Re: [Marxism] Question on alienation and anxiety

[Waistline2@xxxxxxx]

In a message dated 5/8/2004 9:47:02 PM Central Standard Time,
gojack10@xxxxxxxxxxx writes:

>Overeating is linked to depression, boredom, and inactivity.  All this is
also linked, in general, to poor physical health.  Consider overeating to be
an effort to self treat for depression.  However, more severe depression can
actually lead to appetite suppression.  The mere fact of going through with it
to consume an adequate meal is more effort than a severely depressed person
may feel capable of doing.  And a severely depressed individual does not want
the social contact associated with meal consumption.

One can say, that in some sense, capitalist society takes the large depressed
mass of worker-consumers and offers fast food as quick medication for their
depression, leading to profits for some, and obesity for the  consumers.  And
like other addictive meds, a larger and larger dose is often needed to continue
to reach the same effects of relieving the continued depressed state. Each
buffet must be bigger, and a bigger bargain to boot. <

Comment

Overeating and obesity are not the same, although one has to overeat to
become obese. Overeating is linked to all kinds of descriptions of the 
subjective
disposition of man/women. Eating, starvation, overeating and obesity have
emerged as sharp points of contention in the social struggle today - a form of
struggle in the imperial centers I could not conceive of 25 years ago.

We are materialists. What is the metabolic basis of obesity and overeating?
Exactly what is it that we are eating and overeating? On what basis does our
current culture of foodstuff arise and reproduce itself as a social process in
society? What is the bottom line metabolic process - as opposed to subjective
descriptions of why people allegedly "overeat?"

Professor Arnold Ehert remains the undisputed authority on eating, overeating
and obesity. Ehert is to the science of man/women as a metabolic process - as
Karl Marx is to the science of society.

Why we eat what we eat and its evolution as a human need has been outlined by
Marx in his "Philosophic and Economic Manuscript of 1844" - or rather Marx
presents the method to unravel these questions.

Overeating and obesity - as a societal force, is not driven by the subjective
disposition of man/women or depression and/or anxiety.

No Comrade . . . this is how the bourgeoisie approaches such questions. What
is the metabolic process? What is the origin of need and why do we eat what we
eat and then overeat? Over eating is "connected" to imperial privilege, but
this does not explain the metabolic process.

Seek out the writings of Arnold Ehert. It is not the subjective disposition
of man/women that causes over eating and obesity. Something else is involved
that can be rationally explained from the standpoint of a material conception of
biology and man/women.


Melvin P.
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