# Illegal to serve obese patrons!



## Tarella (Feb 1, 2008)

"Mississippi legislators this week introduced a bill that would make it illegal for state-licensed restaurants to serve obese patrons. Bill No. 282, a copy of which you'll find below, is the brainchild of three members of the state's House of Representatives, Republicans W. T. Mayhall, Jr. and John Read, and Democrat Bobby Shows. The bill, which is likely dead on arrival, proposes that the state's Department of Health establish weight criteria after consultation with Mississippi's Council on Obesity. It does not detail what penalties an eatery would face if its grub was served to someone with an excessive body mass index."


http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/0201081fat1.html



Well, doesn't that just about take the cake....even the Smoking Gun. One would think that after years of living as a fat person, I would have had enough of fat prejudice a few years ago, but no. Lately I have really gotten upset with the ignorance in society regarding body weight. Locally, the provincial teaching society is wanting to put the students weight and a grading of weight on every students report card. Again, being fat is one of the last acceptable things to be openly prejudiced about without much reprimand. It saddens me to realize that its really not 'ok' to be fat in society. It is amazing with the number of fat folks in the south, that these politicians can get away with crap like this*shrugs*.

Tara


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## pani (Feb 1, 2008)

This is being discussed in Hyde Park too. I say it is a blessing in disguise. Lots of folks, including "average" weight folks are getting really ticked over this. I think that we should strike while the iron is hot and use their own stupidity against them.


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## imfree (Feb 1, 2008)

pani said:


> This is being discussed in Hyde Park too. I say it is a blessing in disguise. Lots of folks, including "average" weight folks are getting really ticked over this. I think that we should strike while the iron is hot and use their own stupidity against them.



I hope and pray for the politician's own stupidity to backfire on them. My
greatest hope is that this issue explodes and like the Civil War and 
slavery, fat discrimination becomes a thing of the past! To me, fat
discrimination has always looked like a legal way to create a slave class!


This thread needs to be combined with the "no dining out
for you, fatty" thread.


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## franchescassbbw (Feb 1, 2008)

What are they going to do...weigh people at the door? This is insane!!!


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## IwannabeVERYfat (Feb 1, 2008)

Down with government!!!


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## moore2me (Feb 1, 2008)

*Miss HB 282s Sponsors  The three men below (bi-partisan!)*

Miss Rep Bobby Shows Email: [email protected] (Democrat) Shows Co-Authored HB 282
Miss Rep John Read Email: [email protected] (Republican) Read Co-Authored HB 282
Miss Rep W T Mayhall, Jr. Email: [email protected] (Republican) Mayhall introduced HB 282

*Description of HB 282: Food establishments; prohibit from serving food to any person who is obese.*

*Where Miss HB 282 stands today?  its in Committee.* 
1/25/2008 (H) Referred To Public Health and Human Services;Judiciary B - HB 282 was referred to this committee for discussion and recommendations. Below is a list of the members of that committee along with their emails and any relevant information from the Mississippi House website. 
http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/

*State of Mississippi  House of Representatives - Committees*
*Public Health and Human Services Committee*

D. Stephen Holland, Chairman; Contact Information: Capitol: P. O. Box 1018, Jackson, MS 39215
Home: , P. O. Box 2, Plantersville, MS 38862, (662)844-2004 (H), (662)840-5000 (W)
Email [email protected]

Omeria Scott, Vice-Chairman, Contact info, Capitol: , P. O. Box 1018, Jackson, MS 39215
Home: , 615 East 19th Street, Laurel, MS 39440, (601)649-7677 (H)
Email [email protected] 

