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| Rob's Soapbox | ||
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Congratulations!
You have finally landed on the one page on this entire site (and on the entire internet for that matter) that is purely without bullshit... my soapbox page. There are a lot of times during our show that, whether it's because of time constraints and other obligations, I don't always get to address some issues that I feel don't get the attention they deserve. There are even more times when I just don't feel like waiting until the show the next day to get some things off my chest. Thus, I have started the "Rob's Soapbox" page. If you have clicked on this page looking for someone to coddle your fragile sense of self-esteem, or tell you what you want to hear or to reinforce your outdated world view, then exit this page right now and go somewhere else. If you are in search of the last forum for reason and common sense left in the world, then sit back, relax, and enjoy. I make only one promise with this soapbox page... if you read long enough and often enough, you will eventually be offended. So here's my latest soapbox. Listen up, 'cause you just might learn something... |
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February 13th, 2006 IT'S NOT THE FAT THAT WILL KILL US, IT'S THE OVER-THINKINGIn a truly hysterical turnabout, a major study was released this week that says after years of comprehensive, in-depth research, science and medicine have determined that a low-fat diet will do nothing to help prevent heart disease and/or cancer. You can read the whole story at this link: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/060220/20diet.htm For those of you that live your lives by the whatever the latest study is, that has to be a real kick to the gut. For those of you who choose to believe only those studies that confirm things that you already believe, this study will no doubt be mocked, ridiculed, chided and discarded as "silly." To me, the study says something much different. As societies and cultures progress, they eventually reach levels of excess. There is such a thing, for example, as too many choices. You need look no further than your local Home Depot store's paint selection to see an illustration of what I mean. Do we really need 113 different shades of white? I think you get my point. Some would argue that we already have too much technology, too much medicine, too many TV channels, and too many brands of bottled water. I argue that we have too much thinking, especially when it comes to things like our health and our diets. There is an old saying that holds true through the test of time: Keep It Simple, Stupid. People claim that because our life expectancy is at an all-time high, we must be healthier than ever before. I argue that our life expectancy is at an all-time high because we've found artificial ways to assist the body in staying afloat longer. Things like artificial hearts, chemotherapy treatments, early detection and cholesterol drugs are adding 10 years or more to the lives of people who would otherwise be dead. That's not health, that's medicinal science. Don't get me wrong, I'm a firm believer of and supporter of medical science. Bravo to us. Let's just not claim that it's something it isn't. Imagine how long Americans would be living if we actually combined medical science with a healthy lifestyle! Instead, we're a lazy, unhealthy group of people with great laboratories. Which brings us back to the new study that says a low-fat lifestyle won't lower your risk of cancer or heart disease. I am not to here to either agree or disagree with the study's findings. I am here to tell you that I don't care, and neither should you. We over-think the things we have the least understanding of because we are a people who insist on knowing everything. Stop the arrogance and allow there to be things greater than yourself. The mind, the body, the natural order of things are all things we can't, don't and never will fully understand, and to be honest with you I'm not sure if we know any more about them now than we did 50, 100, or 200 years ago. Why is it that a seemingly healthy man of 50 dies while jogging, while a fat, gluttonous hog lives to be 85? Why does the same family have one son die at 45 while his brother lives to 102? That rules out the silly genetics argument pretty quick when that happens. The secret to not getting cancer and or heart disease? How the hell should I know? It may be to stop worrying about it so much. Maybe we should all stop ingesting all of the chemical additives that only began being added to our food 50 years ago. Maybe we should all be a lot more active on a regular basis like generations before us were. Maybe there isn't an answer. Here's what I know; everywhere I look I see people trying all of the different theories to long life and health. I see people who eat healthy and never exercise. I see people who exercise and eat healthy. I see people who do everything in moderation and I see people who do nothing, absolutely nothing. Guess what all of those people have in common? They're all dying…and all of them at ages that have no correlation to their chosen lifestyles. "Healthy" people are dying young, "unhealthy" people are living past 80 and vice-versa. My answer is that there is no answer. I am willing to admit, understand and accept the fact that there are things greater than me and answers I am not meant to have. I am not so arrogant as to be believe that I am supposed to or even should have all of the answers. I simply eat what I want to eat, move when I want to move and try to worry as little as possible. I doubt that I'll live longer than most, but I probably won't die before many. One thing's for sure; I'm not going to sacrifice one second of joy for a theory that has no proven result. In other words, if I want cake, I'm eating cake. Go have a piece of cake and don't give it a second thought afterwards. If you do, it might kill you.
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