If you felt that today was lacking a few ironic laughs, you'll be pleased to know that Steve Easterbrook, the chief executive for McDonald's UK, has recently blamed videogames and TV for child obesity. While he quasi-admitted that it might also have something to do with the slabs of greasy, processed cow anus in bread that his company sells, Easterbrook has hopped aboard the "blame everything on games" bandwagon to take off some of the heat:
"The issue of obesity is complex and is absolutely one our society is facing, there’s no denial about that, but if you break it down I think there’s an education piece: how can we better communicate to individuals the importance of a balanced diet and taking care of themselves?
Then there’s a lifestyle element: there’s fewer green spaces and kids are sat home playing computer games on the TV when in the past they’d have been burning off energy outside."
Of course it's not the fault of McDonald's, they've painted the outside of their restaurants green and now serve SALADS! They've done enough to fight the cause, now it's time that videogames joined the crusade against kiddy tits. Bring on Wii Fit, I say. Bring it on indeed.
On a serious note, it should be pointed out that child obesity, or indeed, any obesity (looks at self) cannot be blamed on games OR food. Kids wouldn't eat fast food or play games all the time if their parents didn't just sit back and let them. Why does NOBODY question lazy parents anymore?
[Cheers for the laugh, Wardrox]
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
10:14 AM on 01.08.2008
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Laziness makes people weak. Gluttony makes people fat.
Seriously, don't expect the blame to shift where it should be for a while. No parent wants to watch T.V. and hear "You are incompetent."
WHAT?! I'M A GOOD PARENT, BRAWRHGGHH
#1: Have a kid play video games without eating. Does he get fatter? NO
#2: Have a kid eat McDonalds three times a day for a month. Does he get fatter? Hell Yes.
#3: Is Mcdonalds a good food source when exercising? No
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Gladiators
Hmmm... hypocrites?
Was meant to say:
http://www.mcvideogame.com/
More like it!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Gladiators
Hmmm... hypocrites?
I just actually came here to tell you how epic that picture is.
Carry on, fat lads.
Parents raise their kids to be big fat slobs by letting them eat whatever they want whenever they want. And not saying anything to them about it.
You can eat McDonalds (though I won't), you can have a spoonful of lard for all I care. You can play video games.
But if you don't practice it in moderation, you'll see the negative side effects of it. Does anyone realize that too much of any one thing is bad for you? Yes, even masturbation.
Seriously, the issue here is that parents, by and large, do not care about raising their kids, and are too involved in their own lives to be bothered with anything more than basics. If your kids are big boned and fat already, you're condemning your child to a life of poor health to not sit them down and educate them on how to live a healthy lifestyle of moderation.
Over here its the removal of green spaces to build more wal-marts and the removal of almost all of the playground equipment that used to be in my city, leaving kids with literately NOTHING to do outside in the summer. A lot of kids play in the streets here but that isn't really safe but its better than nothing since there really isn't anywhere else to play. One thing is for sure if we made exercise seem less like work and more like FUN, then maybe kids would be more willing to go outside and play if they enjoyed what they were doing. You remove playground equipment, charge parking fees to get into any sort of outdoor place where kids can run around, make kids run laps in gym class instead of doing fun activities, feed our kids fatty, nasty food in the schools and we wonder why we have a nation of fat kids.
Its all a perception really, if you spend time around kids you know that they want to run around and play outside, but if you as a parent do not provide that opportunity then they cannot do it, simple as that. I have watched kids in my family put down the video games to go outside, one of my relatives who visited in the summer chose to throw a football in the backyard with the other relatives instead of playing his PSP. They will put down the games if you as a parent take the time to introduce them to something other than video games.
what a bunch of fags
Sorry, but fast food is a serious reason as to why most Americans are overweight.
If only there was some kind of authrotive figure in a childs life, that controlled what they did to do in moderation. I don't know something like a guardian to a child...oh whats the word I'm looking for here.
(Disclaimer: i'm an American who is smart enough to recognize that i'm surrounded by lazy stupid people)
But damn are their their hashbrowns crunchy and awesome and perfect.
No comment from the Fry Guys
Yeah, but when you're family looks like
the prospect of an authoritative figure stepping in seems null. I blame vegetables.
I am sorry but I don't believe this "blame nothing on video games attitude" is entirely correct. Maybe it is not suitable for a McD's exec to talk about obesity, but, please, physical inactivity is a lot to blame for obesity. Just because he said it doesn't make it wrong:
"there’s fewer green spaces and kids are sat home playing computer games on the TV when in the past they’d have been burning off energy outside"
So what part of his statement is wrong? Are there more green spaces?
Covah:
I know my neighbour who smoked 2 packs a day, he is 75 years old and he didn't get cancer, so smoking is not bad for health, here's my message to foolish scientists who say smoking is bad: FAIL!
@Emrah
I worked with a guy who smoked 2 packs a day and died at 60 of lung cancer. Smoking is bad. Don't get me wrong im not going to tell everyone to stop smoking now but you have to be ignorant to say smoking can't kill you. Unless you were being sarcastic then I recant my statement.
Anyway, I'll agree with the people saying he doesn't necessarily blames video games for fat people and with the ones that say video games aren't to blame.
Also, clowns.
we know how this happened. and it was't just a few big macs.
I can handle wendys and taco bell.
But really, all mcdonalds serves is shit burgers with a side of shit fries.
i hate you ronald...fucker.
Betrayal
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Eb62VAgro9U
:runs away:
Man, I thought the whole "entitled to everything, responsible for nothing" was a purely American phenominon. Apparently it's the whole human race.
I think I have an intestinal worm or something.
And it's not McDonalds' fault, it's purely down to me. You won't see me shirking responsibility onto anything else for my own fuck ups.
kiddy tits.