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"Those poor people have no agency and their behaviors are outside their control!" Well, I guess we have no choice but to affirm and reinforce their lack of agen

"Those poor people have no agency and their behaviors are outside their control!" Well, I guess we have no choice but to affirm and reinforce their lack of agency and ensure we put them on drugs for the rest of their lives! It's ironic that one of the effects of this drug seems to be reducing the impact of impulsive behaviors, reducing cravings from other drugs and alcohol and cigarette addictions. The hat trick for someone might be to get on one of these GLP-1 regimens, wean themselves out of whatever crisis/crises they are in, end their GLP-1 regimen with a heroic mushroom trip, and physically move to a new environment, where they don't have any of the default triggers or patterns to fall back on, and everything is fresh and can be built up from scratch. I think the medicalization of human agency is one of the great evils of our time. The implication and impact of doctors, bureaucrats, and bean counters making sweeping policy, regulation, and legal decisions on behalf of the peasants and peons who just don't know better. The casual dismissal of fundamental basic principles is outrageous, especially in service to the politics and idiotic tribalism.

acuozzo 11mo ago
> "Those poor people have no agency and their behaviors are outside their control!" Our complex modern society has a daily buy-in. Some people were born and/or raised for it and the cost for them is nothing. Others need to soothe the pain of shoehorning themselves into it by chain-smoking while working a jackhammer or shoveling cereal into their face while programming. Yes, these behaviors are technically within their control, but are you really going to suggest that we can solve the underlying problem(s)?
BizarroLand 11mo ago
I think your opinion is valid from your point of view but missing an important part of the bigger picture. Obese people typically do not try to become obese. Most obese people have tried to lose weight and find that they lack the tools and skills needed to succeed, and many of the ones that do succeed only do so temporarily. Why is that? It's a question with no simple answer, and no single answer. Evolutionary biological drive to acquire calories. Psychological dependency on food. Inability to differentiate satisfaction from "being stuffed", likely due to environmental factors like negative education as a child or poverty mindset in parents. The perceived difficulty of altering diets for longevity. Self-hate. I'm sure there are scores more reasons for this, and no single concept or mindset is large enough to fully accurately embody the breadth of reasons why people remain obese in a world that actively disincentivizes obesity in every measure of life satisfaction. People outside of that fail to empathize with the plight of obese people. They blame them for living a life that is generally unintentionally thrust upon them. They do not see obesity as a disease but as a choice and then mock or dismiss them for being obese, even though by all metrics it is a disease. People tell obese people to diet like they tell alcoholics to quit drinking or drug addicts to quit using drugs and honestly believe their words have contributed value to humanity, but unlike drug addicts or alcohol, there is no cold turkey for obesity other than death. People must eat. That includes obese people. If you can figure out a way for a crackhead to smoke crack 3 times a day until they feel satisfied with how much crack they have smoked without remaining a crackhead, then you might be able to figure out how to get an obese person to eat 3 meals a day until they feel satisfied without remaining obese.
- apple4ever 11mo ago
  Bingo. The attitude that people have failed just because they didn't will it enough is ridiculous to me. Plenty of people have tried hard to lose weight. But plenty of them have failed not because of will, but other factors. This is decades long! Having something that can help them is great!

acuozzo 11mo ago

> "Those poor people have no agency and their behaviors are outside their control!" Our complex modern society has a daily buy-in. Some people were born and/or raised for it and the cost for them is nothing. Others need to soothe the pain of shoehorning themselves into it by chain-smoking while working a jackhammer or shoveling cereal into their face while programming. Yes, these behaviors are technically within their control, but are you really going to suggest that we can solve the underlying problem(s)?

BizarroLand 11mo ago

I think your opinion is valid from your point of view but missing an important part of the bigger picture. Obese people typically do not try to become obese. Most obese people have tried to lose weight and find that they lack the tools and skills needed to succeed, and many of the ones that do succeed only do so temporarily. Why is that? It's a question with no simple answer, and no single answer. Evolutionary biological drive to acquire calories. Psychological dependency on food. Inability to differentiate satisfaction from "being stuffed", likely due to environmental factors like negative education as a child or poverty mindset in parents. The perceived difficulty of altering diets for longevity. Self-hate. I'm sure there are scores more reasons for this, and no single concept or mindset is large enough to fully accurately embody the breadth of reasons why people remain obese in a world that actively disincentivizes obesity in every measure of life satisfaction. People outside of that fail to empathize with the plight of obese people. They blame them for living a life that is generally unintentionally thrust upon them. They do not see obesity as a disease but as a choice and then mock or dismiss them for being obese, even though by all metrics it is a disease. People tell obese people to diet like they tell alcoholics to quit drinking or drug addicts to quit using drugs and honestly believe their words have contributed value to humanity, but unlike drug addicts or alcohol, there is no cold turkey for obesity other than death. People must eat. That includes obese people. If you can figure out a way for a crackhead to smoke crack 3 times a day until they feel satisfied with how much crack they have smoked without remaining a crackhead, then you might be able to figure out how to get an obese person to eat 3 meals a day until they feel satisfied without remaining obese.

apple4ever 11mo ago
Bingo. The attitude that people have failed just because they didn't will it enough is ridiculous to me. Plenty of people have tried hard to lose weight. But plenty of them have failed not because of will, but other factors. This is decades long! Having something that can help them is great!