The Massachusetts Leg. has finally lost their minds

[Lady's Human]

http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070518/NEWS/705180695/1116

It's about a bill banning discrimination based on weight and height.


I agree with the legislator in the article who commented that they need to consider adding left handed people and people who are allergic to cashews to the legislation.

[Sirrahsim]

ahh come on, what's the fun of criminalizing fat/skinny/short/tall jokes? :p I'm big as the broad side of a barn!! I DEMAND to be treated differently than everyone else and I expect fat jokes :p

My husband is a lefty... maybe that is why our server was ridiculously slow last time we went out to eat... We should sue...
I have no problem with people who are short/fat/tall/skinny/prefer to wear their underwear on the outside, I just think that there are a lot more important things to take up the legislator's time.

[lizbud]

I think it's frivolous bill & not worth lawmakers time. :)

[catnapper]

Personally, its about time. Unless you've been on the receiving end of weight discrimination, you can't understand what its like.

My last job harassed me so badly that it took me THREE YEARS to "get over it" in order to go back to working in an office again. If they sexually harassed me I would have been able to fight. But since they didn't; since they teased me about looking frumpy and felt free to belittle me based on what I chose to eat for lunch.... well, I wasn't able to do anything to defend myself legally. and they knew it.

I know weight is something people can "just lose" but its not that easy. For me, weight is a lifelong battle and I've come to terms with that myself.... I don't need a boss or coworker snickering and teasing me about it. I can ask my boss to stop. He may or may not. There's no law other than the law of common courtesy to stop him. Unfortunately, I worked for a guy who felt he had a right to tell me I was less than perfect because I am heavy. I asked him to stop. I asked his boss to make him stop. I got "laid off" because I made a fuss over them making comments on my appearance.

So no, its not a waste of lawmakers time and definately not frivolous. Its something thats needed to be done for a long time.

*ok, of my soap box* :o

[moosmom]

I agree with catnapper. It's about time. A person's ability to do their job should NOT be based on their looks. The only time I think it IS necessary, is in the case of firefighters, police officers, any job that requires a person to be physically fit in order to perform their duties.

[Freedom]

This becomes important in the hiring process, as well. If the company offers health insurance benefits (and many do), they know the company's portion of the costs will go up when they hire someone overweight. And down the road, one of 2 things COULD happen: either the weight results in certain medical problems developing OR medical problems develop and the weight issue becomes a complication in treatment. An example of the first is that there seems to be a link between being overweight and developing diabetes. An example of the second is someone who requires surgery and has a lot of excess flesh which the surgeon has to deal with; the healing takes a LOT longer. I'm not saying it is right, just explaining HOW the discrimination can happen.

I can't think of how the height issue could happen though.

Being a short, pudgy (ahem! by quite a bit!) Sicilian female, I think I fit in to that legislation!

[lizbud]

catnapper, there is criminal law & tort law. What your employer did might not be criminal, but you could still sue for harassment in tort law.Because
it wasn't a crime, doesn't mean you have no other options.

[Puckstop31]

Another victory for the thought police...

One more step towards the brink. Political Correctness is going to destroy this country. It does not changes hearts, it only suppresses speech. Insanely horrible stuff here.

Whats next???

[Lady's Human]

The question is, where do you stop?

Should someone in an office environment be harassed to the point of leaving their job? No. HOWEVER........

You have to look at the history of this type of legislation. ADA? Great thing, until people sued left and right to get their particular issue included in the disability category. Alcoholic? Addicted to drugs? You're disabled. Even though you might be operating heavy machinery in an impaired state, you can't be fired. The employer has to make allowances for your "disability". There are people who have disability status from the VA for athlete's foot from military service. I've been harassed for various reasons in the military. Did I go find a lawyer? Nope.

Sorry, but every issue should NOT be handled by legislation. At some point reason and common sense have got to come into play.

