Monday, October 27, 2014
A Voting Party
In FatLand 3: To Live Proud and Free, FatLand will switch over to voting for a territorial Senate. It will be the first time FatLanders vote in an actual FatLand election. But instead of making it boring and mundane, FatLand will be making it a party and FatLanders will be meeting each other at the election places and dancing :)
Saturday, October 18, 2014
The Thinness Society
The Thinness Society met for the first time on October 7, 2046. Many FatLanders were appalled at the very idea. Unfortunately, a minority were vocal supporters.
One of the original members of the "Fat and Happy" TV reality show in 2010, the show that ended up being the stimulus behind the creation of FatLand, decided that there were now too many people who were starting to become thin in FatLand. She didn't realize that genetic probability was simply taking its turn, and that the thin kids and young adults she was seeing were the result of recessive genes pairing up. So she founded the Thinness Society, which was focused on trying to "treat" thinness. Needless to say, there were no thin members of the Thinness Society.
Ring a bell? The Obesity Society is an actual organization here in the USA and is still focused on "treating" obesity (read "fat people"). There are no "obese" members. There are: doctors, educators, nurses, all talking about how obesity should be helped/cured/eradicated.
And just as you might imagine, there were demonstrators outside this meeting of the Thinness Society carrying signs that read "Thinness is not a disease" and "Thinness does not need to be treated."
Yep. And neither does "Obesity."
One of the original members of the "Fat and Happy" TV reality show in 2010, the show that ended up being the stimulus behind the creation of FatLand, decided that there were now too many people who were starting to become thin in FatLand. She didn't realize that genetic probability was simply taking its turn, and that the thin kids and young adults she was seeing were the result of recessive genes pairing up. So she founded the Thinness Society, which was focused on trying to "treat" thinness. Needless to say, there were no thin members of the Thinness Society.
Ring a bell? The Obesity Society is an actual organization here in the USA and is still focused on "treating" obesity (read "fat people"). There are no "obese" members. There are: doctors, educators, nurses, all talking about how obesity should be helped/cured/eradicated.
And just as you might imagine, there were demonstrators outside this meeting of the Thinness Society carrying signs that read "Thinness is not a disease" and "Thinness does not need to be treated."
Yep. And neither does "Obesity."
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Anti-Bariatric Interventions
Something weird happened in 2045-2046, after the Pro-Health and Diet measures were repealed on the Other Side/USA and after they resumed relations with FatLand.
Bariatric surgery, which had fallen into disuse on the Other Side because it did not result in long term major weight loss, started up again, but not as a weight loss aid. It was being touted as a cure for diabetes, an idea which had already been disproved in the early 2000's. But certain people saw in it a chance to profit. So they started running ads for it, ads bolstered by studies which were either disproved themselves or nonexistent.
A number of FatandProud chapters on The Other Side contacted FatLand doctors and Friends of FatandProud (a FatLand group dedicated to helping and working with FatandProud chapters on The Other Side). They came up with the Anti-Bariatric Interventions - ABI's, for short.
What this entailed: Several FatandProud members, often assisted and accompanied by Friends of FatandProud members who were able to travel to the USA (which was much easier, now that relations had been resumed between FatLand and the USA), would rush over to the hospital or clinic at which a bariatric surgical operation was being performed. They would spray shaving cream over the doctor or doctors performing the operation, then snatch the operee out before she was anaesthetized. They would transport her to a safe house. When she awoke, they would explain to her that BLS surgery does not reduce or do away with diabetes in the long term. They would also tell her that she was free to stay in the safe house (house managed and populated with FatandProud people) as long as she wished, and that they would assist her in managing her diabetes. They would then have a FatandProud dietitian talk to her.
In this way, FatandProud, along with Friends of FatandProud, saved more than 1000 women from having BLS. Not one of the women chose to have the surgery after staying in a FatandProud safe house.
Bariatric surgery, which had fallen into disuse on the Other Side because it did not result in long term major weight loss, started up again, but not as a weight loss aid. It was being touted as a cure for diabetes, an idea which had already been disproved in the early 2000's. But certain people saw in it a chance to profit. So they started running ads for it, ads bolstered by studies which were either disproved themselves or nonexistent.
A number of FatandProud chapters on The Other Side contacted FatLand doctors and Friends of FatandProud (a FatLand group dedicated to helping and working with FatandProud chapters on The Other Side). They came up with the Anti-Bariatric Interventions - ABI's, for short.
What this entailed: Several FatandProud members, often assisted and accompanied by Friends of FatandProud members who were able to travel to the USA (which was much easier, now that relations had been resumed between FatLand and the USA), would rush over to the hospital or clinic at which a bariatric surgical operation was being performed. They would spray shaving cream over the doctor or doctors performing the operation, then snatch the operee out before she was anaesthetized. They would transport her to a safe house. When she awoke, they would explain to her that BLS surgery does not reduce or do away with diabetes in the long term. They would also tell her that she was free to stay in the safe house (house managed and populated with FatandProud people) as long as she wished, and that they would assist her in managing her diabetes. They would then have a FatandProud dietitian talk to her.
