a challenge to prepare food safely, properly, and to experiment with new ideas. Creating a dining atmosphere and giving food attractive presentations stimulates our aesthetic senses.

Food feeds people emotionally. It is something we can prepare and share with others. It is a modest pleasure whose taste, texture, and fill can give you a pick-me-up when you’re down, bored or want to celebrate. Giving food, i.e. agreeing to nourish someone, is a way to show others you care and being fed is a sign of being cared for by others. Making and presenting food gives us pride and it is fun to do. On the other hand, food can be easy if that’s what you want. Lots of foods can be heated up and eaten and others don’t need any preparation at all. Food is a benchmark of security. When you have a full pantry, you can take a breath and know that it one less thing you need to be concerned with.

Food feeds us spiritually. When Catholics consume the bread and wine offered at Mass, they consume the body and blood of Christ and become one with His holiness. When Jews celebrate the Passover, they eat matzoh bread as a way to commemorate the pains taken by their people while fleeing slavery in Egypt. When pagans consume an apple, they are reminded of the Divine Energy that allowed that apple to exist. When people of faith obey fast and abstinence guidelines, the guidelines proposed have spiritual significance. Jewish people don’t eat leavened bread for Passover because their ancestors did not have time to wait for the bread to rise. If they waited, they could be caught and punished. For religious people, food is a blessing by the Creator and something to be happy about.

The bottom line is food is essential not just to live, not just to be healthy, but to nourish your whole self. You can choose to deny yourself food, but people who do that tend to starve. Humans are *designed* to want to eat, and this is a *good* thing.

So how has food nourished you today? I want to know.

The Invasion of the Skinny Bashers

Tags

fat acceptance, privilege, thinness

This year, there has been quite the resounding chorus of fat activists protesting the abuse of thin women, and I have to say I am utterly mystified by the accusations.

Where is this happening and who is responsible?

Oh, it happens, but not in the Fatosphere. Other, unaffiliated blogs might go into a towering rant about women who are too thin. Some body image bloggers might thin bash in the hope of raising the morale of fat women. Some fashion-oriented websites might contain comments praising larger women at the expense of thin women.

It’s still not widespread in the Fatosphere. The  only time I have heard thin bashing is from a random, occasional commenter, and they are quickly called out on it. We do not engage in thin or other body bashing here. This is a safe space for people’s bodies. And yes, I have seen all this happen firsthand more than once.

So it does happen, but it’s hardly a feature of fat acceptance dialogue.

So which blogs have been infiltrated by skinny bashing operations and how can I locate their verbal grenades?

To be honest, I don’t think the issue has to do with actual thin bashing but with our focus on fat bashing and on fat issues. It is not thin bashing, or hypocritical, to choose to focus on fatness rather than thinness. Activists have limited time and energy and they are best when advocating for those causes that they have personal experience with. Focusing on fat issues is no more bigoted against thin people than focusing on knitting is bigoted against crocheting. A more relevant example would be an Egyptian blogging about Egyptian culture rather than Libyan culture. Doing such a thing would not make you racist or nationalist. It’s a preference.

Furthermore, while all insults hurt on an individual level, their cultural implications are not at all similar.

Parents and family members do not abuse their children in an effort to fatten them up.

Thin people do not have to worry about doctors refusing to treat them because of their weight or blaming all of their problems on their weight.

There are not TV shows, ads, documentaries, and press releases about the blight of thinness and how to fix it, by force if necessary.

Thin parents are not having their children taken away from them in other countries.

Thin people do not have to pay top dollar and travel farther/pay for shipping for clothing they can hardly ever find.

There are exceptions of course, and thinness and fatness both intersect with class, ethnic group, disability, and other identities that change the impact. However, on average, in our culture, the above list sums up how our culture feels about fat and how thin people are largely spared this.

I do not demand that people with visible disabilities center their discussions about my invisible disabilities. I do not demand that albino or Chinese women center discussions about racism or lookism around my personal issues. I do not demand that MRAs talk to me about feminism.

Do I have to agree with what is said? Absolutely not! Might I have a lot in common with Chinese women, albino women, the visibly disabled, and men? Absolutely! That is what my blog is for. To challenge what I don’t agree with and implement what I do agree with in my own life, both for my own issues and when advocating for others.

