tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6889986006783300070.post2474678929534682368..comments2023-10-19T05:40:40.156-07:00Comments on The Theory of Mediocrity: Commitment and DedicationPT Bohanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10101195261695989996noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6889986006783300070.post-85622687698079977692012-08-29T13:46:36.747-07:002012-08-29T13:46:36.747-07:00I think heredity and genetics are as much a factor...I think heredity and genetics are as much a factor in people’s health as behavior, if not more so. Unfortunately we can’t always do much about that. CWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18093393578438689105noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6889986006783300070.post-37598854789107582362012-08-29T08:05:19.493-07:002012-08-29T08:05:19.493-07:00CW, I could not agree more - liberalism is the mai...CW, I could not agree more - liberalism is the main issue with our lack of dedication and commitment. <br /><br />I understand your point about obesity and smoking. My younger brother smokes and is overweight and I am fit, but I have more issues - high cholesterol, barretts esophugous, neurological disorder, etc. He has had hip issues, but that is it. <br /><br />Thank you for the well thought out response. PT Bohanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10101195261695989996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6889986006783300070.post-47833045427032452172012-08-29T07:38:42.649-07:002012-08-29T07:38:42.649-07:00I had to mull this one over for a bit. I agree wi...I had to mull this one over for a bit. I agree with you. It does seem that many in this country have lost any sense of self-discipline, at least in one area or another. Not to sound like a broken record but I think it’s partly attributable to the spread and adoption of liberalism (there she goes again!) and the notion that we shouldn’t judge others or that all behaviors must be treated as though they are equally acceptable. Liberals make heroes out of people like Charlie Sheen even though he acts like a pig, because then they are free to act like pigs if they want to.<br /><br />I think the decline in self-discipline can be correlated to the liberal agenda of distancing people from the consequences of their own behaviors. Nowadays if you’re an addict no one judges you and if you play your cards right the gov’t will take care of you. They might even give you free needles. Now, if you’re haphazard about sex, you can get free pregnancy care and child support, or tax-payer funded care for your STDs, or a subsidized abortion at Planned Parenthood. The key to changing any of this, IMO, is to get the gov’t out of the business of rescuing people from their own bad choices. <br /><br />What worries me, though, is when people use these behaviors as an excuse to regulate everyone, as in the case of New York’s mayor trying to outlaw large soft drinks or cities dictating what goes into a Happy Meal. They justify their tyranny by saying that we all pay for things like obesity, therefore we are entitled to regulate what people eat. In the 1st place, their regulations spill over onto people who aren’t obese or unhealthy. In the 2nd place, the simple solution is to stop making all of us pay for obesity. If obesity truly is a significant factor in the cost of HC, then charge people more if they are obese. <br /><br />I have to say that I have serious questions about things like obesity and smoking and their true cost to HC. My husband’s Uncle ‘Tub’ was quite overweight his whole life but he lived to be 92 and rarely saw a doctor. On the other hand my husband’s dad, who wasn’t very overweight (and never smoke or drank), became a diabetic in his 70’s, had a large number of medical problems and died at 82. I didn’t know my own mother but she was a smoker who was healthy (physically, not mentally) until she suddenly got lung cancer in her 50’s and died very quickly, the point being that her medical expenses didn’t even come close to those accumulated by my non-smoking father-in-law. There are those who argue that the early deaths of those who smoke and are obese actually saves money for insurance companies in the long run. I don’t know, but I would really like to see a comprehensive study done on this subject and I think we might be surprised at the answers.<br /><br />Sorry to blather on so long!<br />CWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18093393578438689105noreply@blogger.com