Jamie Oliver Jamie Oliver's TED Award speech - YouTube
I really liked this talk.
It saddens me though, that as much as everything he said is right-on. It has been restated by so many advocates that his message probably won’t get through. Aside from teaching other to cook and taking responsibility for the home, mostly everything else he wishes to change is in the hands of government/corporation.
I thought it was a pretty good message as well, and agree largely that education should be available and cooking more prevalent.
However, didn’t think the presentation was that great nor do i like that he recommends corporation/government changes. I don’t believe its practical nor the correct way to make this change. This is just feeding the fire in my opinion, its very much becoming part of our world to take away self-responsibility.
I think the presentation would be a lot more effective if it challenged the individual, which is how everything begins.
I like alot of what he said, but I think he has the onus backwards.
Grocery stores provide an amabassador, accountants educate their lunch ladies, government this, school board that.
There is money to be made in obesity, these places are businesses, their job is the bottom line. It’s your life, not the grocery store owner’s. This is just like new people coming onto this site and saying MAKE ME RIPPED!
No. The information is available. While it is awesome that someone like Ted chooses to spend his resources on informing the public, businesses are not obligated to follow suit and cut into their bottom line.
I realize there are many arguments to counter this line of thought, including false labelling and the fact that we’re talking about children. But in the end, the onus is on the parents and the eaters, because money always follows the path of least resistance.
[quote]MementoMori wrote:
I like alot of what he said, but I think he has the onus backwards.
Grocery stores provide an amabassador, accountants educate their lunch ladies, government this, school board that.
There is money to be made in obesity, these places are businesses, their job is the bottom line. It’s your life, not the grocery store owner’s. This is just like new people coming onto this site and saying MAKE ME RIPPED!
No. The information is available. While it is awesome that someone like Ted chooses to spend his resources on informing the public, businesses are not obligated to follow suit and cut into their bottom line.
I realize there are many arguments to counter this line of thought, including false labelling and the fact that we’re talking about children. But in the end, the onus is on the parents and the eaters, because money always follows the path of least resistance.[/quote]
Good points, but I would place some onus on the companies as well.
First to preface, I mean larger more ubiquitous corporations, not so much smaller mom-n-pop shops. (Finances really, plus the smaller corporations are less likely to do the following)
Mainly because the whole ‘sugar + fat + salt’ thing that really hits the dopamine reward circuit, as well as chemically altering the food to be digested faster, be less satisfying so more is consumed, and adding more and more enhancers to it is just too much psychological manipulation for me to say that they deserve no onus.
I disagree with some of what you guys have said. Big Business has no right to do the bullshit they get away with. What the fuck kind of labeling system allows they to sell you poison but plaster all over the front… IT WONT EXPLODE so its good for you…its still fuckin poison. Labels are suppose to give us the information to make an educated choice…but instead they try to confuse people as much as possible so they can get away with shit.
The government should get in gear… school lunches are totally shit. In high school 90% of the time we had fast food style stuff like pizza or chicken paddies or french fries etc… on the days they didnt most people wouldnt eat at all. Even in middle school (3rd grade up) they had a bunch of different snacks to choose from like Ice cream and cookies. Its all shit.
I absolutely think people do need to learn how to cook properly. I’m 19 years old and have friends who cant cook. I literally know people who cant boil water and are afraid to make mac and cheese from a box. So they eat french fries… pizza and anything you have to stick in the oven or drop in a deep fryer. I started learning to cook when I was 6 years old and still cook regularly now.
There’s no doubt it is a problem, but I don’t want the government telling me what I can and cannot eat. I want to be able to have a slice of pizza or bowl of ice cream if I feel so inclined.
My mom always cooked healthy for my sister and I and in the end we both ended up living healthy lifestyles.
The bottom line is like he said, people just need to be more educated about the subject.
[quote]Anonymity wrote:
There’s no doubt it is a problem, but I don’t want the government telling me what I can and cannot eat. I want to be able to have a slice of pizza or bowl of ice cream if I feel so inclined.
