I believe that the fact that our mayor is fat is actually relevant to the debate about his competency to do his duties. Not only does his risk for heart disease and stroke call into question his ability to actually remain physically healthy enough to act as mayor for an entire term, I think it also speaks to a level of personal irresponsibility and short-sightedness.
While I'm no Ford fan, I can't agree with this argument.
The argument turns on the idea that personal responsibility can be inferred from health/weight. "I think it also speaks to a level of personal irresponsibility and short-sightedness", Johnson says. Ok, so if this true, and we can reliably infer these qualities from someones weight, it is clear that weight should certainly be considered as an important category of qualification for many jobs. After all, Mayor is not the only job that requires responsibility and some degree of long term vision: if weight "speaks to a level of personal irresponsibility", then many job candidates in a variety of fields should be standing on scales at job interviews. BMI tests etc.. Statement of merit criteria: "normal, healthy weight."
My point is to illustrate the Reductio ad absurdum here. If we applied this argument to normal settings, it would be absurd. The only reason that Johnson can get away with it here is because it's Ford, a guy who know one likes (at least who reads the HuffPo), and who they are happy to criticize and insult for any reason.