But to accuse them of discrimination because they want to talk about what affects them rather than what affects me is unfair and nonsensical.

Fat acceptance has a right to BE fat acceptance. You can talk about thin issues sometimes if you want, but they don’t have to be the focus of our discussions. Actually, if we want to make a real difference in combating fat phobia in our culture, we can’t. We need to be about those  who are fat, especially those who are superfat.

Another thing I don’t get is why some fat acceptance advocates put up with it. These are the same people who would go into towering rants over MRAs barging in and demanding accommodations by feminists or rich people barging in and complaining about oppression by the poor. Yet they treat the issue of fat acceptance differently and act as though they are obligated to accommodate the issues of the privileged. They can when they want to, and when it applies, but they are not obligated to.

In the interest of disclosure, I am a normal-weight obese person. In other words, I look like I am of average weight, possibly a little chunky, but I have an obese BMI. I have often been the target of harassment for my weight by family and most recently by doctors. I have trouble finding good-looking clothes that fit me, especially bras, and I often have to pay top dollar for them. This makes fat acceptance personally applicable to me, but I am still quite thin privileged.

I also have NEVER felt out of place for being a small fat. That’s another thing I don’t get. Where are people being shut out for not being fat enough? It’s not like we take measurements for entry into our movement, and a small fat person is still fat and still has to live with fat phobia.

But there are people out there much fatter than me who still have to live with far fewer privileges, less sympathy, and more isolation. I think they have a right to talk with each other in peace.

Fat acceptance is for all people, but it is most of all for the (really) fat people.

Sentimental Saturday: It’s Not Hard

Tags

friends and family, trauma and recovery

“How could you?” is one of those hard-hitting, classic questions. When uttered in exactly that way, it is usually in reference to something unconscionable. More commonly, we ask “How could/can you possibly do X?” with regard to something exceptionally good or difficult.

“How can you manage such a busy schedule?”

“How could you face your fear of public speaking like that? All those people? Wow.”

My personal favorite is “How can you forgive someone for saying/doing such horrible things?”

I have had this question asked of me, and I have had people tell me how “big” I am for not feeling hostility for my father after the way he treated me and for wanting to be with him. My mother has told me, time and time again, how “sweet” it was that I was willing to forgive. My response is always “It’s not hard.”

It really isn’t hard.

My father has long since apologized to me and stopped doing what he was doing We have been close for years and it would take much more than what he had done to separate himself from me. He was ill at the time he did what he did. Basically, I had a choice: I could choose a grudge or I could choose my father. I could choose to carry this burden forever or I could be free from it and move on.

People experiencing ongoing abuse sometimes hear the word “forgiveness” and they immediately think of victim-blaming,  ignoring the problem, and denying you a right to your voice and your feelings. This is not my intent at all, as you will see.

Granted, I did what I did because what happened to me happened and was over. It is not possible to forgive conflicts that are ongoing. If someone in your life insists on causing offense to you and on your complacence, you are not obligated to take this. I love my mother. She has some positive qualities and has done good things. She has also neglected and abused me and continues, in some ways, to not give me the respect I deserve while demanding deference from me. Forgiveness does not mean a refusal to challenge that which is wrong, but the *openness* to let go and love again after. I might challenge my mother, be upset with her, and separate myself from her, but I will never stop trying to reach out to her and to get her to see the consequences of her actions. I will never totally stop loving her and should she one day decide to change, I will be open to her and will forgive her completely the sins of the past.*

Love and respect do not necessarily equate to forgiveness. I believe in affording every person a most basic level of love and respect simply for being a human life, and I would not ever rejoice in a person’s pain, loss, or death. Temporarily, if I am angry at someone, I might fantasize about it but I could never actually do it. Basic reverence does not mean you have to forget wrong, trust that person, or enjoy that person’s company.

Anyway, my father now has my full forgiveness and I have a great relationship with him now. And it wasn’t hard.

However, despite my strong propensity to favor forgiveness over holding a grudge, there is one person against whom I routinely hold a grudge.

Me.

I hold grudges against myself over lots of things-lies I told years ago, the times I offended someone inadvertently, the times I planned on doing something but never did it, not being who I wanted to be, etc. You name it, I hate myself for it from time to time.