*Members of MS House of Reps - Public Health &Human Services Committee: *
Toby Barker; Email: [email protected]
Sidney Bondurant; Email: [email protected]
Billy Broomfield; Email: [email protected] (also on Tourism Committee)
Cecil Brown; Email: [email protected]
Bryant W. Clark; Email: [email protected]
Mary H. Coleman; Email: [email protected]
Becky Currie; Email: [email protected]
Dirk D. Dedeaux; Capitol: , Room: 102  NC, P. O. Box 1018, Jackson, MS 39215, (601)359-2428
Home: , 2157 Highway 53, Perkinston, MS 39573, (228)255-6171 (H)
Blaine Eaton; Email: [email protected]
Chuck Espy; Email: [email protected]
James Evans; Email: [email protected]
George Flaggs, Jr.; Email: [email protected]
Frances Fredericks; Email: [email protected]
Eugene Forrest Hamilton; Email: [email protected]
John W. Hines, Sr.; Email: [email protected] *Hines has high BMI.*
Bobby B. Howell; Capitol: , P. O. Box 1018, Jackson, MS 39215
Home: , P. O. Box 213, Kilmichael, MS 39747, (662)262-7171 (H) , (662)262-4220 (W)
Michael W. Janus; Email: [email protected]
John Mayo; Email: [email protected]
Bobby Moak; Email: [email protected] or [email protected] (Also on Tourism Committee)
Billy Nicholson; Email: [email protected]
Diane C. Peranich; Email: [email protected]
John Read; Email: [email protected] *Co-Author of HB 282*
Thomas U. Reynolds; Email: [email protected]
Jeffrey C. Smith; Email: [email protected]
Greg Snowden; Email: [email protected] or [email protected] *Snowden has high BMI.*
Jessica Upshaw; Email: [email protected] (also on Tourism committee)
Percy W. Watson Email: [email protected]

*Moores Comment: 
According to the CDC, in 2005 33.9 % of blacks over the age of 18 were obese (had a BMI at or over 30.0). At the same time in 2005, 22.6% of whites (non-hispanic) over the age of 18 fell into this category and 26.5% of Hispanics did.* 

Source From http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5536a1.htm

*So, if HB 282 requires restaurants to deny service to obese persons, the bill would discriminate against African Americans more than it would white patrons.* 

*How bad is the problem in Mississippi? State specific statistics from the CDC *
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5536a1.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5507a1.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5208a1.htm


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## gangstadawg (Feb 2, 2008)

this law,the BMI, and discrimination is bullshit. this will also effect people that are big but not fat as well mainly because of the bmi number so a person like for example a body builder of a high weight would get hit as well.


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## Chode McBlob (Feb 2, 2008)

Haven't they got more important things to do than come up with such a stupid idiotic law that is a waste of their time?


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## Just_Jen (Feb 2, 2008)

maybe they should just tag us all like criminals and make us stay in our houses lest we offend the thin vulnerable peoples eyes?! 

STUPID PEOPLE!


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## pani (Feb 2, 2008)

This has really struck a chord on the net. Overwhelmingly, the public thinks this guy is nuts! Of course there will always be the odd fatphobe, but by in large it IS backfiring!


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## pani (Feb 3, 2008)

http://www.mstourism.com/contactmta.aspx

In addition to that awesome list MoreToMe gave us, here is Ms tourism contacts. There is nothing more effective than hitting someone in the pocket book. What kind of negative association is this going to give the state of Ms. People might feel self-conscious going there, even if the bill doesn't pass. Time to stop letting the weight loss industries interest dominate everything else!


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## Chubbyadmirer86 (Feb 3, 2008)

pani said:


> This has really struck a chord on the net. Overwhelmingly, the public thinks this guy is nuts! Of course there will always be the odd fatphobe, but by in large it IS backfiring!



Than score one for size acceptance!


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## vcrgrrl (Feb 4, 2008)

I just really find this unbelievable. I don't know what some people are thinking.


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## billyk (Feb 4, 2008)

I heard this on the news. Don't worry- it will never pass! Just the thought that it was brought up is freightening though! billyk


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## imfree (Feb 4, 2008)

Chubbyadmirer86 said:


> Than score one for size acceptance!



I hope and pray it turns out that way. One insidious trick
politicians use is to introduce a bill that obviously will 
not pass, then change it to sound more palatable until
it does pass. Change and reintroduce the bill a few 
times, it could pass in Mississippi, and before long, could
be law in all states.


