So called "Thin Privileged"

Do you believe in "thin privileged?"

No	59.6%	[ 62 ]
Yes	40.4%	[ 42 ]
Total Votes:			[ 104 ]

[marshmallowcreampie]

I've never been fat, so I don't really know how much different or worse it is to be fat. So whateverz.

[marshmallowcreampie]

Ryla Raelynn

yes I think thinner people live a privileged life simply because they are thin and skinny. They are always getting parts on reality television, all the guys, always the faces of companies, always picked first, etc.....
others get affected by that and get depressed and eat more and the repercussions are seen.
The majority of the time, we have complete control over our bodies. we control what goes into them. people eat badly because of depression and other reasons. it is also very convenient to eat badly because of drive through's, etc....
people who are thin and skinny usually are that way because of genetics. its not because they work out...those who keep fit always have toning and muscle, etc...they have thier own set of problems because they tend not to be able to fill clothing out correctly and can't find clothing that fits in stores. but they do get all the attention because we are conditioned to think that is beautiful and hot when the average american woman (not girl) is a size 16 not a size 00 though "reality" tv says its a 00. women have curves and muscle and boobies....we also have hair! girls are hairless but that is a whole other issue!

I'm thin, and I'm not getting my own reality show. cat_crying Also, my metabolism isn't the only reason I'm thin. I walk everywhere and I also starve myself from time to time. So there's that.

Though I do agree, it probably sucks to never see your body type represented. Only time I have a hard time finding clothes is with jeans, cause I have naturally wide hips and they aren't exactly proportional to my height...

[catspook]

I think there are actually two kinds of "thin privilege" which are really just specific forms of beauty and able-bodied privilege, respectively.

The beauty type is the privilege that favors that people with the "ideal" body type get; this is not something that usually can be controlled, as the "ideal" body type is much more narrow than just "not overweight" - it involves height, waist/hip/breast ratio, and other things that are determined by bone structure and other genetic factors.

The able-bodied type is the type that favors people who fall in the "healthy" vs. "not healthy"
range. Examples would include people who cannot fit into standard airline seats or people who might not get hired because the company fears higher health care costs. Now, because the "healthy" body type is broader and more attainable than the "beautiful" body type, one could make the argument that most people could enjoy those privileges of they just worked hard enough and therefore they are aren't real "privileges", but there are several problems with that reasoning.

First, what defines "healthy"? The lines between underweight/normal/overweight vary depending on which medical community you ask, and communities have their own biases. Not to mention all the people who oversimplify and assume thin=healthy, which is not true - plenty of thin people are terribly out of shape but they rarely get the same lectures as equally out of shape overweight people.

Second, some people genuinely cannot their weight for various reasons, and while they are the minority of overweight people, one usually cannot tell just by looking what their issue is, so they get all the same "lazy fatass" speeches as every other overweight person.

Finally, there are all sorts of disabilities that can be caused by a person's own actions (e.g. getting injured by riding in a car without a seatbelt); but that does not mean that they are not disabled. It doesn't matter if someone can't walk because they were born paralyzed or pulled some stupid stunt that paralyzed them; they still cannot walk. And it doesn't matter if they cannot fit in an airline seat because they eat a lot or they have a health issue that causes obesity; they still can't fit in the damn seat.

[Pseudo-Onkelos]

Four people are fat.

[Aven Loreli]

Riviera de la Mancha

d a n d y - f a t - c a t

Riviera de la Mancha

First, by 'thin privilege', people are usually referring to certain benefits you collect just by being thin and conforming to expected norms. This is certainly true. Go to any singles bar, and let me know how many fat chicks get hit on. Look at the workers who are on their way up the management ladder. Let me know how many fat people you see in that group. Our society does confer unearned benefits to skinny people.

Second, I dislike it when people oversimplify things which are very complex, like weight gain. Yes, at a basic level, most people's weight is something in their purview of control. However, our scientific knowledge, which is continuing to expand in this subject, is leading us to the conclusion that there are alot of factors you don't decide. This being the case, by not addressing these factors and the very real possibility that these factors can coalesce to make some people's weight loss journey tougher than others, you don't do full service to the topic.

A lot of overweight people find companions or flings. It is all based on each person who they find attractive. I have seen a good few overweight managers as well. There are medical factors, yes, and some people have a slower metabolism, which I understand. What other factors are there? Oh, also I understand if someone has a spell of depression as well. People lose and gain weight like crazy while being depressed.

