All right, maybe it isn't the entire world, but it is the United States, or, more specifically the state of Mississippi. And I thought Clinton getting the Republican lobotomy was going to be tonight's worst news. But, no, this tops that.
Mississippi House Bill 282 is a proposed law that will bar restaurants in the state from serving, and I quote, "any person who is obese, based on criteria prescribed by the state department of health." Representative W.T. Mayhall, Jr. wants to save us from ourselves by turning restaurants into the food police, armed with whatever is necessary to determine whether prospective patrons are obese or not. This is so fucking insane that I can barely come up with a coherent response. Mayhall is clearly out of his mind.
Okay, lets take this apart calmly and rationally. First off, obesity is not contageous. Eating in a restaurant with fat people will not cause a thin person to become fat. Seeing fat people is not a cause of obesity. Health conditions can be, overeating can be, emotional problems can be, genetic quirks can be, but it is not now, nor has it ever been, a disease caused by proximity to fat people. Second, barring obsese people from restaurants will not in any way help them lose weight. One does not lose weight by not eating or not being allowed to socialize normally with one's friends. One loses weight by exercise and calorie reduction, within reason, or, in very extreme cases, surgery...which still requires one to engage in exercise and calorie reduction. Third, weight and health aren't as tidily linked as the self proclaimed weight police want us to think. Visceral fat, fat around the organs, seems to be consistently linked to health problems, but even a thin person who is inactive can have dangerous amounts of visceral fat. This means that a physically active obese person might well be healthier than a thin inactive person. (And, no, the solution is not to arm restaurants with the ability to measure our visceral fat instead.) Finally, and most importantly, discrimination is not okay. Not, not, and not. Period. End of discussion.
Clearly "Here's to the State of Mississippi" needs a new, modern verse. It's still the state that doesn't understand the basics of this country. (Not that the country at large is doing a great job of that. Would that the founding fathers would rise from their graves and storm Capitol Hill. "What have you done to our country!?")
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Being Chosen Means Never Having to Choose
And other thoughts on the popularity of chosen heroes in fiction.
As you may know, I'm not a big fan of the Chosen One or even lower-key chosen heroes, like Mercedes Lackey's Heralds or Kristin Britain's Riders, though I sometimes enjoy stories with chosen heroes of one sort or the other anyway. I think there are a lot of problems with the idea that only certain people can be heroes, even if the certain people are supposedly chosen because they have the right heart. When the chosen person - the Chosen One - is special because of other people's deeds or their bloodline or anything else that boils down to what they are rather than who they are, the problems are gigantic.
I’m really not sure what message authors think they’re sending when they write about Chosen Ones who have done nothing to warrant being chosen. In The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, the kids are Chosen because they are “sons of Adam and daughters of Eve.” In the Harry Potter books, Harry is only special because his mother saved his life (somehow) and because he became an accidental horcrux (can’t explain that one either). In both of these instances, the character(s) specialness has nothing at all to do with who they are. Any humans would have provided what Narnia needed. And Harry, well, he really was only valuable as an object. He could have died at any time in the books and fulfilled his role.
What message is the reader supposed to take away? Was C. S. Lewis just telling us that humans are special? I suppose that fits in with Christianity, so perhaps he was. But J. K. Rowling’s message completely escapes me. Why literally turn your hero into an object? Did she not notice what she’d done?
Even when not taken to that extreme, the idea of chosen heroes divides the world sharply into inherent heroes and everyone else. You either are a hero, whether because of your blood or your heart, or you are not. This robs everyone of choice. A person can’t rise above their failings and become a hero, and its rare that a chosen hero ever fails. (In fact Chosen Ones can’t – by definition.)
This predestination by external forces strikes me as a problematic message. Not only does it suggest that people have proper “places” in the world (which they really shouldn’t argue with or attempt to change), but it denies the reality that most people must make choices about who they are and what they do with their lives. If your heroes are chosen, then their choice to be a hero is automatically the right one. These heroes may struggle with that choice, but only because there was something else they wanted to do, never because they aren’t sure whether heroing is the right option.
At heart, the chosen hero story is really about embracing your duty, not deciding what you, personally, want to do with your life. A duty, of course, imposed from outside, not whatever an individual defines their duty as. It really is a very conservative fantasy. Considering how many of these stories are about preserving the status quo (or returning the world to a previous ideal state), I shouldn’t be surprised.
I do, in a way, understand the appeal of chosen heroes. They are safe heroes. They don’t challenge one’s own choices or beliefs in the way that non-chosen heroes can. And fantasizing about them is safe, not just because they’re fictional, but because the choice remains external. You can’t choose to become a chosen hero. Of course, the very thing that makes chosen heroes safe makes them less inspiring than non-chosen heroes. You can’t choose to become a chosen hero.
