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January 09, 2004
Pass the 'anti-fat bastard cream'
One of my favourite lines in the movie The Full Monty is when Dave musing over Gerald's wife's anti-wrinkle cream, lamented that what he really needed was some 'anti-fat bastard cream'. According to the State of the World 2004 report produced by the Worldwatch Institute, Dave is not alone.
Indeed, he is being joined in increasingly large numbers. The report says that 'In the United States, an estimated 65 per cent of adults are overweight or obese, leading to an annual loss of 300,000 lives and at least $117 billion in health care costs in 1999.' Worryingly, the rest of the world is following suit. In Richer, stouter, and no happier, Alex Kirby of the BBC notes that more than 25% of the world's people now 'enjoy' the lifestyle which used to belong to the rich. Rising obesity and debt, and increasing pressures on time, are reducing many people's quality of life. Meanwhile, 'consumers' demands are devouring the natural world unsustainably, leaving the poor less able to meet their needs.'
Posted by jeremy at January 9, 2004 01:34 PM
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