7 ms·

I wonder how much the push back against McDonald's is class based. It's not healthy, but the same can be said for a lot of the food we eat. A lot of fast casual

I wonder how much the push back against McDonald's is class based. It's not healthy, but the same can be said for a lot of the food we eat. A lot of fast casual burgers, which seem to hold a higher position in the public perception, have more calories. Of course, overall health is more complicated than just calories, but it's worth pointing out since that's one of the main complaints against McDonald's (including in the article you linked to). Cereal has declined in popularity, but it doesn't seem to have had quite the same negative stigma, even though a lot of it is simply processed flour and sugar (which was then marketed as being "part of this balanced breakfast"); neither do brands like Starbucks or Coke.

walshemj 9y ago
I though that too "oh no look at those chavs" at MacDonald's Supersize me also did not see what happened to you if you eat a full xmass dinner every day for a month did it.
- stryk 9y ago
  It might be a mistake asking this, but what the heck is a 'chav' ?
  - metavrsl 9y ago
    It’s an English word for rougher lower class young men. People look down on them, it’s partially a class thing and partially how they dress and how they’re just boisterous. Don’t know what the equivalent word in the USA is but in Australia we say Bogan which is similar.
    - Impossible 9y ago
      Equivalent words for lower class people in the USA often have a racial slur component involved so you don't see them used in the same context. I thought the word "bro" might be close but bro has a upper or middle class connotation, being derived from frat brother, rather than lower class.
    - gt_ 9y ago
      There is no American counterpart for euro chavs, and it’s too late for that now. Euro chav fashion has been very influential in America over the last decade. A lot of Americans think chavs were hip as a result.
      - electricslpnsld 9y ago
        > Euro chav fashion has been very influential in America over the last decade. A lot of Americans think chavs were hip as a result. I don't think I've ever seen a hipster rocking the chav look.
        deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
        gt_ 9y ago
        To be fair, I lived in Portland from 2013-2017. But I don’t think it was a ever a staple as much as a statement.
    - stryk 9y ago
      Interesting. I was under the impression that 'bogan' was sort of the Aussie equivalent to the classic American "hillbilly" -- and there's a slight (and depending on how it's used, sometimes not-so-slight) negative connotation to it here in the US as well.
      - tomlock 9y ago
        Kinda sorta! It's definitely class and geographically based in Australia, and definitely negative.
    - dTal 9y ago
      Chavs certainly don't have to be men. Also I'm pretty sure the youth requirement has atrophied now, and it's more of a direct class-epithet. I don't think there's a race-neutral equivalent in American English, but "white trash" captures much of the spirit.
    - DoreenMichele 9y ago
      Bogan seems to be roughly equivalent to hick from what I gather.
    - deleted 9y ago
      [deleted]
    - davidjsevans 9y ago
      The Australian equivalent is a "lad". As in "eshays adlay".
  - willbw 9y ago
    It's an English term for a young, obnoxious lower class person wearing tacky clothes.
    - walshemj 9y ago
      Apart from when they got into Burberry - which the marketing tem refer to (with a shudder) as "The Time"
  - gedy 9y ago
    "Council Housed And Violent" (unless that's a backronym)
  - rhizome 9y ago
    It's the British version of white trash.
fny 9y ago
There's a good amount of sociological research on this topic, which not only agrees with your claim but also posits the obesity war is just a away for the middle and upper class (who are also overweight, at times even more so that the poor[0]) to push a moral agenda on the poor that emphasizes self-control issues of others while ignoring those of their own.[1] [0]: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db51.htm https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db51.htm [1]: A fascinating read on the history and current affairs of the topic: "Eating Right in America: The Cultural Politics of Food and Health"
platz 9y ago
Is an egg-mcmuffin with no cheese and no hash-brown really that bad for you? It's literally an egg on bread.
- sjg007 9y ago
  No it’s not that bad for you.
- brahj123 9y ago
  it's not real egg and the processed bread-resembling muffin isn't very nutritious either
  - throwa_way_ 9y ago
    How exactly does McDonalds make eggs that aren't real eggs> I don't believe that.
    - starpilot 9y ago
      There are carton "eggs" that you pour. The McMuffin really is made from fresh cracked eggs, though. I think they are delicious.
      - redblacktree 9y ago
        Just curious. What do you think those are made from?
        starpilot 9y ago
        I wasn't trying to imply whipped eggs from a carton aren't eggs.
      - thousandautumns 9y ago
        What's wrong with carton eggs? How are they not real eggs?
  - 9y ago
kinkrtyavimoodh 9y ago
This is very true. In India McD has a more prestige positioning (not extremely but it's a luxury for the lower class, a treat for most middle class families, and a non-shameful food destination for the upper-middle class, and no one shits on McD food as being particularly bad for you. It's put up there with the food you will get from other similar joints (KFC, Dominos, Papa Johns etc.)—not a bastion of good eating but nothing particularly inimical.
- nicoburns 9y ago
  I find the comparison with KFC, etc as odd. From my european perspective, all of these places are seen as producing unhealthy food (not to mention destroying important ecosystems such as rainforests to produce cheap meat) McDonalds is the target of campaigns only because of it's prominence and brand recognition.
- NicoJuicy 9y ago
  In India you will have to find people who want to eat meat, to what I've heard. I think that's more related than "luxury food"
  - vertex-four 9y ago
    McDonald's in India has a much larger focus on vegetarian and chicken burgers[0], avoiding the beef that's a problem for a significant portion (but not all by far) of the population. http://www.mcdonaldsindia.net/burgers.aspx http://www.mcdonaldsindia.net/burgers.aspx
WalterBright 9y ago
> It's not healthy I get a quarter pounder, a side salad, and cup of water. It's a decent, healthy meal.
- KhanMahGretsch 9y ago
  >It's a decent, healthy meal. Especially when the alternative involves a caloric-deficit. While fast food like McDonalds is nutritionally sub-optimal, it cannot be understated how effectively they deliver much-needed calories at an affordable price. Even though this is accomplished with dubious subsidies and ethically-challenged animal farming practices, superior options are few when it comes to filling your belly with a few hard-won dollars.