Perhaps this is especially important to me because I struggle continually with what to do with my life. I don’t know if following my dreams will lead to success. I don’t even know which of my dreams I really want to follow. And I’m not going to find inspiration in a story of a chosen hero; it won’t show me how a person (albeit a fictional one) weighed their options and made a choice. And somehow, I really doubt that any of my dreams are going to be prompted to choose me.
But, as I said, I do see the appeal of that. It would take the weight off my shoulders, after all. I’m just not sure that’s a weight that should be lifted.
As you may know, I'm not a big fan of the Chosen One or even lower-key chosen heroes, like Mercedes Lackey's Heralds or Kristin Britain's Riders, though I sometimes enjoy stories with chosen heroes of one sort or the other anyway. I think there are a lot of problems with the idea that only certain people can be heroes, even if the certain people are supposedly chosen because they have the right heart. When the chosen person - the Chosen One - is special because of other people's deeds or their bloodline or anything else that boils down to what they are rather than who they are, the problems are gigantic.
I’m really not sure what message authors think they’re sending when they write about Chosen Ones who have done nothing to warrant being chosen. In The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, the kids are Chosen because they are “sons of Adam and daughters of Eve.” In the Harry Potter books, Harry is only special because his mother saved his life (somehow) and because he became an accidental horcrux (can’t explain that one either). In both of these instances, the character(s) specialness has nothing at all to do with who they are. Any humans would have provided what Narnia needed. And Harry, well, he really was only valuable as an object. He could have died at any time in the books and fulfilled his role.
What message is the reader supposed to take away? Was C. S. Lewis just telling us that humans are special? I suppose that fits in with Christianity, so perhaps he was. But J. K. Rowling’s message completely escapes me. Why literally turn your hero into an object? Did she not notice what she’d done?
Even when not taken to that extreme, the idea of chosen heroes divides the world sharply into inherent heroes and everyone else. You either are a hero, whether because of your blood or your heart, or you are not. This robs everyone of choice. A person can’t rise above their failings and become a hero, and its rare that a chosen hero ever fails. (In fact Chosen Ones can’t – by definition.)
This predestination by external forces strikes me as a problematic message. Not only does it suggest that people have proper “places” in the world (which they really shouldn’t argue with or attempt to change), but it denies the reality that most people must make choices about who they are and what they do with their lives. If your heroes are chosen, then their choice to be a hero is automatically the right one. These heroes may struggle with that choice, but only because there was something else they wanted to do, never because they aren’t sure whether heroing is the right option.
At heart, the chosen hero story is really about embracing your duty, not deciding what you, personally, want to do with your life. A duty, of course, imposed from outside, not whatever an individual defines their duty as. It really is a very conservative fantasy. Considering how many of these stories are about preserving the status quo (or returning the world to a previous ideal state), I shouldn’t be surprised.
I do, in a way, understand the appeal of chosen heroes. They are safe heroes. They don’t challenge one’s own choices or beliefs in the way that non-chosen heroes can. And fantasizing about them is safe, not just because they’re fictional, but because the choice remains external. You can’t choose to become a chosen hero. Of course, the very thing that makes chosen heroes safe makes them less inspiring than non-chosen heroes. You can’t choose to become a chosen hero.
Perhaps this is especially important to me because I struggle continually with what to do with my life. I don’t know if following my dreams will lead to success. I don’t even know which of my dreams I really want to follow. And I’m not going to find inspiration in a story of a chosen hero; it won’t show me how a person (albeit a fictional one) weighed their options and made a choice. And somehow, I really doubt that any of my dreams are going to be prompted to choose me.
But, as I said, I do see the appeal of that. It would take the weight off my shoulders, after all. I’m just not sure that’s a weight that should be lifted.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
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Which sci-fi crew would you best fit in with? (pics) created with QuizFarm.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| You scored as Heart of Gold (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) You are a light and humorous person. No one can help but to smile to your wit. Now if only the improbability
|
Heh. I'm all right with that. Though I'm a little bummed that I scored so low in regard to the Andromeda.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Winter, Why Must We Have It?
Don't get me wrong, winter can be very pretty, but it's so darn cold. I have this suspicion that I'm not actually a mammal, but some kind of evolved cold-blooded creature who just happens to look human. As a lizard-person, I really don't like it when the temperature drops into single digits. Oh, sure, I used to live in the midwest, where the temperature would drop into negative digits, but I reserve the right to complain even here in Colorado.