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## BeckaBoo (Feb 4, 2008)

This will never happen. 
The enforcement of such legislation would be pretty much impossible plus the impact of loosing so many patrons would put a lot of places out of business - I don't think the US economy needs an further hindrance at the moment even if this is pretty small scale and affecting only one state right now. Mississippi would have a riot on there hands if they start passing stuff like this, and I'm sure no State department wants a load of pissed off hungry fat folk storming them. 
Surely it breaks human rights laws anyway...

It's just the spawn of bored bureaucrats with nothing better to do.


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## gangstadawg (Feb 4, 2008)

imfree said:


> I hope and pray it turns out that way. One insidious trick
> politicians use is to introduce a bill that obviously will
> not pass, then change it to sound more palatable until
> it does pass. Change and reintroduce the bill a few
> ...


kinda like the various video game laws/bills that have been made but never passed.


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## Aliena (Feb 4, 2008)

Mississippi state is one of the poorest states in our Union. I used to live there, as well as my husband being born and raised there, and this would be laughable if it weren't so tragic. 

The thing is, MS is also one of the less educated states in our Union, so for the majority of the people of the state to retaliate on the moron-politicians who though of it are most likely slim (no pun intended) to none. They're just not organized to. 

I remember when I lived there how much trouble I had getting decent medical treatment. I remember feeling my self worth slip to nothing and actually starting to believe that ALL my physical health was because I am fat. 
Those Dr.'s can really play a mind trip. 

Suffice to say, I told my hubby I wanted out of that state and now! Thank God, he felt the same way. 

It is discrimination and it should be called as such. The majority of the state is fat (I believe I read somewhere it ranked in the top 5 for obesity) and to put such a non-sense package into play, would really wipe out their economy; this doesn't include tourists. 

If I were a smart lawyer, I'd file a suit against the bubbleheadedboobie politicians for going against the citizens of MS civil rights.


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## NoWayOut (Feb 4, 2008)

Aliena said:


> Mississippi state is one of the poorest states in our Union. I used to live there, as well as my husband being born and raised there, and this would be laughable if it weren't so tragic.
> 
> The thing is, MS is also one of the less educated states in our Union, so for the majority of the people of the state to retaliate on the moron-politicians who though of it are most likely slim (no pun intended) to none. They're just not organized to.
> 
> ...



Well, if it doesn't include tourists, there's your loophole if this idiotic law somehow passed. All you'd have to do is get a fake ID from another state, and nobody could stop you.

Back to being serious, this has no chance of passing, but it doesn't surprise me that it was suggested in a state as backwards as Mississippi. Here's a little-known fact about the Magnolia State: It didn't ratify the 13th Amendment (which forbade slavery) for over a century after the Civil War. In fact, technically, Mississippi has only been a free state for almost 13 years since it ratified the 13th Amendment in 1995.


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## TallFatSue (Feb 5, 2008)

pani said:


> This has really struck a chord on the net. Overwhelmingly, the public thinks this guy is nuts! Of course there will always be the odd fatphobe, but by in large it IS backfiring!


The problem, of course, is that there is no law against STUPID. Great to see it's backfiring, which is not altogether a surprise. Mississippi is statistically one of the fattest states in the nation, and fat people vote and patronize businesses, ya know!

In a similar vein, I found this bogus news report kinda cool, which only goes to show that _The Onion_ continues to be the finest news source.

As Obese Population Rises, More Candidates Courting The Fat Vote
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/as_obese_population_rises_more


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## EtobicokeFA (Feb 5, 2008)

I just heard the bill is dead!!!!!!!!


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## pudgy (Feb 5, 2008)

I hope so.

If I ever make it into politics, I will be sure to pass the law that Bill Engvall suggests, the "here's your sign," bill. If you prejudiced against weight, intelligence, or are just stupid, you get a sign that says, "I'm stupid." That way I don't have to bother with you.

Don't worry, I realize that's just more prejudice. But Bill Engvall's skit is pretty funny. So there.


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## Actor4hire (Feb 6, 2008)

Sorry if this was already posted... 