Over the past few years, I have often hated myself for being fat.

It is not that I think I ate or slothed myself into fatness, but that I feel like a shadow of the former self that could wear a size 10 in juniors (when I was 14, aka pre-pubescent.) In every other respect, I am better than the person I was at 14-more mature, more intellectual, more industrious, more sensitive, and more articulate. I am otherwise happy with my appearance.

I  still feel less than.

I still feel a twinge of guilt when I go for the “bad fatty” foods or when I realize how little I have exercised lately. I still feel like I lack control over my body, my mental state, and my life as a whole. I blame myself for this. After all, if I exercised more and ate a little less of the “bad foods,” I could at least be somewhat thinner and closer to my ideal self.

I blame myself for secretly thinking that because I am fat, I should not wear or do this or that. I hate myself for using “fat” as an insult, like big fat moron. I have never, not once, said these things out loud to myself or anyone else. My visceral reaction, however, that visceral reaction towards the word ‘fat’ we are seemingly born with it is so ingrained, was still one of disfavor.

I still have these feelings after “converting” to fat acceptance, but I am much less apt to feel this way. I have long since learned something about myself.

Someone’s person, body and mind, are sacred. Not just in the religious sense, but in the sense that it is something to be revered. It houses YOU, a special, unique person! You have you OWN DNA that includes programming for body size and shape. No one has the right to assert superiority over you over something as random shallow as genetics.

The next step is learning just what weight loss methods do to the body and the attitudes implicit in these acts. The act of dieting sends the message that your genetics are inferior, and that the body that houses that special person called you isn’t good enough. Most insidious of all, there needs to be LESS of that body.

Once  I accepted that I would rather have a father than a grudge, I chose my father and forgave him. Over time, you learn that you have two choices with regard to your body. You can choose love and freedom. Or you can choose to bear the burden of hatred and *create* an ongoing conflict with yourself. Once you see the body as being a sacred vessel, once you learn what intentional weight loss does to that vessel and how weight loss messages desecrate it, you can “forgive” yourself for the culturally imposed sin of being fat and really start to live.

It’s not hard.

*Unfortunately, if your mother is a narcissist, psychopath, or has some other personality disorder, this might never be possible. In this event, being able to forgive *yourself* is where your focus needs to be.

Is that politically incorrect or what?

Tags

lost causes, political correctness

‘Politically incorrect’ is one of my least favorite sayings of all time. It is overrated. It is abused. It is also, coincidentally, one of the phrases I use to describe myself.

But why?

‘Politically incorrect’ is one of those sayings that can be applied in a variety of very different contexts. While most often used by conservative shock jocks like Glenn Beck or Michael Savage, I have  heard liberals use it against conservatives, especially when attacking their Christian propensities. In that respect, it is much like the phrase “last acceptable prejudice.” ALL prejudices are acceptable somewhere, so this saying does not have much meaning. To be politically incorrect, you need to violate the political norms and values of a certain ‘in’ group.

What makes me politically incorrect is that I say what I think is the truth regardless of what others feel about it. This is the way we should ALL be. We ALL need to stand for something. In carefully learning, thinking, and choosing sides, I am continually violating the norms of various ‘in’ groups that I might otherwise identify with. This makes me politically incorrect-among liberals and conservatives alike.

I also treat words with the respect that they deserve. I don’t hide behind my politically correct persona when challenged, nor do I expect never to face fallout for what I say. I don’t abandon diplomacy and shoot my mouth off because I can. What someone like Glenn Beck seeks to defend is not political incorrectness, but Political Incorrectness (TM).

Political incorrectness is about saying what you *need* to say REGARDLESS of offense to others.

Political Incorrectness (TM) is about saying what you *want* to say BECAUSE of offense to others…and the privilege of never being challenged on it. This, to me, explains why so many P-IC (TM) shocks jocks say things so often that aren’t politically incorrect at all, but conventional.

It’s not about challenging paradigms, asking questions, or fostering discourse. It is about taking common prejudices and making a show out of them. The value of P-IC discourse comes solely from punchy delivery and the offense the message causes others, not the content.

This is what the average person would call being a gasbag, being shallow, or just plain being a bully. And it is not brave by any stretch of the imagination.