I'm sorry but I do not feel sorry for those who cry about their weight and blame other people for it and do nothing about it. It is not very difficult to become healthier. Walking a little more each day or substituting foods will definitely help. Forgive me for one of the things I believed her to mean by being "thin privileged" was that they are "privileged" to be thin. In her post, she had put that those who she had spoken to said they earned their thinness through exercise and healthy eating.

This made her mad and she had put that you "cannot earn privileges."
I am also here to learn some things too so feel free to enlighten me on things (:

Sorry, but, unless you are also dating someone who is big, you will likely never find a companion or fling, certainly not someone fitting the social ideal (the exception of course is chubby chasers, who are not only uncommon but also like women for their bodies. They just happen to like big bodies.).

There are a number of factors which we are just beginning to understand. These include more recent discoveries that even the actions of the mother, while the child is in the womb, can influence genetic structure that can lead to weight problems. Other factors include where you live, which can influence your access to healthy foods and areas to be active. Food itself can also change the bodies' structure, so that, even if you are trying to make changes, your body may not be moving at the same pace. Psychological elements are also a factor too, most of which people are not aware of (some of my favorites being that studies have shown that the size and color of your plate influences how much you eat, and that whom you associate with and even where you eat influences your caloric intake.).

I am not sorry- I don't think people who refuse to recognize scientific advancements and continue to hold on to archaic notions deserve anything more than condemnation of their arguments.

She is indeed correct- there are privileges that come from being thin. And, just as there are fat people who either cant control their weight or just face a whole lot of obstacles in that endeavor, there are skinny people who can't control (and thus can't earn) their weight or face comparatively few if any obstacles to their being skinny.

I did. Twice before I got the boyfriend (of course, i've only slept with 3 people in my life, but that was due to me not being all that interested in looking for love/flings as it wasn't a priority more so than me being on the chubby side of things).

One guy was a skinny, wiry type. The other was a built guy. Of course, neither one was "conventionally attractive" in the face, but body type wise, they fell into the acceptable by society ranges.

The boyfriend is hefty in the middle, but over all, he's not exactly fat.

So...that generalization that a larger woman, or man, or non-gender binary person can't find a fling or a date who is socially acceptable in looks while they themselves are chubby or, dare I say, fat, is off.

[Serverus Snope]

Suicidesoldier#1

I'm 200 or so pounds but have a six pack; where do I fit in with all this?

BMI says you're technically fat. Sure, they probably do mention the margin of error from people who are heavy from things other than body fat, but who reads the fine print anyway? People are getting fat! Be afraid! Do not leave your home, or else the lard monster will find you! And once he does, you will never be able to fit into your pants ever again...

[Jazin Kay]

d a n d y - f a t - c a t

What do YOU think about this?
It's only mentioned as a thing, or manifests in conversation, due to angry fat people or snobby thin people. So in effect, it's the child of assholery. As such, it's ignorable.

Discuss "Thin privileges"
In process~

Do you believe it is a real thing?
Sure it's a thing. Whether or not there's truth in it is the issue.

Do you feel those who are thin are "privileged?"
To a degree; media portrayal as prettier, though the general brownie-point distribution is given to those that go against that. Generally healthier and longer-living, though plenty of diseases and ailments that impede that don't care how much you weigh, they'll try to bring you to the reaper all the same. Personally, I'm thin and I appreciate my running speed and flexibility, so I guess it's subjective.

Do you think people are responsible for their own weight?
Sometimes; I knew this fat dude who disappeared over the summer and when I saw him on Facebook again, he was built like a swimmer and had girls flocking to him. So his weight before was in his control to gain and lose. But I think there are like, glandular disorders or something, right? I'm not very knowledgeable about those things.

emotion_kirakira yum_burger yum_hotdog

[Riviera de la Mancha]

d a n d y - f a t - c a t

Riviera de la Mancha

You assume people have sufficient space to 'be active' in their homes. Ever been to a regular New York apartment for a family of four? You are lucky if you can turn around without elbowing someone.

As I have said before- the issue is not about whether there are practical alternatives. My position has been that you need to look at the flip-side; not just what people can do, but what are practical barriers to those actions. Sure, anyone can theoretically get up and go for a run, but is that realistic when you are dealing with someone who is, say, obese and has knees which can't support their weight and has no idea how to even begin an activity regimen? Yeah, apples are certainly in supermarkets, but is it all that rational to think that a kid who was raised on Twinkies and Cheetos is likely going to choose that option?

