What You Eat Is Your Business by Radley Balko

Lexi Mathis

English 2030

09/04/2015

What You Eat Is Your Business by Radley Balko

Pushing Private Health into the Public Sphere

        In “What You Eat is Your Business,” Radley Balko talks about our nation’s very serious epidemic of obesity. The whole idea of his essay is to point out that we are actually fighting this obesity epidemic incorrectly. We as individuals are not taking responsibility for our own health. We have become unaccountable for our health and well-being because of our current healthcare system. As we all know our current healthcare system is teetering on the edge of socialism. In other words we are all being held accountable, financially, for one another’s health issues. This idea of socialized healthcare is only making the epidemic of obesity worse. Because we are all being held financially accountable for one another’s ailments and issues we expect to know why we are being held responsible to pay for them. When we inquire about our responsibility, people’s personal health information is then thrown out onto the public’s pedestal. Since our healthcare has become increasingly socialized more and more federal regulations have been created. These federal regulations are preventing health insurers from incentivizing their programs for those who are indeed maintaining healthy lifestyles, which then again pushes the emphasis off personal responsibility and instead onto  public responsibility. The only reason this has become a public health matter is because the public is now being forced to pay for the poor health choices made by others. The best way to fix this epidemic of obesity is to simply remove this very personal issue from the public sphere.

        I completely agree with everything Mr. Balko has shared in this essay because, I too believe that we must be held personally accountable for our own choices that deal with our health and well-being. Mr. Balko’s arguments are convincing to me because he presented his arguments in a neat, organized, and well thought out manner. I believe this essay appealed to me because it is a primarily persuasive essay rather an essay loaded with data and expert testimony. I would say Balko did a wonderful job in persuading his audience by laying out his arguments in a logical manner and letting you take it for what it is rather than pushing his opinion on you and forcing you to side with him. I also appreciate the fact that he used quotations from others to make his arguments even stronger. What really drew me into reading this entire essay though was when Balko offered a humorous, yet factual news story in the first paragraph. I liked the fact that it was an accurate news story that had to do with the issue he was about to discuss and it also didn’t hurt that it was funny. The fact that Balko also has credibility in the field of writing, he was an editor at Huffington Post and Reason Magazine and he was also a columnist for FOXNEWS.COM, only furthered to convince me of his arguments in this essay. Because of Mr. Balko’s logical reasoning, organized layout, and persuasive manner in his essay I am completely convinced of all his arguments.