I think this, more so than anything else, explains the maddening propensity that people have to stylize fat hatred as politically incorrect (aside from rampant prejudice, of course.) Fat people are a large enough group of people to create a satisfying vocal fallout, but they are just as easy to put back in their place because of the tendency towards self-hatred. They kick them and kick them  again when they are down.

They have no real power to challenge what’s being said either, so it is virtually guaranteed that they will stay down once they have been kicked in the face. There will be no deathfat women with TV shows promoting the fat cause Glenn Beck style anytime soon.

Fat hatred is also bipartisan. In this age of polarized politics and bridge building, the one thing we can all agree on (in power, that is) is the obesity problem and the people “responsible” for it.

To conservatives fat people are:

-going  to Hell

-Personally irresponsible

-Tax burdens

-Unable or unwilling to work

-Stupid

-Emotional

-Setting a bad example

To liberals, fat people are:

-Tax burdens

-Uneducated

-Lazy

-Socially irresponsible

-Environmentally irresponsible

-Setting a bad example

-Emotional

This is the list of “issues” we can allegedly all agree on. This makes fat a target-rich environment for shock jock radio.

It’s P-IC (TM), to be sure, but it’s not politically incorrect.

In the Fatosphere, we pay attention to the tone and inclusiveness of our dialogue and many of us style ourselves proudly politically correct.

But advocating for the rights and inclusion of fat people is not politically correct. Being PC is about the practice of avoiding offense to others, but for a substantial number of people  in the world, being fat in their face is the ultimate offense of which we should be unashamed.

I have no desire to dictate how you define yourself, but I do have a proposal.

None of us here is politically correct. Fat activists are the most kick-ass, politically INcorrect people around.

P.S. I believe that people have the right to say what they want. However, if someone asks you AS A FRIEND to not say certain things because it HURTS them, just do it. That’s not about being politically correct. It’s about manners.

Harry Potter: Who Cares?

Tags

body politics, cinema, literature, snobbery

I’m seeing the new Harry Potter tomorrow and I’m looking forward to it.

The sad part is that I’m *just* looking forward to it, the same way I would look forward to any other movie that looked good to me. I was quite the Potterhead back in my day and would have been first in line for the first midnight show. Now my attitude is, “Okay, but…who cares?”

I still love HP as light reading and a children’s story, especially in books 1 and 2. The die-hard enthusiasm has died since JK Rowling fell into the trap of so many famous people, which is “Hey, I got famous doing something great, so I’m going to take a gigantic dump on it to squeeze out a few more bucks by pandering to the lower common denominator!”

Yeah, that makes total sense.

First, the general criticisms…

There are things about HP that I have never liked, one of them being the one-sided treatment of Slytherin house (leave it to me to vote for the bad guys!) On the other hand, the later books have done some good work, such as making Draco Malfoy a human being rather than a 1-D bully. Overall, I was willing to overlook the flaws because of the good I saw and the potential it had in the end to be something (pardon the pun) magical.

When the series began, it was a children’s series that was fun and innocent but also dealt gamely with some troubling real life issues. It was unique. Then, in book 5, she started trying to make it into an Epic Work of Classic Literature (TM) rather than letting it be what it was. Ironically, if she had just let it be what it was, then it had a much greater chance of actually becoming classic.

This is where she falls into the second common trap of famous people: If you want to look edgy and, like, totally cool, litter your book with useless and distracting violence, profanity, and sexual references. Now, I don’t object AT ALL to the appropriate use of adult elements. If they are important to the story and are done in an artful way, then great! I’m all for it. That doesn’t happen in HP, though. JKR pretty much does it because she knows she has to if she wants to be taken seriously by pretentious art critics and self-consciously hip teenagers. Content? Who needs that?

The movies fall into this same trap. The first two movies had their flaws, of course, but on the whole I love how they captured Harry’s world. I think Columbus did a good job, again, capturing the essence of children’s entertainment, maintaining innocence and fun but with dark undertones and real emotion. People like to say that he copied the book verbatim, but this is bogus. He very obviously did NOT copy the book verbatim, for time, production, and other reasons. In any case, any director has a right to some artistic vision. At the same time, I think a movie based on a book should be, well, based on the book in question. Otherwise, what’s the point?

