Side-by-side obesity and hunger is a theme coming from Mrs. Obama, and they are both prevalent in Madison and Delaware counties, not to mention the rest of Indiana. There are too many kids overweight, yet too many are going hungry. Have you noticed the percent of students receiving free lunches at our schools, as reported in the 2009 Annual School Performance and food bank reports?
We have too many children whose main staple is macaroni and cheese — or worse. It may taste good, and it may be all parents can afford. Their diet is not varied; they become overweight and, at the same time, are nutritionally starved. The biggest dilemma facing most humans today is our masses of fat. We can’t resist food — we didn’t evolve for food being as cheap as it is today; we evolved for food being scarce.
Our only hope may be science to save us from our human nature. Judging from the fat and obese people I see in churches, God and religion are not going to save us from our fat. We need food without fat. We need a “pill”; that’s like sex without having babies. Americans are free to eat themselves to death. Forcibly preventing people from victimizing themselves does not automatically make them good, righteous or virtuous. Government is not good at reshaping individual consciences.
When we donate food to food banks, donate healthy food — even better, give money so healthy food can be purchased. Our churches should do much more.
Bill J. Paschal
Muncie