My mom always cooked healthy for my sister and I and in the end we both ended up living healthy lifestyles.
The bottom line is like he said, people just need to be more educated about the subject.[/quote]
I didn’t really get the message let the government control what we eat. I thought he said more along the lines of the government shouldnt let companies bullshit you and make the government provide more money to schools for healthy food. I’m all for freedom…but without question we need to change how we are educated about food and the information we are given about what goes into it.
[quote]Petermus wrote:
I disagree with some of what you guys have said. Big Business has no right to do the bullshit they get away with. What the fuck kind of labeling system allows they to sell you poison but plaster all over the front… IT WONT EXPLODE so its good for you…its still fuckin poison. Labels are suppose to give us the information to make an educated choice…but instead they try to confuse people as much as possible so they can get away with shit.
The government should get in gear… school lunches are totally shit. In high school 90% of the time we had fast food style stuff like pizza or chicken paddies or french fries etc… on the days they didnt most people wouldnt eat at all. Even in middle school (3rd grade up) they had a bunch of different snacks to choose from like Ice cream and cookies. Its all shit.
I absolutely think people do need to learn how to cook properly. I’m 19 years old and have friends who cant cook. I literally know people who cant boil water and are afraid to make mac and cheese from a box. So they eat french fries… pizza and anything you have to stick in the oven or drop in a deep fryer. I started learning to cook when I was 6 years old and still cook regularly now. [/quote]
Educate yourself. My high school sold crap, I brought my own stuff. If it’s the label’s fault and there is no responsibility on the person then EVERYONE should be unhealthy. I’m not(nor are many on this website) because we took the time to educate ourselves.
Big government is just as much a waste of money as big people.
[quote]Petermus wrote:
[quote]Anonymity wrote:
There’s no doubt it is a problem, but I don’t want the government telling me what I can and cannot eat. I want to be able to have a slice of pizza or bowl of ice cream if I feel so inclined.
My mom always cooked healthy for my sister and I and in the end we both ended up living healthy lifestyles.
The bottom line is like he said, people just need to be more educated about the subject.[/quote]
I didn’t really get the message let the government control what we eat. I thought he said more along the lines of the government shouldnt let companies bullshit you and make the government provide more money to schools for healthy food. I’m all for freedom…but without question we need to change how we are educated about food and the information we are given about what goes into it.
[/quote]
Agreed, I was exaggerating a bit to make a point. I don’t actually think he wants government to micro manage diets.
[quote]Petermus wrote:
I disagree with some of what you guys have said. Big Business has no right to do the bullshit they get away with. What the fuck kind of labeling system allows they to sell you poison but plaster all over the front… IT WONT EXPLODE so its good for you…its still fuckin poison. Labels are suppose to give us the information to make an educated choice…but instead they try to confuse people as much as possible so they can get away with shit.
The government should get in gear… school lunches are totally shit. In high school 90% of the time we had fast food style stuff like pizza or chicken paddies or french fries etc… on the days they didnt most people wouldnt eat at all. Even in middle school (3rd grade up) they had a bunch of different snacks to choose from like Ice cream and cookies. Its all shit.
I absolutely think people do need to learn how to cook properly. I’m 19 years old and have friends who cant cook. I literally know people who cant boil water and are afraid to make mac and cheese from a box. So they eat french fries… pizza and anything you have to stick in the oven or drop in a deep fryer. I started learning to cook when I was 6 years old and still cook regularly now. [/quote]
What happened to personal responsibility? How ignorant does someone have to be to see the words “low fat” and assume this means they can eat tubs of it at a time and not gain fat? The labels I’ve seen seem pretty clear and you really have to not be paying attention to avoid seeing that the serving sizes are usually quite small so they can claim less calories. It isn’t hidden. You just need common sense and the ability to count.
I see way too many overweight patients and many of these are children. They aren’t that fat from eating “low fat” meals thinking they are healthy. They are fat because the first stop after they leave the office is to buy 9 year old Bobby a sandwich at Wendy’s big enough to make me choke.