Then Alfonso Cuaron comes along, and I’m sorry, but I don’t see it. Like I said, directors are allowed to have new ideas and movies cannot be books because of the features of those two media are very different. But this guy took things out, changed, and added things for the hell of it and is very much like the pretentious art critics I described above. Throw in adult elements and special effects with no real story and call it a mature art film. Not only is it not a HP story, but it’s not even much of a story. He added innuendo between Ron and Hermione, and Hermione and Harry, that did not need to exist, brought in relics from Mexico in a story set in England, and did too many other things to list and for no good reason.

The later movies really aren’t any better, partly because of there being much more, and poorer, source material, but I cut them slack because they don’t have the hipster ‘tude that I think AC had. That’s still no excuse for craptastic pacing, lighting, and not at least having a coherent screenplay.

Granted, I still enjoyed all of them to some degree and I own them all except for the 3rd one. I also own the 3rd Harry Potter soundtrack because it really is cool, as were the special effects. I know I was hard on AC, so this is where I throw him a bone.:)

The inverted girl geek stereotype: Enough is enough

Other Fatosphere bloggers have commented on the rampant lookism that JKR engages in when constructing characters, especially with fat. I want to expand on that theme with regard to the movies.

At one time, geeks were geeks. They wore thick glasses, had incorrigibly curly hair, and other so-called physical flaws. They also had good hearts and brilliant minds. Hermione was this character. I have never totally been in love with her either, but I was very much in love with her geek persona. She had the brains and was not ashamed to admit it. She eventually got some friends and got a bit of a rebellious streak later on. She had large teeth, frizzy brown hair, and wasn’t much into fashion. There are some recognizable geek features, but Hermione had put her own spin on them and became Hermione Granger, not just another geek.

In later books, she got her hair straightened (Do NOT get me started on the overtones in that one!), got her teeth re-sized and started to care a lot more about fashion and what boys thought of her. Her intelligence did not shine nearly as much as in the earlier books. The movies take it a step further and make Emma Watson wear ultra-trendy clothes (even when in class in a school that requires, ahem, uniforms) that are form-fitting. They are designed to emphasize sexiness and her thinness. I guess the uniforms that are called for aren’t sexy enough for our stars.

Then I saw this.

I know Emma Watson is not Hermione Granger. I don’t expect her to pass up good jobs, nor do I want her to not do what makes her happy. I wish her the best in her endeavors, and yes, it’s a pretty cover.

I still can’t help but feel disappointed that the world’s favorite girl geek is yet another conventionally attractive actress.

Come to think of it, this isn’t a problem just in HP. Think of all the spy movies or shows you’ve seen. How often are the female leads very thin, conventionally attractive, and without disability? Shows like Burn Notice features ultra-thin hot women. The movie Kick-Ass, a movie that could take up its own post, features a pre-pubescent Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl. Hit Girl is a-surprise, surprise-conventionally attractive, thin girl with bad-ass athletic ability.

Sorry to interject, but does anyone else find it perverted that they had an 11-year-old wearing latex, using words like ‘cunt,’ and being trained by her father to be a serial killer? That’s just plain sick. I don’t care if it is a movie.

Vanessa Hudgens as Gabriella Montez in High School Musical is another chic geek. She is non-white, but she is conventionally attractive, and thin, in every other way. She is loved by her classmates, except of course for those people totally jealous for her brains. She even says at the beginning of the movie that she is afraid of being the “freaky genius girl.” Try being a fat kid or a kid with a deformity. You’ll miss being the genius really fast.

Can’t we, for once, have a fat spy? A model with a facial deformity? Can we, for once, allow people to be unathletic without it being a commentary on their character or an invitation to concern trolling? Can we have genuine minority actors, and not just thin people pretending to be fat or hot actresses wearing bad FX makeup?

We have tried so hard to dismantle stereotypes of geeks that we have gone too far in the other direction. We have made the girls into the popular girls, only somewhat less bitchy and with the brains too!

Can you say Mary Sue?

LCD viewers won’t care though, because they get to watch a hot lead actress and special effects, not to mention some hot kissing scenes.

