The AP, via Yahoo! News, reports that — surprise, surprise — obesity costs money. A lot of money — an estimated $1400 per year extra per overweight American compared with those at a normal weight.

Obama wants universal health care. He claims we can get there by cutting costs — mostly by forcing those big, bad pharma companies and evil doctors to take less money for their goods and services. This, of course, will not work, because giving people health care for “free” will cause them to demand more and more of it.

So how will the budget get balanced? Rationing care, of course — but another way is for the government to try and keep people from developing expensive conditions. Obesity is a favorite target — so look for taxes on sodas, like the one Governor Paterson failed to pass in New York, louder governmental “recommendations” on what one should be eating, a national trans fat ban…the possibilities are endless.

It doesn’t matter that many Americans, myself included, enjoy high-calorie foods in small quantities and exercise hard enough to stay slim. It doesn’t matter that many Americans, like my husband, have high metabolisms and can eat whatever they damn well please while maintaining a healthy weight.* Politicians don’t think in terms of individuals; they think in terms of groups and averages. And the average American is fat. So they’ll pass laws designed to get the average American to eat better (by their standards) and exercise more — not only violating their freedom to live as they choose, but punishing those of us who aren’t overweight.

Don’t believe laws like this will happen? Just look at how David Paterson, in the 2009 State of the State address earlier this year, cited the high costs of obesity to the New York state treasury, and said that taxing soda, banning trans fats, cutting off access to junk food in schools, and requiring calorie-count postings in restaurants would help solve the problem. Proposals like his are sure to follow on the federal level.

So if HR 3200 passes, it won’t just be your freedom to choose between health insurance plans that will be destroyed. Eventually, your freedom to eat and exercise as you please will be at stake.

* Of course I’m jealous.

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