[Marigold2]

No one as far as I know shovels food down fat peoples throats. Nor does food jump into anyone's mouth. People put the amount of food in their bodies of their own accord. Be it a lot or a little. I can stand to lose 40 lbs. Being over weight is NO one's fault but my own. Yes I have stress but who doesn't.
Being fat makes you subsceptable to tons (pun intended) of health problems that cost insurance compaines millions of not billions of dollars. A body is not designed to carry 100 or even 50 extra pounds. Yes you can start all kinds of clubs on fat acceptence and call it what ever you want but the bottom line is your body is hurting because you are shovling to much down your throat. A fat body is never pretty. Once the fancy cloths are off rolls of fat are ugly. That's why thin models are on the cover of all the magazines we buy. No one fats to see anyones rolls of fat hiden under silk or satin. Yes the truth hurts but it's the truth. Fat is ugly. And I need to lose my 40.

[Lady's Human]

There are people who CANNOT control their weight. However, they are the exception, not the rule.

[catnapper]

There are people who CANNOT control their weight. However, they are the exception, not the rule.
Thank you. I actually do have a health reason and when I was on the meds to "fix" it, weight melted off me. Unfortunately, it turns out I can't tolerate the only meds used to treat my problem. Lucky me, eh? The only other "cure" is a drastic surgery I just don't want to have yet.

I understand the whole politically correct thing. In fact, I think PC is a huge waste of time and I just want to scream at the craziness of most of it. I don't consider this a PC issue. PC is calling fat people "pleasantly plump" or "stocky" or "fuller figured"... I prefer "under tall" and "metabolically challenged" ;). Its not a PC issue when you get people harassing you about your figure. Its about respect for human dignity. It truly is sad that we have to create laws like this. You're right, we shouldn't NEED anything like this. People should treat others the right way without the government telling them they ought to. Unfortunately some people need guidelines to follow.

Maybe if we all went back to basics.... I seem to remember a good book that mentioned something about doing unto others as you would have done onto you. More people need to take that concept to heart and live with it every day.

[IRescue452]

No one as far as I know shovels food down fat peoples throats. Nor does food jump into anyone's mouth. People put the amount of food in their bodies of their own accord. Be it a lot or a little. I can stand to lose 40 lbs. Being over weight is NO one's fault but my own. Yes I have stress but who doesn't

My aunt has a medical condition, name evades me, where her body can't process fat. She's not near obese, but she can't lose weight for the life of her. I myself was anorexic for months at one point in my life, eating 500 calories daily, what did I lose, nothing. And I exercised to a point of passing out often during that time as well. Life sucks like that. I'm not convinced that food has much of anything to do with fat. Starvation=skeletol, yes. Food=fat, only if fat people are the only ones who eat.

[sparks19]

Under tall HAHAHAHAHA I love that.

sorry that was a little off topic but I like that one lol.

[jackie]

There are people who CANNOT control their weight. However, they are the exception, not the rule.

Exactly.


This is taken from the link in the first post.

Cases tossed out of court include a 6-foot, 285-pound man who sued Shaw’s Supermarkets, claiming he was denied a job because of his weight; and a 230-pound woman who sued a Natick car dealership after being denied a receptionist job.
I doubt that man would have been able to preform as well as a "slimmer" counterpart. As for the receptionist, this world is very appearance orientated. People prefer nice looking people, its similar to the motto "sex and youth sells". That's why there are very few big people in the service industry, their appearance is how people will view the company. It might not be nice or fair, but it is the truth.

[momoffuzzyfaces]

All the hoo haa over bodies always flabbergasts me.
Face it people, we are all going to die and decay so who cares what you look like now? Be kind, love each other and enjoy your life. Stop obcessing on things that don't matter.

Myself, I'd rather see someone with meat on their bones than sporting the "concentration camp" look. :rolleyes:

[sparks19]

All the hoo haa over bodies always flabbergasts me.
Face it people, we are all going to die and decay so who cares what you look like now? Be kind, love each other and enjoy your life. Stop obcessing on things that don't matter.

Myself, I'd rather see someone with meat on their bones than sporting the "concentration camp" look. :rolleyes:


Well there is a line between not caring what you look like and not caring about your health.....

Yes we are all going to die.... but I don't want to die at an earlier age. BUT that being said.... I am not going to stop eating chocolate and only eat rabbit food for the rest of my life lol. I will NOT feel better on my death bed knowing I didn't eat that chocolate bar :D

[RICHARD]

Hmmmm,

People still use the telegram put out news? ;)

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Cashew allergies? O.K...

Left handers? NEVER.....they are 'sinister'-For years the nuns in Catholic school beat my brother's arse to get him to write right handed! :eek: