ForumsWEPRHow big are you? Yes, we need to know!

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NoNameC68
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NoNameC68
5,043 posts
Shepherd

Here is a link explaining how the government will begin to keep track of the size and weight of everyone 2 - 18 years old.

I was watching the news and they said "What does the government plan on doing if your child is over weight? Stay tuned to find out."

I wasn't able to make it to the story, so any more information on the bill I linked or anything relating would be awesome.

If you're one of those people who think parents should be fined for having fat children, then go yourself.

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ExpoBanana
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ExpoBanana
128 posts
Nomad

wow. thats kinda stupid... we'd be effed in Houston! xD

Osmar38
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Osmar38
180 posts
Blacksmith

in some cases that is necessary, if you are fat and you are going to travel by plain...

You are going to get stuck(sorry about my english)

Xcalibur45
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Xcalibur45
1,830 posts
Farmer

Well y should the government decide if we're overweight. Their cutting P.E. out of schools and they want us to be in shape? I'm 15, 6ft. 1in. 185-190 Lbs. Is that overwieght?

Zega
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Zega
6,921 posts
Peasant

Now I'm not overweight, I'm underweight actually. I've been trying to get up some kilos, but I've been failing miserably. I'm around 168cm and less than 50kg.

in some cases that is necessary, if you are fat and you are going to travel by plain...

Haha, that isn't necessarily true..

---

I think it's funny how USA solves problems like these.
Xcalibur45
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Xcalibur45
1,830 posts
Farmer

Ya but Zega the problem is that the USA wont fix the problem, this has been an issue for a long time!

Drace
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Drace
3,880 posts
Nomad

If you're one of those people who think parents should be fined for having fat children, then go yourself.


It didn't seem to say anything about a fine, just said they need the information for analysis.

Strange anyways...
dasin5
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dasin5
40 posts
Peasant

America is the most obese country in the world what do you expect when you can buy things in the dozen at Costco or Sam's club?

NoNameC68
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NoNameC68
5,043 posts
Shepherd

Their cutting P.E. out of schools


PE is a relatively useless class come high school. It surely isn't the cause. In fact, it's a waste of time. PE is good for grade schoolers though because it becomes a form of recess.

It didn't seem to say anything about a fine, just said they need the information for analysis.


Yeah, I saw quite a few other sites where people were talking about how parents should be fined, but nothing was official. They were simply people asking their opinions on blogs.

The reason I said anything is because I swear that is where the news was getting at. Rather than telling you "Up next, this happens, more details coming up," they say "Up next, what are they planning? You might be effected, stay tuned to find out!"

Then they give a sentence or two about some missing girl, spend 10 minutes on some celebrity or promotion of some sort of event, and that's where I give up and turn the TV off.
FireflyIV
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FireflyIV
3,224 posts
Nomad

PE is a relatively useless class come high school. It surely isn't the cause. In fact, it's a waste of time. PE is good for grade schoolers though because it becomes a form of recess.


PE doesn't have to be useless. Exercise is a part of a healthy lifetyle. This doesn't become less relevant when you reach a certain age. It definitely should be part of a compulsory education system. It might not be the root cause of obesity in America, but a lack of it is certainly a contributing factor.
NoNameC68
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NoNameC68
5,043 posts
Shepherd

PE doesn't have to be useless. Exercise is a part of a healthy lifetyle. This doesn't become less relevant when you reach a certain age. It definitely should be part of a compulsory education system. It might not be the root cause of obesity in America, but a lack of it is certainly a contributing factor.


I don't think PE should be required in high school. If it's taught correctly, you might get something out of it, and that's only if you're willing to put in the extra effort to get something out of it.

When I was in high school, we had to take three semesters of it. I can't say it was a total waste of time, but there are other classes that I felt would have helped me out more.
FireflyIV
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FireflyIV
3,224 posts
Nomad

I don't think PE should be required in high school. If it's taught correctly, you might get something out of it, and that's only if you're willing to put in the extra effort to get something out of it.


School aims to produce productive members of society. People will be more able to join the workforce if they are physically fit. Now I'm not sure how PE is structured in the US system, but a few hours of sport a week never hurt anyone. Not to mention the fact that as a nation, you are clearly facing an obesity epidemic. Getting kids enthused about sports and making sure they get some exercise cannot be a bad thing.