Anyway, in a few hours, I will be seeing the last Harry Potter movie. I will be seeing Emma Watson’s last appearance as the thin and sexy Hermione Granger.

And I won’t miss it all that much when it’s over. It tried to be all things to all people and a work of high lit at the same time. It ended up being nothing.

That’s too bad.

In the dead of winter, a blog is born!

Tags

blogging, paying homage

Today is the day! The first year anniversary of Dead of Winter. My little baby has grown so much and has done things I never thought she would do.

Best of all, she has learned to share and play with the other blogs out there, and I am proud to know that I allowed this to happen.

So to celebrate, come over and play and I hope to enjoy many more years on Dead of Winter.

‘Everyone’ includes you and I know what that means.

Tags

diet culture, healthism, taking a stand

Caution: You are about to enter rant territory. Wear flame-resistant gear.

Nothing kills a discussion, and my patience, more than someone responding to my comments with the banal and moronic saying, “Well, everyone has a right to an opinion.”

And? ‘Everyone’ includes me. It includes you too. It includes people with opinions that take other opinions to task. Why is that lost on people who use this silly line of (non)reasoning?

For some reason, people seem to think that by pointing out this completely obvious, uncontested point about human nature, they are contributing to the discussion. They are the “moderates.” They are being “open-minded.” In reality, they have said absolutely nothing at all, on their own or in response to something else.

It’s also hideously transparent.

“Be more open-minded” is one of those admonitions that I am just sick to death of hearing. To be open-minded is to, carefully and without bias, consider all ideas before forming an opinion. It does NOT mean never to form or express an opinion.

Well, I’ve done the open-minded bit. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be in fat acceptance. Now I get to express my opinion. Deal with it. Besides, how are you supposed to consider opinions that people are too afraid to express because, well, everyone has an opinion and no one wants to offend?

Now, when I hear someone tell me to be more open-minded, I hear “Shut up and let the big people talk. Don’t offend anyone no matter how many liberties they take in offending you because I’m a spineless coward.”

Fat acceptance activists see this again and again. We are not open enough to criticism of obese bodies and “unhealthy” lifestyles. We are judging thin people and those who choose to diet. Don’t we realize that everyone has a right to form and express an opinion? Even if that includes people publicly, repeatedly expressing an opinion that is naked in its hatred of fat people and desire to undermine fat rights? Somehow, when we, as tiny as we are, protest being treated in such a way, we’re the ones that need to open our minds.

With diet culture, having an open mind is not an issue. It is virtually all most people’s minds are exposed to. I know all about the anti-obesity health tropes. I know the reasoning behind fat as shorthand for immorality. I have heard it all before, and I don’t agree. Get it?

Another faux line of reasoning that is often used to derail discussions about fat acceptance and healthism is rehashing someone’s intentions.

Should I criticize someone’s comments, an ideology, or a course of actions, inevitably, someone will take it upon themselves to fill my tiny brain with the common knowledge of its purpose.

“Joanna, you have to understand that people today are so fat and uneducated nowadays that they NEED programs like this. They want to HEEELLLP!!!”

Yeah, I know what it was supposed to do. My point is that it either didn’t do what it intended to do or possibly that I don’t agree with the intention to begin with.

I know that anti-obesity programs like Let’s Move are “supposed” to help people be healthier. My point is that they don’t help. Lifestyle is not a major contributor to fatness, fatness is not unhealthy. I don’t believe in government programs designed to promote health ideologies, in which case it’s irrelevant whether or not fat is unhealthy or something that you can control.

Here’s another thing: People LIE about their intentions, and sometimes, I will dissent on that basis.

People that hate fat bodies and oppose fat acceptance will always claim concern for health. But when they make comments about fat people’s appearance, or how stupid they are, they make liars out of themselves. Genuine concern for health is not expressed or put into practice with shame and insults and the focus is on, you know, actual health and not that persons’ intellect, appearance, or smelliness.

We don’t tell a model with lupus that she should not model because it promotes unhealthy skinniness and a bad skin regimen, do we? We don’t tell her how ugly, stupid, and irresponsible she is, do we?

Likewise, when Lepage signed the child labor bill, he didn’t make a mistake. He has always favored big business and it is evident in his actions. He knew the labor market was flooded with adults looking for jobs. He knew that teenagers were in no position to demand high wages or benefits. He knew exactly what he was doing, and if he wants to lie through the teeth about it, that’s his prerogative. This does not make it any less true.