As I said before, your analysis is simply too shallow. It attempts to reduce everything to choice when there are a number of factors we don't choose which go beyond standard diseases that can present very difficult, and sometimes down right unattainable unless adjusted, goals. To sit back and ignore that some of us have to only to walk up a paved incline to get in shape while others have to scale Mt. Everest is just, not to be offensive, stupid.

You're not being offensive at all dear, I am understanding where you are coming from though. I believed that things could be taken in steps. Yes, you have informed me of obstacles and I see that and understand that now. I have seen really obese people lose an immense amount of weight too though. They were very brave too! Some get surgery so they are able to walk again and because their weight is life threatening. The surgery is very dangerous though and not a lot of people are able to have it done. I understand the difficulty of where to begin. I also see it as some people think that it is unfair that they are told to eat something different then they are accustomed to. I understand how it must be difficult too. But actually trying a lot of different foods would help that! Thank you though for being kind and informative with this discussion though. I am sorry if I appeared offensive in anyway though. This is also why I had made this thread. To better understand it as well. It is pretty hard to get into the mindset of exercise and better eating when there are so many yummy fatty foods out there and obstacles and distractions.

So have I also seen obese people lose a lot of weight. None of that changes my perspective that to reduce everything to just choice is incorrect.

I am also not saying that some people simply think its unfair to be asked to eat something different. Rather, I am saying that these people are simply unaware of how to do better and are also suffering from what scientists are beginning to see as operating almost like an addiction.

[Riviera de la Mancha]

dh8d1

I'm going to go one by one.

Riviera de la Mancha

You assume people have sufficient space to 'be active' in their homes.

They do. Bodyweight exercises are extremely compact. I doubt anybody lives in a home where they have no space to do jumping jacks or jogging in place. If they do, then it's time to find a better living situation because that's just flat out uninhabitable.

Riviera de la Mancha

Sure, anyone can theoretically get up and go for a run, but is that realistic when you are dealing with someone who is, say, obese and has knees which can't support their weight and has no idea how to even begin an activity regimen?

Nobody said to go from start to running if their physical body can't support that action. Someone who has knees which can't support their weight should try walking more first while eating less and eating healthier. Also, anybody with access to the internet has access to knowledge of how to begin an activity regimen. This pretty much negates that argument, unless you're going to talk about the extreme few without internet access, and I'll rebut that by saying they should have a library to go to to read about the subject.

Riviera de la Mancha

Yeah, apples are certainly in supermarkets, but is it all that rational to think that a kid who was raised on Twinkies and Cheetos is likely going to choose that option?

If they gripe about their health, and they don't realize apples are more healthy than twinkies, it's their fault. You're trying to defend the unmotivated by using their lack of motivation as a reason for why they shouldn't need to be motivated. It won't work.

Riviera de la Mancha

It attempts to reduce everything to choice when there are a number of factors we don't choose which go beyond standard diseases that can present very difficult, and sometimes down right unattainable unless adjusted, goals.

These 'diseases' you speak of are in the negligible minority. The OVERWHELMING majority of those overweight are there due to lack of motivation to get their weight to a healthy level. Period. Their motivation can and should get them past the completely minor arguments you are making about things like 'apples vs twinkies' and 'space in your home to exercise.'

Riviera de la Mancha

To sit back and ignore that some of us have to only to walk up a paved incline to get in shape while others have to scale Mt. Everest is just, not to be offensive, stupid.

No, to ignore that losing weight is about calories eaten being less than calories burned is just, not to be offensive, ignorant. There is no such thing as two different people who are the same body type height age and weight but need to exercise vastly different amounts to burn the same amount of food. Go learn how weight is burned off.

The human body burns off more calories the larger it is. For a 200lb male who burns 2000 calories a day, a 1500-1900 calorie a day consumption will help them lose weight safely, but for a 400lb male who burns 4000 calories a day, a 1500-1900 calorie a day consumption will be dangerously low and losing weight way too fast.

The only way "some of us" would have to walk up a paved incline to get in shape while others have to scale Mt. Everest is if the person who walks up the paved incline was lower weight than the one who scales Mt. Everest, or the person who walks up the paved incline eats WAY less food than the person who scales Mt. Everest.

Oh, I wasn't aware that you had global omnipresent clairvoyance and can see all living circumstances of all people all over the world.

How are you going to begin to walk if your legs can't even support your body? And do you really think its sensible to put your life and health in the hands of blogs? Really? That's going to be your position?