For one thing, when the temperature drops, I get very reluctant to leave the house, especially on foot. This is not good for either my physical health or my mental health. I need some amount of physical activity to stay in a good mood. I did manage to drag myself out yesterday to try a new taco place near my house, but today I was a house-slug. *sigh* At least the flannel lined jeans I ordered finally showed up. And, miracle of miracles, fit me. (I am a scrawny lizard-person.)
So, tomorrow, I must drag myself out of the house to walk, single digit temperatures or not. Perhaps I can bribe myself with tacos again. They were very good tacos.
For one thing, when the temperature drops, I get very reluctant to leave the house, especially on foot. This is not good for either my physical health or my mental health. I need some amount of physical activity to stay in a good mood. I did manage to drag myself out yesterday to try a new taco place near my house, but today I was a house-slug. *sigh* At least the flannel lined jeans I ordered finally showed up. And, miracle of miracles, fit me. (I am a scrawny lizard-person.)
So, tomorrow, I must drag myself out of the house to walk, single digit temperatures or not. Perhaps I can bribe myself with tacos again. They were very good tacos.
Friday, January 11, 2008
After all the posting http://jinnayah.blogspot.com/ and http://foxinthestars.blogspot.com/
have done on fountain pens, I got curious and asked for pen advice. Since I'm not exactly swimming in money, they were kind enough to send me a couple of starter pens. ^_^ Which I just got today. Granted, I've got to hunt down some ink for the lever fill one, but that's not too difficult. The cartrige one, however, I loaded and tried out.
Intriguingly, it seems to give me better handwriting. Which is a good thing, considering I can't always read my own handwriting. Of course, this also means I've become a member of the cult of the fountain pen. Now I must find ink for the lever fil pen, and more cartridges. And more pens. And it's all their fault!
have done on fountain pens, I got curious and asked for pen advice. Since I'm not exactly swimming in money, they were kind enough to send me a couple of starter pens. ^_^ Which I just got today. Granted, I've got to hunt down some ink for the lever fill one, but that's not too difficult. The cartrige one, however, I loaded and tried out.
Intriguingly, it seems to give me better handwriting. Which is a good thing, considering I can't always read my own handwriting. Of course, this also means I've become a member of the cult of the fountain pen. Now I must find ink for the lever fil pen, and more cartridges. And more pens. And it's all their fault!
Saturday, January 5, 2008
On the curative powers of Chinese food and stupidity of television
I've been sick for a few days, and had the relative IQ of a carton of cottage cheese. I can't say I'm completely well, but a few days of rest and Chinese food has vastly improved matters. I'm quite certain that hot and sour soup has curative properties. It's soothing if one has a sore throat and generally good in the same sorts of way that chicken soup is. So, I've improved from cottage cheese for brains to, oh, cheddar cheese for brains. All right, perhaps I'm further along than that.
While sick, I've been watching too much television, and even with cottage cheese brains, something struck me as rather stupid. Besides the commercials, that is, which are rather stupid at best. Court TV has become Tru TV, catch phrase "Not reality. Actuality." I cannot take a network called "Tru TV" seriously, which is bad, considering it's line up of true crime, dramatic stuff caught on tape, and Cops-esque shows. I rather think it wants to be taken seriously, it just also wants to sound cool and exciting. But...it sounds cute, not dramatic. Or, stupid, not dramatic, depending on one's point of view. I doubt it sounds dramatic to anyone. Then there's the catch phrase. Reality and actuality are synonyms, which means the catch phrase might as well be: "Not reality. Reality." Which, from the point of view of trying to be extra dramatic, might actually work better, if said properly. Still, it raises the question of whether or not anything shown on that channel is real, considering that even that catch phrase doesn't seem certain. Or perhaps this is all the cheese brains talking and it sounds perfectly reasonable to everyone else.
While sick, I've been watching too much television, and even with cottage cheese brains, something struck me as rather stupid. Besides the commercials, that is, which are rather stupid at best. Court TV has become Tru TV, catch phrase "Not reality. Actuality." I cannot take a network called "Tru TV" seriously, which is bad, considering it's line up of true crime, dramatic stuff caught on tape, and Cops-esque shows. I rather think it wants to be taken seriously, it just also wants to sound cool and exciting. But...it sounds cute, not dramatic. Or, stupid, not dramatic, depending on one's point of view. I doubt it sounds dramatic to anyone. Then there's the catch phrase. Reality and actuality are synonyms, which means the catch phrase might as well be: "Not reality. Reality." Which, from the point of view of trying to be extra dramatic, might actually work better, if said properly. Still, it raises the question of whether or not anything shown on that channel is real, considering that even that catch phrase doesn't seem certain. Or perhaps this is all the cheese brains talking and it sounds perfectly reasonable to everyone else.
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