this post was submitted on 08 Sep 2024
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I attempted to address this but perhaps I wasn't clear:
Yes, some activities are risky then others, however many of them have absolutely 0 negative impact on you unless something major happens all at once. In fact, many of them have major health benefits for the vast, vast majority of participants.
Contrast the above to overeating, chronically eating stuff that's not good for you (ex. excessive sugar, salt), drinking too much, doing lots of drugs, smoking... that kind of behaviour will basically screw up everyone who partakes given enough time and has no positive health benefits at all.
You talk about a loss of freedom... I've already lost freedom by paying for a bunch of people who purposely fuck themselves up for no tangible benefit to themselves. There is stuff that would be good for me that I literally can't afford because of the amount of taxes I pay.
Here's an idea for your route of encouraging healthy lifestyle rather than removing freedom: include a physician form in my taxes where my doctor attests that I am generally in good shape (given my age) and he has no reason to believe I am doing anything that is a risk factor for chronic cardiovascular or lung diseases, diabetes or related chronic illnesses, and give me a significant tax break for doing so.
Consider what you just said can apply to motorcycling or buying a classic car with outdated safety features. There is no tangible health benefit to motorcycling or driving a classic car, it basically "has no positive health benefits at all" (as per your own words) and only increases risk. Show it be banned? What about every other risky hobby? If not, then neither should eating junk food which is measurably less dangerous/risky. Keep in mind that for smoking the overall trends of diminishing smoking habits in younger generations basically highlights the proof that encouraging healthy habits rather than punishing the individual is the correct way to approach this.
Buying a motorcycle or classic car doesn't necessarily lead to injury in the same way that overeating and being lazy to the point of becoming a land whale does.
Being a judgmental asshole increases your likelihood of being assaulted. I shouldn't have to pay your medical bills when you get punched in the face by a stranger.
Free expression bud, it's my right to be a judgemental asshole. Take that up with Pierre Trudeau.
And I'm free to eat a bag of chips whenever I want.
I suggest you look up just how often motorcycle injuries/deaths happen. What you're saying only applies if you never get into an accident or fall off the bike ever, in the entire period it is owned (which could be 20-30 years). Something which is incredibly unlikely. From the language you're using (i.e whale) I'm getting the impression that your position isn't rational and instead based on a dislike of overweight people. I've done what I can here but I don't think you're messaging back in good faith and don't want to entertain the perspective of someone who tries to put others beneath them based on their body and eating habits.
I'd be willing to bet that the number proportion of motorcycle owners with health problems caused by riding is a hell of a lot lower than the proportion of people who don't eat right and don't exercise enough and have health problems linked to that.
And no, it's not just overweight people I don't like, it's also people that are sick all the time (like, weak immune coughs and colds type of stuff).
I think if you seriously hold those views you should consider the fact that there are many reprehensible individuals which thought exactly like you do in the past. Though the groups they chose and the reasoning provided varied, all being equally irrational, they found reasons to neglect if not outright try to erase individuals which they perceived as somehow inferior to themselves because of their lifestyle choices. They falsely thought, like you do, that society would be better off if these individuals were not part of it and "punished" for their lifestyle choices.
This is a point where you need to actually realize for yourself what you're arguing for is reflective of a worldview which is objectively evil. You need only to look up the horrors of eugenics, of every ethnic genocide, of every society which chose to discriminate rather than uplift its members.
From the way you speak you seem to think that those who are strong or smart or talented have no duty to anyone but themselves. But you fail to realize that one day you may get sick, one day you may be old, one day you may be involved in an accident through no fault of your own, or by means of your lifestyle choices. At that time, you will need people to care for you, and you will realize exactly what I'm trying to tell you here.
For reference, the way you think is not new. I suggest you look through the chapter in Plato's republic where Socrates speaks with Thrasymachus about how "might does not equal right" to gain perspective on this. Thrasymachus held your worldview. It was one of the first positions that Socrates showed to be indefensible.
Right now you're on the internet instead of being physically active, that's a health risk.
Who says I haven't already gotten enough exercise today?
You're aware of the concept of overworking your body, right?
Who says how much it's acceptable to eat or drink?
I don't care if you've gotten enough exercise, you would be healthier if you were walking around the block right now instead of sitting inside on the internet. Since my taxes pay for your medical bills I get to tell you how to live your life, so get walking!
come on guys, step over your ego.
Great, so maybe you can stop paying for my healthcare and I can stop paying for yours.
Move to the states, let me know how that goes for you.