I’m all for personal responsibility but I do wish that the schools would stop selling shit to the kids. I had to bitch out several people at my school until they banned my son from the “snack shack”. This is an elementary school that literally allows kindergarteners to buy their own ice cream and candy bars throughout the day.
Apparently, I’m just a crazy bitch for thinking that five year olds shouldn’t have the freedom to eat chips and snickers bars all day. The other parents seem have no problem with it.
Ya the school point is really the only one I have a major problem with, because especially for low income families and whatnot that rely on the reduced/free lunches, their kids are basically forced to eat absolute shit or starve, pick one. The high schoolers and the more intelligent middle schoolers could probably self educate themselves to know they’re eating crap, but then what?
Why is it that everyone has to polarize issues like this and only argue for the extremes? Are we that stupid or stubborn where we can’t acknowledge the possibility that this is a complex issue with many factors being responsible?
Yes, personal responsibility must factor into the overall equation. Yes, ideally, people would be educating themselves about diet and health. But that doesn’t mean that a) The government making companies more accountable for the crap that they put out there, b) more large scale, systematic educational interventions, and c) limiting availability are a waste of time, money, and effort.
Take into account that children are need to be targeted here. If a 5 year old kid can fill up on Snickers bars at school, they are going to do it. That’s not an education issue. That’s not a personal responsibility issue. It’s an availability issue.
[quote]MarvelGirl wrote:
I’m all for personal responsibility but I do wish that the schools would stop selling shit to the kids. I had to bitch out several people at my school until they banned my son from the “snack shack”. This is an elementary school that literally allows kindergarteners to buy their own ice cream and candy bars throughout the day.
Apparently, I’m just a crazy bitch for thinking that five year olds shouldn’t have the freedom to eat chips and snickers bars all day. The other parents seem have no problem with it.[/quote]
That doesn’t make you crazy at all. We didn’t have a “snack shack” until I got to middle school…and that was honestly the first time I ever even had a “Zinger” (basically a Twinkie with icing on it) because my mom didn’t buy stuff like that.
I can see your point as far as elementary school…but past that age and I believe the responsibility falls back on the parent completely for raising their kids to NOT simply eat crap all day.
[quote]mrw173 wrote:
But that doesn’t mean that a) The government making companies more accountable for the crap that they put out there, [/quote]
Like what? What is being put out there that somehow bypasses the FREE WILL that people have? What specifically are we talking about? Unless you guys have proof of some company flat out LYING as far as their ingredients (and I don’t mean “low fat yet filled with sugar”), it still falls on the individual.
That is, unless we are now claiming that people are eating fried chicken and chocolate cake everyday thinking it’s really healthy.
[quote]
b) more large scale, systematic educational interventions,[/quote]
We still have a problem because you can NOT make blanket statements about food for ALL people. Is that cheeseburger really “UNhealthy” to the guy who has been carb cycling and weight lifting 6 times a week who eats one on a cheat day? Of course not.
However, when teaching the masses, in order to also catch the least informed, you often HAVE to make incorrect blanket statements just so they get the point. In the end, people are still misinformed if they put no INDIVIDUAL PERSONAL EFFORT INTO EDUCATING THEMSELVES.
The overall effect is no better than people who get their opinions from talking heads on news shows.
YOU still have the responsibility of getting a REAL education…instead of waiting for someone to lay some knowledge on you without effort on your part.
[quote]
and c) limiting availability are a waste of time, money, and effort.[/quote]
What? Why are we limiting free choice? You are proposing MORE regulation and laws. I guess we can give up on any concept of a truly free society as long as we must protect the weakest among us at all costs by regulating everyone.
[quote]
Take into account that children are need to be targeted here. If a 5 year old kid can fill up on Snickers bars at school, they are going to do it. That’s not an education issue. That’s not a personal responsibility issue. It’s an availability issue.[/quote]
It IS an educational issue. It is A PARENT’S responsibility to raise their own damned kids…not mine or anyone else’s. When I was 5 years old, I could not tell my parents what to do. Maybe people should stop having kids if they can’t raise them.