walshemj 9y ago

I though that too "oh no look at those chavs" at MacDonald's Supersize me also did not see what happened to you if you eat a full xmass dinner every day for a month did it.

stryk 9y ago
It might be a mistake asking this, but what the heck is a 'chav' ?
- metavrsl 9y ago
  It’s an English word for rougher lower class young men. People look down on them, it’s partially a class thing and partially how they dress and how they’re just boisterous. Don’t know what the equivalent word in the USA is but in Australia we say Bogan which is similar.
  - Impossible 9y ago
    Equivalent words for lower class people in the USA often have a racial slur component involved so you don't see them used in the same context. I thought the word "bro" might be close but bro has a upper or middle class connotation, being derived from frat brother, rather than lower class.
  - gt_ 9y ago
    There is no American counterpart for euro chavs, and it’s too late for that now. Euro chav fashion has been very influential in America over the last decade. A lot of Americans think chavs were hip as a result.
    - electricslpnsld 9y ago
      > Euro chav fashion has been very influential in America over the last decade. A lot of Americans think chavs were hip as a result. I don't think I've ever seen a hipster rocking the chav look.
      - deleted 9y ago
        [deleted]
      - gt_ 9y ago
        To be fair, I lived in Portland from 2013-2017. But I don’t think it was a ever a staple as much as a statement.
  - stryk 9y ago
    Interesting. I was under the impression that 'bogan' was sort of the Aussie equivalent to the classic American "hillbilly" -- and there's a slight (and depending on how it's used, sometimes not-so-slight) negative connotation to it here in the US as well.
    - tomlock 9y ago
      Kinda sorta! It's definitely class and geographically based in Australia, and definitely negative.
  - dTal 9y ago
    Chavs certainly don't have to be men. Also I'm pretty sure the youth requirement has atrophied now, and it's more of a direct class-epithet. I don't think there's a race-neutral equivalent in American English, but "white trash" captures much of the spirit.
  - DoreenMichele 9y ago
    Bogan seems to be roughly equivalent to hick from what I gather.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - davidjsevans 9y ago
    The Australian equivalent is a "lad". As in "eshays adlay".
- willbw 9y ago
  It's an English term for a young, obnoxious lower class person wearing tacky clothes.
  - walshemj 9y ago
    Apart from when they got into Burberry - which the marketing tem refer to (with a shudder) as "The Time"
- gedy 9y ago
  "Council Housed And Violent" (unless that's a backronym)
- rhizome 9y ago
  It's the British version of white trash.

fny 9y ago

There's a good amount of sociological research on this topic, which not only agrees with your claim but also posits the obesity war is just a away for the middle and upper class (who are also overweight, at times even more so that the poor[0]) to push a moral agenda on the poor that emphasizes self-control issues of others while ignoring those of their own.[1] [0]: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db51.htm https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db51.htm [1]: A fascinating read on the history and current affairs of the topic: "Eating Right in America: The Cultural Politics of Food and Health"

platz 9y ago

Is an egg-mcmuffin with no cheese and no hash-brown really that bad for you? It's literally an egg on bread.

sjg007 9y ago
No it’s not that bad for you.
brahj123 9y ago
it's not real egg and the processed bread-resembling muffin isn't very nutritious either
- throwa_way_ 9y ago
  How exactly does McDonalds make eggs that aren't real eggs> I don't believe that.
  - starpilot 9y ago
    There are carton "eggs" that you pour. The McMuffin really is made from fresh cracked eggs, though. I think they are delicious.
    - redblacktree 9y ago
      Just curious. What do you think those are made from?
      - starpilot 9y ago
        I wasn't trying to imply whipped eggs from a carton aren't eggs.
    - thousandautumns 9y ago
      What's wrong with carton eggs? How are they not real eggs?
- 9y ago

kinkrtyavimoodh 9y ago

This is very true. In India McD has a more prestige positioning (not extremely but it's a luxury for the lower class, a treat for most middle class families, and a non-shameful food destination for the upper-middle class, and no one shits on McD food as being particularly bad for you. It's put up there with the food you will get from other similar joints (KFC, Dominos, Papa Johns etc.)—not a bastion of good eating but nothing particularly inimical.

nicoburns 9y ago
I find the comparison with KFC, etc as odd. From my european perspective, all of these places are seen as producing unhealthy food (not to mention destroying important ecosystems such as rainforests to produce cheap meat) McDonalds is the target of campaigns only because of it's prominence and brand recognition.
NicoJuicy 9y ago
In India you will have to find people who want to eat meat, to what I've heard. I think that's more related than "luxury food"
- vertex-four 9y ago
  McDonald's in India has a much larger focus on vegetarian and chicken burgers[0], avoiding the beef that's a problem for a significant portion (but not all by far) of the population. http://www.mcdonaldsindia.net/burgers.aspx http://www.mcdonaldsindia.net/burgers.aspx

WalterBright 9y ago

> It's not healthy I get a quarter pounder, a side salad, and cup of water. It's a decent, healthy meal.

KhanMahGretsch 9y ago
>It's a decent, healthy meal. Especially when the alternative involves a caloric-deficit. While fast food like McDonalds is nutritionally sub-optimal, it cannot be understated how effectively they deliver much-needed calories at an affordable price. Even though this is accomplished with dubious subsidies and ethically-challenged animal farming practices, superior options are few when it comes to filling your belly with a few hard-won dollars.