If you're obese, no food for you!
Posted Feb 5th 2008 9:00AM by Shayna Glick
Filed under: Restaurants, Business, Health & Medical

That's right. If you live in the great state of Mississippi and you have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, you may be denied service at restaurants soon. 

There is a bill working its way through the Mississippi House of Representatives now that would require restaurants to refuse to serve patrons who are obese. The bill would require eateries to keep track of customers BMI's and have scales at the doors. The states Department of Health would be responsible for enforcing compliance, and would revoke business permits for those dining establishments that violated the legislation.

This bill was introduced by Representative W.T. Mayhall, JR. Though he doesn't think his legislation will actually pass, he is very serious about it. He is concerned about the "serious problem of obesity and what it is costing the Medicare system." You can read the full text of the bill at this link.

I'm all for the government trying to protect its citizens and curbing its spending but I'm not sure this is the way to go about it. I think that prevention programs would be much more useful. I also believe that it's not the role of government to lead in the persecution of some of its citizens. Sorry Mr. Mayhall, that's not a good way to get reelected.


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## Mr Happy (Feb 6, 2008)

its insane what is bring got away with I mean no one in their right mind would say no black people in a resturant yet so called representatives of the public are getting away with fatisim daily. Here in the UK it seems like the BBC are attacking fat people daily, there was even this article about beth ditto that was basically saying can a fat lesbian be sucsesful, it made me so mad I wrote a stroppy comment in the 'have your say section'


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## moore2me (Feb 6, 2008)

EtobicokeFA said:


> I just heard the bill is dead!!!!!!!!



I double checked, and a local Mississippi paper, the* Sun Herald*, confirmed that the HB 282 has been allowed to die in a subcommittee meeting. Here's a link to the newpaper story.

http://www.sunherald.com/201/story/350631.html

Now perhaps the voters in Mississippi can do something special for the three rocket scientists who sponsored and authored the bill?

Miss Rep Bobby Shows Email: [email protected] 
Miss Rep John Read Email: [email protected] 
Miss Rep W T Mayhall, Jr. Email: [email protected]


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## NoWayOut (Feb 6, 2008)

moore2me said:


> Now perhaps the voters in Mississippi can do something special for the three rocket scientists who sponsored and authored the bill?
> 
> Miss Rep Bobby Shows Email: [email protected]
> Miss Rep John Read Email: [email protected]
> Miss Rep W T Mayhall, Jr. Email: [email protected]



Don't count on it. It's still 1955 in Mississippi.


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## Aliena (Feb 6, 2008)

NoWayOut said:


> Don't count on it. It's still 1955 in Mississippi.



Actually, I was thinking more like 1855. 

Hey, just sayin'.


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## NoWayOut (Feb 6, 2008)

Aliena said:


> Actually, I was thinking more like 1855.
> 
> Hey, just sayin'.



That's probably closer, but it can't be that far because they grudgingly ended slavery.

Maybe 1885?


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## moore2me (Feb 7, 2008)

NoWayOut said:


> That's probably closer, but it can't be that far because they grudgingly ended slavery.
> 
> *At the point of a rifle & bayonet.*
> 
> Maybe 1885?



*I was thinking the same thing while watching Rep John Read being interviewed on TV - he needs to be wearing a confederate uniform.*


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## gangstadawg (Feb 7, 2008)

moore2me said:


> *I was thinking the same thing while watching Rep John Read being interviewed on TV - he needs to be wearing a confederate uniform.*


to match his flag?


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## EtobicokeFA (Feb 7, 2008)

moore2me said:


> *I was thinking the same thing while watching Rep John Read being interviewed on TV - he needs to be wearing a confederate uniform.*



He didn't accused the camera man of "stealing his soul"?


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## pani (Feb 12, 2008)

Well, well, well, well, well!!!!!!!!!! It appears that Merck (company that bozo used to work for) was involved in a scandal involving overbilling of medicaid that came to light. So, lets scapegoat obesity so no one will even notice how they ripped off the government. The best con men create distractions. They blind people with their own vulnerability so they never even look in their direction.

http://www.prwatch.org/node/6985#comment


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## Johnny718Bravo (Feb 12, 2008)

I hope that bill is dead. If they're going to ban eating, they better ban smoking.