We need to recognize these tactics for what they are. Do not respond to calls to be more open-minded and don’t get mired in discussions over whether someone meant it or not. At the end of the day, it is hurting fat people and THAT’S what matters. Choosing to be silent and to allow others to dictate the discussion is not wise, it’s not brave, and it’s not productive.

Everyone has a right to an opinion. Assert your right to yours.

My Health Truisms

Tags

correcting misconceptions, health, prejudice

I am a fortunate woman in that I don’t have any major issues with chronic pain, but I do have problems with intermittent pain that can be excruciating when they act up.

One is migraine headaches and another is Achilles tendonitis.

I have long since learned to dread rainstorms because I know that an incapacitating headache is on the way, complete with nausea, dizziness, loss of balance, and an inability to tolerate even the faintest sounds or lights. During times like this, I wished the world had an off switch, and because it didn’t, I would just curl up and cry for someone to make it stop.

I didn’t realize until two years ago that these were migraines. Over-the-counter pain meds did not touch the pain I was in, and neither did decongestants. All that helped was going to sleep, but how the hell can you sleep when you are in so much pain and the whole world just won’t shut the fuck up?

Oh, and your pillow feels as hard as a rock when you have a migraine. So much for sleep.

The worst headache I ever had was during a tornado warning. I know that migraines have weather and air pressure triggers, so it all made sense now. Now that I know what weather triggers my migraines, I can prepare.

The question is how?

This is where the story of my first energy drink comes in.

You know, those caffeinated, sugary, downright junky wanna be soda that make you stay up for two nights straight if you drink a whole can? The liquid bane of the health police (besides soda itself?)

One day, during the summer, when a thunderstorm was coming, I was walking home and was suddenly struck with throbbing head pain and was about to pass out from dizziness and nausea. I dreaded walking back home, but I couldn’t just keel over in the street either. Thankfully, I was near a Family Dollar and I bought an energy drink for some reason I can’t remember.

It was truly incredible. I took one sip-literally-and the headache went away instantly.The nausea was gone. The dizziness was gone.* I could have run a marathon I was feeling so good.

Because of that evil of junk foody evils, the energy drink, I can be relieved on migraines that medicine would not touch. Now I make sure I have Coke, Pepsi, an energy drink, coffee with espresso, or something else on hand with lots of caffeine and sip it prior to a rainstorm. I almost never have migraines now.

As for my tendonitis, I have structural and functional scoliosis, which causes my left leg to be notably shorter than my right leg-by a half inch, to be exact. Walking, running, or any kind of strain on my legs can cause my tendonitis to act up. When running, for example, the impact of my body weight falls disproportionately on my right leg because my right hip is higher than my left hip. There is much more stress on my right leg than my left leg, and this causes the Achilles tendon on my right leg to go spastic and pain shoots up my leg and up into my torso. It starts suddenly and stops me dead in my tracks, often causing me to fall over. Imagine hopping down the street on one leg at high speed and how that might feel. Yeah, exactly.

Walking first thing in the morning? Forget it. I am stiff as a board.

Enter my new heel lift. I put it in my left show and my legs are much more equal. The pain disappears instantly and it does not reappear as long as I’m wearing it.

Connection to being fat? People have tried to tell me that a lack of exercise and having excess weight was putting too much strain on my tendons. They act almost indignant when I tell them that I have scoliosis and a short leg and that my pain is cured with the use of a heel lift. Their day is not complete without blaming fat for something, is it?

(Never mind that I, a small fat, have a condition most often associated with *long-distance running!* I thought fat people didn’t get sports injuries because, like, they don’t exercise at all as we all know.)

People still try to tell me that I really shouldn’t be drinking those energy drinks.

I tell them to MYOB. Because health is extremely fluid. Someone with diabetes probably will not benefit from energy drinks, but I will. The average person might not need 4000 calories a day to stay healthy, but an anorexic patient with hypermetabolism will in order to achieve weight restoration.

Best of all, or worst of all if you hate fat…health problems aren’t caused by being fat. Weight loss is not a cure.

Get over it.