Read with attention. I am not discussing motivation in the case of a child who was raised with poor eating habits. I am talking about a knowledge deficit which, while commonsense to you or I, is not necessarily so. And, in the case of children, they frequently have no choice in what they eat. This then translates into habits as the kid gets older. And, as any psychologist will tell you, breaking a long-standing habit is not an easy feat. Doable yes, but not as the OP would class it as simply a matter of doing it.

Studies have shown many times that these effects are not negligible- they certainly do happen. I only mention a few elements that affect weight. So, are we again going to rely on your clairvoyance powers in predicting that the majority of fatties are suffering from simply a lack of motivation?

Cite for me when I ever claimed anything against caloric intake. Indeed, let's talk 'ignorant'. You simply assumed way too many things about my analogy, things you never asked me to clarify at all. Ignorant indeed.

[Riviera de la Mancha]

Aven Loreli

Riviera de la Mancha

d a n d y - f a t - c a t

Riviera de la Mancha

First, by 'thin privilege', people are usually referring to certain benefits you collect just by being thin and conforming to expected norms. This is certainly true. Go to any singles bar, and let me know how many fat chicks get hit on. Look at the workers who are on their way up the management ladder. Let me know how many fat people you see in that group. Our society does confer unearned benefits to skinny people.

Second, I dislike it when people oversimplify things which are very complex, like weight gain. Yes, at a basic level, most people's weight is something in their purview of control. However, our scientific knowledge, which is continuing to expand in this subject, is leading us to the conclusion that there are alot of factors you don't decide. This being the case, by not addressing these factors and the very real possibility that these factors can coalesce to make some people's weight loss journey tougher than others, you don't do full service to the topic.

A lot of overweight people find companions or flings. It is all based on each person who they find attractive. I have seen a good few overweight managers as well. There are medical factors, yes, and some people have a slower metabolism, which I understand. What other factors are there? Oh, also I understand if someone has a spell of depression as well. People lose and gain weight like crazy while being depressed.

I'm sorry but I do not feel sorry for those who cry about their weight and blame other people for it and do nothing about it. It is not very difficult to become healthier. Walking a little more each day or substituting foods will definitely help. Forgive me for one of the things I believed her to mean by being "thin privileged" was that they are "privileged" to be thin. In her post, she had put that those who she had spoken to said they earned their thinness through exercise and healthy eating.

This made her mad and she had put that you "cannot earn privileges."
I am also here to learn some things too so feel free to enlighten me on things (:

Sorry, but, unless you are also dating someone who is big, you will likely never find a companion or fling, certainly not someone fitting the social ideal (the exception of course is chubby chasers, who are not only uncommon but also like women for their bodies. They just happen to like big bodies.).

There are a number of factors which we are just beginning to understand. These include more recent discoveries that even the actions of the mother, while the child is in the womb, can influence genetic structure that can lead to weight problems. Other factors include where you live, which can influence your access to healthy foods and areas to be active. Food itself can also change the bodies' structure, so that, even if you are trying to make changes, your body may not be moving at the same pace. Psychological elements are also a factor too, most of which people are not aware of (some of my favorites being that studies have shown that the size and color of your plate influences how much you eat, and that whom you associate with and even where you eat influences your caloric intake.).

I am not sorry- I don't think people who refuse to recognize scientific advancements and continue to hold on to archaic notions deserve anything more than condemnation of their arguments.

She is indeed correct- there are privileges that come from being thin. And, just as there are fat people who either cant control their weight or just face a whole lot of obstacles in that endeavor, there are skinny people who can't control (and thus can't earn) their weight or face comparatively few if any obstacles to their being skinny.

I did. Twice before I got the boyfriend (of course, i've only slept with 3 people in my life, but that was due to me not being all that interested in looking for love/flings as it wasn't a priority more so than me being on the chubby side of things).

One guy was a skinny, wiry type. The other was a built guy. Of course, neither one was "conventionally attractive" in the face, but body type wise, they fell into the acceptable by society ranges.

The boyfriend is hefty in the middle, but over all, he's not exactly fat.

So...that generalization that a larger woman, or man, or non-gender binary person can't find a fling or a date who is socially acceptable in looks while they themselves are chubby or, dare I say, fat, is off.

A single exemption does not contest the general rule. You only present two other classic cases; butterfaces and someone who is not as fat getting with a fat chick. Neither of which are that off.

[bluespinach]

Can't be thin privileged if you can't even attain fried mud and butter, boiled cat or fried corn meal.

Not everyone has their own decisions to be thin or fat. For example, children, certain elderly, people with conditions and the poor as usual.

