Yeah, I don't think there are any solutions that will make everyone happy at this point, but then, I don't think there are EVER any solutions that will make everyone happy for anything anywhere

We do need a better measuring tool than the BMI if we want to make health a graduation-influencing issue. It's like IQ…we still use it to figure out whether or not people can get into MENSA, despite the fact that over and over it's been shown to be faulty, leave out certain segments of the population because of upbringing or race, etc.

I guess all we can do at this point is try to build a better abacus and hope that we don't hurt too many people until we succeed!

My problem existed with only using BMI as a measure and singling out specific students. We don't talk about anorexia or bulimia or other health and weight issues that are equally as dangerous. It's a slippery slope to begin to include all the 'troubled' groups in society…

This wouldn't be nearly as big of an issue had they made it a requirement for everyone.

On one hand, yes it's wrong to pick out certain parts of the population and change the requirements of graduation just for that group. It means that group has to work extra hard and faces hurdles that others don't have to overcome.

On the other hand, if the requirement existed before Tiana signed up, she already knew about the extra hurdle ahead of time and it would be her responsibility to choose or not choose the school based on this information. If it were forced on her after she already started going there, I could understand the frustration, but if she walked into the situation and then decided it wasn't fair when she couldn't keep up, I have a little less sympathy.

But that's not the real issue. The meat of the story here is whether or not the obese segment of the world should have to complete extra classes while their comrades with lesser BMI readings go have a pizza break.

Consider this: if the student being discriminated against were a smoker, not overweight, would most people have the same issue? If she were being encouraged to quit smoking rather than being encouraged to get in better shape, would there be such an uproar?

I imagine not. There would still be muttering, but a classes telling people about the health risks of smoking have been around for a very long time, whereas classes about general health have not (or at least not everywhere). We as a society have begun to feel a bit more comfortable talking about weight, and this is on e of the results.

'But Colin,' you may be saying, 'that's an unfair comparison. Smoking impacts everyone in the area, not just the smoker. The cigarette butts collect all over the sidewalks and roads, increasing the amount of litter, and the smoke itself is harmful to the environment and innocent passersby. Lame!'

It is lame, but having a generally unhealthy lifestyle or diet can be even worse! The more a person consumes, the more waste they create, resources they use and other bad habits they perpetuate. Hell, people who lead overall healthy lifestyles (including eating healthily) are a LOT less likely to smoke, so yeah, two birds with one stone.

Of course, the ACLU member in me wants to cry out 'Descrimination!' at any seeming violation of civil liberties, but when it comes down to it each and every school has the right to uphold whatever standards they hold to be important, and if one values health and wants to avoid the repercussions of having an unhealthy student body, I can't really blame them for making those positive changes.

Yeah, I don't think there are any solutions that will make everyone happy at this point, but then, I don't think there are EVER any solutions that will make everyone happy for anything anywhere

We do need a better measuring tool than the BMI if we want to make health a graduation-influencing issue. It's like IQ…we still use it to figure out whether or not people can get into MENSA, despite the fact that over and over it's been shown to be faulty, leave out certain segments of the population because of upbringing or race, etc.

I guess all we can do at this point is try to build a better abacus and hope that we don't hurt too many people until we succeed!