Andrew Malcolm is Losing It
And it’s not a pretty sight. I think his article in the LA Times, on the recent White House “Healthy Kids Fair,” was supposed to be tongue-in-cheek, but it failed… both as humor and reporting. The problem? Malcolm evidently couldn’t decide who he has more contempt for… Michelle Obama for using her position to promote healthy living, or overweight/obese Americans, whose “…flabby thighs are hidden by their drooping stomachs.”
First, the buff first arms. Then the First Lady’s White House playground. Then the First Lady’s White House victory garden. Then the First Lady’s patronage of farmer’s markets for things that grow in the filthy ground or hang on trees where birds perch and do things.
…Now, today First Lady Michelle Obama had a Healthy Kids Fair on the sunny White House South Lawn. Will this healthy stuff ever stop with these people?
…We also learn Mrs. Obama loves french fries. Very much. Extremely much. But that she knows she can’t eat them every day. She doesn’t explain why not. Apparently, she thinks it’s bad somehow.
As mean-spirited as this is, it gets worse…
But M.O.’s enthusiasm is almost contagious, making some American adults at least contemplate getting up out of their La-Z-Boys to move their enlarged bodies slightly. And not just toward the fridge.
Yes, it might be a shock to the old ticker to work a little. So try walking early in the morning before your brain figures out what’s going on.
Never mind sitting on your enlarged keister reading books, this first lady seems determined to drive Americans, including her burger-loving, cigarette-smoking husband, to at least feel guilty about all those fries and other gunk they swallow into their bodies.
Not… funny… at… all. For starters, not all Americans are fat and/or unhealthy. And even those who are don’t deserve to be spat on like this. The veneer of humor can’t disguise the ugliness.
Now, I realize that the political atmosphere is pretty toxic right now. But that’s no reason to get snarky about an event designed to promote children’s health and nutrition. It’s a pretty uncontroversial subject, so there’s no reason to take aim at it… Unless, of course, your goal is to demonstrate how politically hip and sophisticated you are.
Yes, of course, it’s a political show. Playing with kids at a scheduled time that allows TV studio editors to process the video in time for the afternoon/evening newscasts is part of American public life now, regardless of party.
Apparently, it never occurred to Malcolm that there’s little purpose for an event like this UNLESS it attracts public attention. How else was Mrs. Obama supposed to get her message out? And – since the Fair involved playing with children outdoors – scheduling it early in the day was a no-brainer.
You’d think someone who’s truly savvy would realize there’s little political capital to be gained by this… there are far too many bigger issues in play. And even Malcolm grudgingly admitted “Today’s Kids Fair is a rather charming event” – so why not take it at face value? Whatever the motives (real or imagined), I see exactly zero harm – and perhaps even some good – coming from Mrs. Obama’s efforts.
At least she’s trying… which is more than I can say for jaded political observers like Malcolm.
October 23, 2009
I would hope that he would seriosly not be trying to shot down the good thing being done here.
All politics aside, I think anyone that promotes healthhier eating or living, is doing a great thing. If the first lady does it, that’s even better. Hopefully it might change the thinking of some of todays parents or children.
The biggest problem I see here is the fact that Mr. Malcolm is talking bad about an event just because of his own political views, and not about the good it may do.
October 23, 2009
It’s really quite astonishing how some people simply can’t put their political “filters” aside. Malcolm’s posting was bad, but some of his commenters were even worse. There was a lot of sniping about Mrs. Obama’s body and clothes (“Sorry, but those don’t look like fit abs to me. What’s with that belt?” “She’s not exactly svelte.” etc.).
What the hell is wrong with people like this? I wasn’t exactly a fan of the previous president, but it would never have occurred to me to criticize him for his promotion of physical fitness – IT’S NOT POLITICAL.
October 24, 2009
You are absolutely correct. The problem is in today’s world, people can’t seem to put their political views aside…..for anything.
It is especially bad in this case, because it is a topic that has nothing at all to do with politics, and can only help people.