In Britain everyone does sport from primary through til you leave. So perhaps it's a cultural thing. That said, I think I'm much better for it.
NoNameC68
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NoNameC68
5,043 posts
Shepherd

School aims to produce productive members of society. People will be more able to join the workforce if they are physically fit. Now I'm not sure how PE is structured in the US system, but a few hours of sport a week never hurt anyone. Not to mention the fact that as a nation, you are clearly facing an obesity epidemic. Getting kids enthused about sports and making sure they get some exercise cannot be a bad thing.


We have a lot of food today. I would hardly call obesity an epidemic worth waging war against.

In the states, PE is just another class. You go, you do what you can to pass, you leave. Those who continue to work out and stay fit after PE, more often than not, are those who worked out before going into PE.

American schools are different than other schools around the world, so some of this you may disagree with. If you went to a high school in America, what I'm saying may not sound so crazy.

1. PE should be focused more during grade and middle schools when children are young and need to get rid of their energy. Recess alone isn't enough especially for middle schoolers who sometimes don't have a recess.

2. PE should be an optional class in high school. There's no point in going to PE if you are already in a sport or if you honestly don't care to work out. At this point, kids are young adults and have to make some of their own choices. PE should remain open for kids who want to learn how to stay in good shape.

3. We get stuck with a lot of pointless required classes.

-The most pointless class I ever took was communication. I thought it would talk about the psychology between two communicating people and different ways you can get others to listen, how to avoid confrontations, and so on. No, this is what we learned.

I am the sender. You are the receiver. What I'm saying is the message. That knocking on your door is an interference. (see how pointless it was to have a whole class wasted on this stuff?)
aknerd
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aknerd
1,416 posts
Peasant

PE should be an optional class in high school. There's no point in going to PE if you are already in a sport or if you honestly don't care to work out. At this point, kids are young adults and have to make some of their own choices. PE should remain open for kids who want to learn how to stay in good shape.


I agree. I prefer to excercise on my own. That way, I can go my own speed, and, more importantly, excercise where I want to excersise. I remember in my highschool PE class, we had to run around an indoor track every day. And I would just think to myself, "There is a mountain right there. What are we doing inside? It's a beautiful day; we should be hiking."

The fact that this bill is going to use the BMI worries me. The BMI doesn't differentiate between fat or muscle, and therefore doesn't really reflect the health of an individual. So all of the data collected by this bill wouldn't create an accurate picture of our nation's obesity rates.

I would hardly call obesity an epidemic worth waging war against.


Well, it does cost the United States $147 billion dollars a year in direct and indirect costs.
CNN.com

Though, I still don't think that justifies this bill. We need a cultural change, not a political one.
NoNameC68
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NoNameC68
5,043 posts
Shepherd

Well, it does cost the United States $147 billion dollars a year in direct and indirect costs.
CNN.com

Though, I still don't think that justifies this bill. We need a cultural change, not a political one.


I agree with the second sentence. I do have a problem with what you linked though.

Another 2009 study in the journal Health Affairs concluded that the costs of hospitalizations related to childhood obesity rose from $125.9 million in 2001 to $237.6 million in 2005. Bottom Line: America spends as much as $147 billion annually on the direct and indirect costs of obesity. In the year of the most recent CDC study, 2006, that made up 9.1 percent of medical spending.


This makes you think that obesity is becoming a bigger problem because more money is being spent on what looks like an increase of obese people. I doubt the number of obese people increased that much from 2001 to 2005. I would have to do more research, but I believe that the increase is due to the whole obesity scare.

I just don't trust those numbers.

Anyway, once again, I agree that we should encourage a cultural change rather than force a political one.
Somers
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Somers
1,532 posts
Nomad

I must have a dirty mind cause when i first saw the title i thought...well nevermind.

PE should be focused more during grade and middle schools when children are young and need to get rid of their energy. Recess alone isn't enough especially for middle schoolers who sometimes don't have a recess.


In my area most of the elementary schools cut PE because of the cost. I always thought of recess as PE anyways just without the orginization.

We get stuck with a lot of pointless required classes
.

ha i remember taking a typing class 7,8,9th grade. "You've learned to type for a whole year, now lets do it for 2 more!"

We live to die. We might as well die fat, slappin happy. Right?
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