Obesity is killing Americans

Finally. Here is the opening paragraphs of a news article titled “E-mails suggested Fort Hood suspect subpar for Army” which shines a light on just exactly what it was that caused poor Nidal Hasan to snap and kill 13 of his colleagues at Ft. Hood:

Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, charged in the Fort Hood shootings, was too fat and "chronically" unprofessional during his psychiatric training, according to internal e-mails exchanged by his superiors.

The communications are the latest in a series of early signs that showed officers had reason to suspend Maj. Hasan's training, and perhaps re-evaluate his suitability as a military physician, but failed to do so.

That Hasan being an out-of-shape schlub was the reason for him killing those people at Ft. Hood rather than being an outright jihadist will come as a big of a surprise to us as it will to you. We all reserve the right, though, to be smarter than we were before.

No wonder there is a growing demand for healthier eating all around.

For many, a night out at the movies would not be complete without the sound of popcorn and chocolate wrappers from the stalls. One of the most powerful studio bosses in Hollywood, however, would like to see cinemas selling healthier snacks.

Michael Lynton, chairman and chief executive of Sony Pictures, says that audiences would be better off nibbling on granola bars, fruit salad, yogurt and vegetable crudités with dips. “I can almost imagine the Romans eating popcorn and drinking Coke at the Colosseum 2,000 years ago,” he told a convention of cinema owners in Las Vegas. “But by bringing healthier snacks into your concession stands you would be helping our country meet an urgent public health need.”

Preventing a rash of cineplex massacres is reason enough for us to buy into eschewing the popcorn in favor of organically-grown arugula.

If only Hasan’s superiors had enforced better eating and exercise habits for him, we might have been able to avoid that unseemly occurrence.