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By C. Jake Williams. March 24, 2008
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Subway has launched a TV campaign extolling the accomplishments of Jared, the guy who ten years ago lost some 200 pounds by eating Subway subs. Jared has kept that weight off, which is the punch line for Subway's advertisements.
One of the ads came on while a friend and I were watching the Jazz a while back, and my friend's reaction surprised me. My friend was mad, livid, that as a country we would, even in a roundabout way, celebrate someone who had let himself go to the morbidly obese level Jared used to display.
Now don't be confused. Subway isn't celebrating the fat Jared. They're praising his turnaround from thick to thin. But, my friend would argue, because his turnaround is only possible by first giving in to gluttony to an ungodly degree we should not give so much attention to those who simply return to the social norm.
I see my friend's point, but for the most part I disagree with him.
I'm skinny. Not by a few pounds: I'm probably 25-40 pounds underweight. I consider this to be as big of a problem for an individual as being that amount overweight. And if I were 200 pounds underweight, again I would see that an equally problematic as being 200 pounds overweight. You know, except that I'd weigh somewhere around zero pounds.
Encouraging individuals with an unacceptable weight, and yes I'm including myself here, to rehabilitate their bodies back to a healthy state is obviously the right thing to do. I don't think you can argue against that position. But if you take my friend's side then you're saying it is not correct to reward the same individual who takes that encouragement to heart and proceed to rehab their image. That's just wrong.
I consider the following approaches correct, and I hope you agree.
If you can't bring yourself to encourage the overweight and underweight to heal themselves, then keep your mouth shut. That includes behind their backs.
If you can, do so in a tasteful way. Don't insult them. Don't badger them. Voice your opinion with tact and their reaction will dictate your next move.
If your friends rehab their problem, congratulate them on their accomplishment. If nothing else, it will condition them to keep their bodies healthier in the future than in their past.
And maybe they'll visit the local Subway. Congratulations Jared.
You were there.