[quote]mrw173 wrote:
Why is it that everyone has to polarize issues like this and only argue for the extremes? Are we that stupid or stubborn where we can’t acknowledge the possibility that this is a complex issue with many factors being responsible?
[/quote]
A good point.
X, a few things:
- Concerning labels:
How about companies not having to report fat breakdown, like when companies did not have to report the amount of trans fatty acids in a food? How about BPA?
And yes, companies apparently do lie about this stuff:
http://www.jsonline.com/features/health/52128182.html
-
I never endorsed any blanket statements about food at all. That’s your assumption.
-
As far as limiting availability, I should have been more specific. I was referring to in the schools exclusively. Hey, if you trust your 5 year old to make the right food choices when there’s a bunch of candy at the school, good for you. You must be so good at raising him that you should be teaching others how to do it. I am NOT proposing that we limit availability of food elsewhere.
-
Again, you’re arguing the extreme while ignoring the fact that this is a complex issue. Yes, of course parents are obligated to educate their children. Where did I indicate otherwise?
Things like parental responsibility and educating children at home are not mutually exclusive to education and availability of healthy food at the school. Why can’t we have both?
[quote]mrw173 wrote:
X, a few things:
- Concerning labels:
How about companies not having to report fat breakdown, like when companies did not have to report the amount of trans fatty acids in a food? How about BPA?
And yes, companies apparently do lie about this stuff:
http://www.jsonline.com/features/health/52128182.html[/quote]
This is the job of the FDA, to make sure they list what is in the container. I do not disagree with actual issues of lying in products and ingredients, but that is a far cry from regulation of what people can eat if they choose to. Trans fats are now regulated.
[quote]
- I never endorsed any blanket statements about food at all. That’s your assumption.[/quote]
How many possible outcomes can there be? If people really cared about their own health, you wouldn’t have to force feed the information to them.
The only conclusion is that people really don’t care that much UNTIL they get ill. Have you ever tried to educate someone on something truly complex (like their own biology) when they only have the attention span for bullet points?
Good luck on that fantasy where you give detailed INDIVIDUALIZED complex information on food to all people on a mass scale.
[quote]
- As far as limiting availability, I should have been more specific. I was referring to in the schools exclusively. Hey, if you trust your 5 year old to make the right food choices when there’s a bunch of candy at the school, good for you. You must be so good at raising him that you should be teaching others how to do it. I am NOT proposing that we limit availability of food elsewhere.[/quote]
A 5 year old is a TODDLER. How about you be more realistic. I don’t expect a TODDLER to do more than what makes them happy instantly. In the case of small children, I am not against avoiding empty snacks in easy access vending machines.
I do believe I also already covered this in this thread already.
I asked you for specifics. Regulating all students in a high school from being able to eat fried chicken fingers if they want to is overkill. This is different than avoiding handing out donuts for lunch to 4th graders. At some point, they stop being toddlers in need of constant care at all times.
If we are discussing the contents of free school lunches, I am all for having healthier options, especially since in some poorer areas that may be the only meal they get that day. That doesn’t mean I am for regulating Wendy’s from selling their new triple bacon cheeseburger.
[quote]Professor X wrote:
However, when teaching the masses, in order to also catch the least informed, you often HAVE to make incorrect blanket statements just so they get the point. In the end, people are still misinformed if they put no INDIVIDUAL PERSONAL EFFORT INTO EDUCATING THEMSELVES.
The overall effect is no better than people who get their opinions from talking heads on news shows.
YOU still have the responsibility of getting a REAL education…instead of waiting for someone to lay some knowledge on you without effort on your part.
It IS an educational issue. It is A PARENT’S responsibility to raise their own damned kids…not mine or anyone else’s. When I was 5 years old, I could not tell my parents what to do. Maybe people should stop having kids if they can’t raise them.[/quote]
Very well said.
I have never really seen it spelled out this clearly but it is very much true, until it becomes personal it is very easy to be misinformed.
And as we have seen with MarvelGirl, there are even ways to ensure (to a large degree at least) what your kids do at that age.