Saturday 16 June 2007

Chewing the fat

I was pottering around trying to get ready for work the other morning when I heard the newsreader on Breakfast TV say something about 75% of DNA samples held on file by the police were from young fat men and they were kept whether they had been charged with an offence or not.

I did a double take and walked outraged into the living room to hear the rest of the story. Why on earth would fat men be more likely to commit crimes and therefore need their DNA kept for future comparison than men of other proportions?

It soon became clear that they were talking about young black men (must book a hearing test soon). Oh! I thought, and wandered back to the bedroom to continue my toilette. Whilst blow drying the old 'coiffeur' I got to analysing my response to the episode.

I switched off (brain that is, not TV) when I realised it was black people they were talking about, not fat people, because it didn't surprise me. I don't believe that black youths are more likely to commit crime than any other colour of youth but I am used to hearing about the vagaries of the police in their selection and treatment of suspects.

Whilst applying the final flourish of makeup and grabbing my keys, it struck me that I should have been outraged anyway - what is the difference between discriminating against the fat, and discriminating against the black?!?

8 comments:

The Aunt said...

You're bound to get a comment about statistics of criminal ethnicity and weight which explains why you'd think it was normal.

Which is exactly why we should fight it. Kids should be given a chance to buck the statistics, if they can.

SpanishGoth said...

HA HA - Aunty, you know nothing.

" switched off brain..."

did the vibrator run out of batteries then? You need one of those SUPER-chargers.

Scouse Doris said...

Not really sure what either of you are on about but hey-ho - thanks for reading.

Modo said...

Fat men have an innate sense of rhythm.

Honey said...

Not that I'm a fattist right, I mean I even have a few friends who are fat and when I lie down on my sunlounger (eating icecream) I tend to get a little fatter myself, but fat people, come on we all know they are dodgy right?

Scouse Doris said...

Yeah and I have heard tell that once you get fat you never go back.

Daphne Wayne-Bough said...

There are more thefts of ice cream from people lying down on sunloungers committed by fat people than by any other section of the population. Fact.

Soup Waiter said...

I like fat people, i'm working on becoming one myself. I hope to be old one day too. Senile as well, fat old and senile, it's going to happen anyway so what's the point bitching about it?