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## ssbbwfa (Feb 12, 2008)

duh, of course, anytime, anywhere


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## Fairest Epic (Feb 19, 2008)

this is so ridiculous. food isnt the only thing that makes people fat. I have meds i mean oh my gosh. I seriously said thats effin stupid when i read this. I am insanely upset right now. I have plenty of worries when walking into a restaurant without having to worry about that. Geez louise! My parents are prejudice and now restaurants will be too? I mean wow. Sorry guys this is just crazy talk. I am studying plenty of factors which contribute to obesity. There has been plenty of reaearch done to show that not only food eaten causes weight gain. Everyone seems to be ignoring it though. Also, it seems like fat people are the only thing that it is ok to be prejudice against anymore. A group of people that share any one quality is fair game to be beaten down upon, but most groups have spoken out against it. I swear i feel so alone sometimes. I just need a hug. Why can't people open their minds and their hearts? rawr!


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## lipmixgirl (Feb 19, 2008)

who is being voted into our local governments... city and state...

the question is who voted them in?

the better question is who didn't bother to vote????

the big apple has spoken...
::exeunt:: :bow:


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## Aliena (Feb 19, 2008)

lipmixgirl said:


> who is being voted into our local governments... city and state...
> 
> the question is who voted them in?
> 
> ...




This is an excellent point, but I wonder if voters would even know the canidates position unless they know where to exactly look. What I mean is, is it possible a canidate could bury such a position until after an election? 

I'm not very political, so I wouldn't know as I'm guessing here. I agree with you though, exploring all canidates positions and voting is indeed very important!

FWIW though, I believe the bill was shot down.


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## NYSquashee (Feb 19, 2008)

Sorry to hear the bill died. I was just getting ready to move there and open up my own "Fat People Only" eatery.


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## Fairest Epic (Feb 19, 2008)

i think you still should haha. That would be awesome! I would if i had the funding haha. 



NYSquashee said:


> Sorry to hear the bill died. I was just getting ready to move there and open up my own "Fat People Only" eatery.


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## CurvaceousBBWLover (Feb 19, 2008)

I'm not suprised that Mississippi even used taxpayers' money to discuss such a bill. After all, MS only recently discovered that blacks were people. It's illegal to refuse to serve blacks, so MS has to target someone for discrimination. And unfortunately, fat is the new black. 

I hate discrimination. It makes no sense to me.

The though that such a bill was even discussed in the MS legislature shows me that the state still simmers with the heat of injustice and oppression.


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## Ashamed (Feb 20, 2008)

Not surprised this bill died, if it actually had been in danger of being made law, I'm sure Dennis Hastert would have been awoken from his terrible slumber and raged all the way to capitol hill. No one would have been spared.

Don't think this has gone away for long though, I reckon we'll be seeing more and more legislation of this type appearing in the next 5-10 years. Especially living in Canada, there is a general interest in keeping people healthy so that the strain on the health care system is minimalised.


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## pani (Apr 11, 2008)

O.k. I know that this is late! This bill was DEAD on arrival. But I think the point about using obesity as a distraction is still valid. So I posted it on Daily Kos and Myspace. Any fat positive comments there are very welcome too!

Prohibit Portly Patrons to Cover Corporate Crime!!!
Mary could not believe she has such a huge spot on her new blouse. As she went into the cafeteria, she self-consciously held her hand over it, hoping no one would notice. The man at the next table did seem to notice however; in fact, he was starring at the spot intently. "Shame you have got a stain on that nice new blouse there young lady."
Mary blushed. "I was hoping no one would notice."
"It is a pretty big spot, I saw it right off." said the man. " If I were you I would go try and wash it out."
It wasn't until Mary went to pay her bill that she realized her purse was missing. In her embarrassment over her appearance, she completely forgot to keep track of her possessions. The man must have walked off with it. Normally, Mary is much more careful around strangers. But her emotional vulnerability was her undoing this time.