In this way, FatandProud, along with Friends of FatandProud, saved more than 1000 women from having BLS. Not one of the women chose to have the surgery after staying in a FatandProud safe house.
Sunday, October 5, 2014
FatLand Bookstores
There are many bookstores in FatLand, which is a bit surprising because most people on the Other Side/USA buy most of their books online.
For some reason, FatLanders like holding books and looking at them and reading them.
Most FatLand bookstores are open at least until midnight, and often later on the weekends.
Many feature readings. concerts, reading groups and other discussion groups. More than half have cafes.
In other words: They offer what Borders bookstores once did until they went out of business on the OtherSide.
In other words: They make buying books fun.
Oh - there are no weight loss sections. "Health" and "Fitness" categories do not include weight loss.
But they do include sex.
For some reason, FatLanders like holding books and looking at them and reading them.
Most FatLand bookstores are open at least until midnight, and often later on the weekends.
Many feature readings. concerts, reading groups and other discussion groups. More than half have cafes.
In other words: They offer what Borders bookstores once did until they went out of business on the OtherSide.
In other words: They make buying books fun.
Oh - there are no weight loss sections. "Health" and "Fitness" categories do not include weight loss.
But they do include sex.
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
FatLand Pizza Days
One of the first restaurants to go up on one of the main arteries of FatLand City, as it is now called, was a pizza place/casual Italian restaurant. In six months there were three more pizza places within eight blocks. In a year, there were twelve. Two closed a few months after. Ten remained.
Their signs were calculated to draw customers from their competition. They held sales, lunchtime specials, Super Sundays, Special Saturdays, held contests, held dances, had outdoor concerts.
One day, when all ten pizza places/restaurants were plugging their specials and contests, Margaret Clancy, the owner of the first and best known FatLand newspaper, observed that instead of competing against each other all the time, they might instead sponsor a Pizza Days festival in which they all served their best, had eating contests and tasting events and of course a few concerts.
It didn't take long for the restaurant owners and staff to agree that this festival would benefit all of them and bring welcome publicity.
And that is how FatLand Pizza Days got started...
Wednesday, September 17, 2014
Coming of age stories from FatLand
Now there are coming of age stories coming out of FatLand!
How wonderful it is, to see the writings of young people who were born and/or grew up here.
Some of them refer to the sheltered, almost dreamy quality of life here. Some of them refer to sneaking views and sneaking off the The Other Side to see what life was like there.
A few of them refer to the difficulties of growing up as thin or as transgendered in FatLand. Unfortunately even a land as egalitarian and tolerant as FatLand cannot escape the consequences of problems experienced by those who are different in some way.
Some of them talk about the wonderful food. Some of them discuss the ease with which they were able to stay up all night. Some of them voice appreciation of the FatLand employment counselors and FatLand's economic system. Some talk about the unique FatLand games they enjoyed.
But all of them adore the scenery and the sunsets.
How wonderful it is, to see the writings of young people who were born and/or grew up here.
Some of them refer to the sheltered, almost dreamy quality of life here. Some of them refer to sneaking views and sneaking off the The Other Side to see what life was like there.
A few of them refer to the difficulties of growing up as thin or as transgendered in FatLand. Unfortunately even a land as egalitarian and tolerant as FatLand cannot escape the consequences of problems experienced by those who are different in some way.
Some of them talk about the wonderful food. Some of them discuss the ease with which they were able to stay up all night. Some of them voice appreciation of the FatLand employment counselors and FatLand's economic system. Some talk about the unique FatLand games they enjoyed.
But all of them adore the scenery and the sunsets.
Friday, September 12, 2014
Backlash
After FatLand and The Other Side/USA normalized relations, a small but vocal group started taking out ads in online blogs and news media. The ads said, "Diversity is good, but health is better." They showed a fat woman who seemingly was having difficulty walking to her car from a store and a slim woman dancing in a club.
When FatLanders learned of the ads, they complained to their bodies of governance which then authorized the creation of ads which showed two women -one fat, one slim- dancing side by side. Both were dancing quite well. The ad read: The only thing body size tells you is body size. Anything else is your own prejudice at work.
The organization which sponsored the "Diversity is good, health is better" ads pulled them.
Their ads were paid for mostly by your friend and mine, Winston Stark. Why? Always an interesting question when it comes to Stark. Perhaps he was trying to drum up business for CompleteFitness, which wasn't doing too well. Perhaps he was just trying to stir up trouble.
As usual.
When FatLanders learned of the ads, they complained to their bodies of governance which then authorized the creation of ads which showed two women -one fat, one slim- dancing side by side. Both were dancing quite well. The ad read: The only thing body size tells you is body size. Anything else is your own prejudice at work.
The organization which sponsored the "Diversity is good, health is better" ads pulled them.
Their ads were paid for mostly by your friend and mine, Winston Stark. Why? Always an interesting question when it comes to Stark. Perhaps he was trying to drum up business for CompleteFitness, which wasn't doing too well. Perhaps he was just trying to stir up trouble.
As usual.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)