I think it's interesting in places like the US where the poor are fat but is completely silly in places where there's limited calories of any type. Fresh fruits and vegetables are luxuries or non-existent in many poorer areas (in general, sure there's areas that are an exception like maybe Little Chinatown with fresh vegetables for cheap).

You can get fat off typical 'poor' diets really easily. When I was growing up I had diet of fried corn flour and beans (nothing else) for two months and gained 40 pounds.

I don't think people that are thin nor fat are privileged, there's too many factors to pull apart. As for privileged only one I can think of aside from health in certain cases is being stylish but in a few years being 6000 pounds may be in style for all I know.

[dh8d1]

Oh, the fun I'm having.

Riviera de la Mancha

Oh, I wasn't aware that you had global omnipresent clairvoyance and can see all living circumstances of all people all over the world.

What great strawman attacks. Are you a politician, religious, or both?

Riviera de la Mancha

How are you going to begin to walk if your legs can't even support your body?

Apparently you're intentionally omitting part of what I typed. I typed, and I quote, "try walking more first while eating less and eating healthier." Did you miss that point? The point where I said TRY, and WHILE EATING LESS AND EATING HEALTHIER? You know, 'cause if you eat less and healthier while maintaining the same daily routines as before, YOUR LEGS WILL BE ABLE TO EVENTUALLY WALK EASIER.

Riviera de la Mancha

And do you really think its sensible to put your life and health in the hands of blogs? Really? That's going to be your position?

No, it's not my position, it's another one of your strawman arguments. Please cite the part where I said blogs. Oh, that's right, you can't. I typed, and I'll quote myself again, "anybody with access to the internet has access to knowledge of how to begin an activity regimen." At no point did I suggest an exact website, type of post (blog, forum, social network, wiki, google, or otherwise) nor program. I just said they have access to the knowledge. And they do. It's on the internet.

Riviera de la Mancha

Read with attention. I am not discussing motivation in the case of a child who was raised with poor eating habits. I am talking about a knowledge deficit which, while commonsense to you or I, is not necessarily so. And, in the case of children, they frequently have no choice in what they eat.

They have the ability to eat less, exercise more, suggest both of these things to their parents, and to be proactive about their health.

Riviera de la Mancha

This then translates into habits as the kid gets older. And, as any psychologist will tell you, breaking a long-standing habit is not an easy feat. Doable yes, but not as the OP would class it as simply a matter of doing it

Breaking long standing habits is a matter of motivation. If you are motivated to do it, you will do it.

Riviera de la Mancha

Studies have shown many times that these effects are not negligible- they certainly do happen.

I don't trust the phrase "studies have shown" when it's just thrown about with no citation. Sorry.

Riviera de la Mancha

I only mention a few elements that affect weight. So, are we again going to rely on your clairvoyance powers in predicting that the majority of fatties are suffering from simply a lack of motivation?

No, we're going to rely on the sheer fact that motivation is literally the only thing stopping someone from doing an achievable thing that is possible they do. You've only now given your argument up when you stated that breaking this habit of being overweight is, and I quote, "Doable yes".

Riviera de la Mancha

Cite for me when I ever claimed anything against caloric intake. Indeed, let's talk 'ignorant'. You simply assumed way too many things about my analogy, things you never asked me to clarify at all. Ignorant indeed.

Ok, I'll cite you.

Riviera de la Mancha

To sit back and ignore that some of us have to only to walk up a paved incline to get in shape while others have to scale Mt. Everest is just, not to be offensive, stupid.

Here's where you claimed against caloric intake, when you simplified exercise of one person and equivocated it with exercise from another without regarding size, age, and caloric intake at the same time, which IS ignorant.

[Dr Raymond Stantz]

More like "attractive privileged". Yes, being attractive has it's social perks. But if a person is ******** up, it won't matter how pretty they are. Additionally, I've noticed if people perceive me as attractive, they love OR hate me more. It makes people act a lot more extreme around you.

As a man who is petite and underweight, it is hardly a real "privilege" to be thin, though I know it's better than being fat. I do get the privilege of not being harassed for being fat or ugly.

[dh8d1]

Dr Raymond Stantz

I've noticed if people perceive me as attractive, they love OR hate me more. It makes people act a lot more extreme around you.

I've noticed that effect too. I find a lot of polarization within the people that have frequent contact with me, be it positive or negative, and I find it from people who barely know me, too.

I never considered myself 'attractive' though, until you just pointed that out now I'm considering that I might be.

[dh8d1]

Pseudo-Onkelos

Four people are fat.

Okay, one is my girlfriend's ex. Who are the other three?