| Mr Khan said: Part of it is cultural, of course. Those who are born poor may enter into a culture of poverty that places less emphasis on self-betterment, but i still move that the lack of motivation is environmental and generally not due to the decisions of the individual. |
I don't disagree, and I don't mean to say that it's entirely some kind of moral failing of the individual if they become obese. Most people simply conform to their environment, so unless a person is an extraordinary self starter, they are not very likely to defy an unhealthy culture. And there is indeed a self perpetuating element of grinding poverty. The truly, desperately poor have always been remarkably politically inert, for instance, which is why terrorists overwhelmingly come from the middle class and not from the poor, contrary to the popular belief.
But whether the lack of initiative is part of a person's individual flaws or is simply endemic to his culture, it seems to me that it would lead towards both poverty and obesity.