Now what does this little story have to do with a bill introduced in January by W.T. Mayhall Jr. that would prohibit restaurants from serving anyone who is considered obese in the state of Mississippi? And I am NOT just talking extreme obesity, I am talking about obesity as defined by our government (read Pharma) to help sell more diet pills. Under this draconian law, anyone with a BMI of over 30 would be out of luck. Want to take your daughter out to dinner for her birthday? Too bad, even if you wanted to order a salad sans dressing just to join in the occassion. Under House Bill 282, if the restaurant served you, it could lose its license.


Of course this bill is ridiculous and Mayhall himself did not even vote for it. He said he introduced it to create a dialogue to talk about the strain obesity was putting on the medicaid system. O.k. Mayhall, lets talk. I don't want to talk about the fact that it is not medicaid patients who frequent restaurants the most. And I DON'T want to talk about the fact the fat people as a group eat no more than thin people as a group. Because if you don't know that by now, you are beyond hope. Stop getting your science information from tabloids and talk shows. Or diet companies! Or their mouthpieces aka MSM (mainstream media!)


I'll tell you want I want to talk about bubba. I mean Mayhall. After we chew the fat I want to digest your real motives. I want to talk about the old sand in your eyes trick. You know, temporarily distracting people so they won't know what you yourself are up to. I want to talk about how at the very same time you were throwing the sand/stigma of obesity in our faces, your former company, DuPont-Merck was settling with the government for defrauding MEDICAID. (1) That is right, the very same program you were so worried about. And why did MSM not pick up on this? It was only too happy to point out the error of the ways of poor folk noshing on too many twinkies, while the real fat cats in the corporate world were ripping off the government left and right. Could this possible be because so much of MSM is owned by corporations and when you get down to it, it is one small group of uber rich at the top against the rest of us. And MSM is one of their biggest tools of manipulation?


Now most of us already know this. Most of us already have a healthy distrust of both corporate America and MSM. But when it comes to obesity our B.S. detectors are more dormant than our tastebuds after a week on Jenny Craig's prepackaged meal plan. This is hardly an isolated incident. Obesity has been used over and over as a scapegoat. How many times have we heard that it is the fat of the land that is responsible for the rising cost of health care? Now ask yourself how much you know about Bill Frist. Who is Frisk you ask?He is a former Senate Majority Leader. His family owns HCA Inc.-Hospital Corporation of America. They are the largest for profit hospital chain in the U.S. and they too were accused of defrauding Medicaid, Medicare, and Tricare. (2) And the Frisks were far from the only ones with their fingers in the pie, (my bad for mixing metaphors) milking U.S. dry. Yet, corporate crime never gets as much attention as our neighbor's love handles. Incredibly, there have also been headlines blaming obesity for the failing economy. Who in their right mind would let middrift bulge eclipse the significance of jobs hemorhaging overseas, the reckless ruining the financial system with Ponzi schemes and running up trillions of dollars in debt??? MSM has made sure fat is more infamous than fraud. 


What is wrong with us that we keep falling for it over and over??? The answer is that like Mary in the above scenario, we too are emotionally vulnerable. It is not weight itself, but weight obsession that is our achilles heel. The very word fat conjures up fear, it can literally cause weakness in our knees. The site of a fat person splashed on screen causes instant contrition for our own culinary indiscretions. What we have forgotten is that guilt is a tool of the manipulator; it is a ring in the noses of our psyches that allows our handlers to lead us in any direction they like. This is hardly new. For centuries, religious leaders have been using guilt, chiefly over sex, to control their congregations. Perhaps that is why so many of them got away with molesting our children for so long. When we are blinded by our own guilt, we have less vision to see others clearly. 


I am going to save how absurd it is to make weight our top priority when we are facing so many real social crisis for another time. My point here is to expose the con. I have long learned that anyone who needs to make a big deal of my "flaws" usually has a hidden agenda. Perhaps they want to manipulate me into buying something. Perhaps they want to deflect attention away from their own inadequacies. Perhaps they just so lack self-esteem they want to bring others down to their level. It doesn't matter. It is a huge warning sign exploitation is afoot. The more they point in my direction, the more I look back in theirs to see what they want to distract me from. We should be just as cautious every time MSM sounds the code red obesity sirens. Sure it is in the power-elite's best interest that we look no further than our scales! That way we won't see what they are really up to until it is too late!

1 - To find out more about the DuPont-Merk accusation visit http://www.prwatch.org/node/6985
2 - To find out more about the activities of the Frisk family and HCA Inc visit http://www.laweekly.com/news/news/the-bad-doctor/3253/


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## SweetNYLady (Jun 8, 2008)

_....but I always remembered it and now that I'm here at Dimensions, I thought I would post this atrociousness.

Please excuse me if I've posted it in the wrong forum, still figuring out where certain things properly belong._



JANUARY 31, 2008
No fat people allowed: Only the slim will be allowed to dine in public!

It has actually happened. Lawmakers have proposed legislation that forbids restaurants and food establishments from serving food to anyone who is obese (as defined by the State). Under this bill, food establishments are to be monitored for compliance under the State Department of Health and violators will have their business permits revoked.

House Bill 282 was introduced in the 2008 Mississippi legislative session on Friday by Representative W.T. Mayhall, Jr., a retired pharmaceutical salesman with DuPont-Merk. Its co-authors are Bobby Shows, a businessman, and John Read, a pharmacist.

The full text reads:

HOUSE BILL NO. 282
An act to prohibit certain food establishments from serving food to any person who is obese, based on criteria prescribed by the state department of health; to direct the department to prepare written materials that describe and explain the criteria for determining whether a person is obese and to provide those materials to the food establishments; to direct the department to monitor the food establishments for compliance with the provisions of this act; and for related purposes. Be it enacted by the legislature of the state of Mississippi:
SECTION 1.
(1) The provisions of this section shall apply to any food establishment that is required to obtain a permit from the State Department of Health under Section 41-3-15(4)(f), that operates primarily in an enclosed facility and that has five (5) or more seats for customers.
(2) Any food establishment to which this section applies shall not be allowed to serve food to any person who is obese, based on criteria prescribed by the State Department of Health after consultation with the Mississippi Council on Obesity Prevention and Management established under Section 41-101-1 or its successor. The State Department of Health shall prepare written materials that describe and explain the criteria for determining whether a person is obese, and shall provide those materials to all food establishments to which this section applies. A food establishment shall be entitled to rely on the criteria for obesity in those written materials when determining whether or not it is allowed to serve food to any person.
(3) The State Department of Health shall monitor the food establishments to which this section applies for compliance with the provisions of this section, and may revoke the permit of any food establishment that repeatedly violates the provisions of this section.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2008.
Should this pass, scales will appear at the door of restaurants, people with BMIs of 30 or higher won’t be allowed to be served. And to comply with government regulations, restaurants will have to keep records of patrons' BMIs.

Is this a tongue-in-cheek bill, meant to point out how absurd the war on obesity has become? Or do lawmakers actually believe the myths that gluttony is the cause for obesity and that it is the government’s role to force people to eat and live how it deems best?

I called lead author, Rep. Mayhall, and asked if this was serious legislation or tongue-in-cheek to make a point. He kindly took a moment to answer my question while the legislature was in session. He said that while, regrettably, he doesn’t believe his bill will pass, this is serious. He wrote it, he said, because of the “urgency of the obesity crisis and need for government action.” He hopes it will “call attention to the serious problem of obesity and what it is costing the Medicare system.”

So, yes, this is for real and these elected officials actually believe this stuff.

The time is now for all Americans who value their freedom to eat, look, breathe and live their lives how they choose to unite!


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## imfree (Oct 31, 2008)

WOW!, look at this guy's take on the issue.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-vUW0Tjooo

What if he's right???


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## Chubbyadmirer86 (Oct 31, 2008)

I'm not really feeling his new world order idea. It's a bit too conspiracy-ish for my taste.


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