The Obesity Games
Warning: this is a satire. It's supposed to be a darkly funny reflection on the obesity pandemic and current governments. By all means flame. This was written to get a reaction. Ok it's meant to make people laugh and but it should also make them think. I'm not advocating this as a solution by any means.
I don't own the a Hunger Games.
In 2041 in the face of a rising population that grew fatter by the day, the British government introduced a radical new act designed to cut obesity once and for all.
It was called the 'Obesity Game'
The premise was simple. Twenty contestants from around the United Kingdom with BMIs greater than 40 were locked in an arena and made to fight until only one remained alive. The whole bloody, fatty spectacular would be given 24hour coverage on the BBC.
At worst, you got rid of 39 very very fat people and at the best, maybe the entire obese population would develop the impetus to lose some weight.
The proposal was met with mixed opinions. Human rights groups were outraged. The UK doesn't have a death penalty for murder or treason they cried. And yet you're saying you believe that fat people should be killed on national television.
(The house of commons shortly started debating the reinstatement of the death penalty for the aforementioned murder and treason. After which the human rights activists changed tact).
The healthcare profession too had a lot to say on the matter. First do no harm was a core tenet of medical practice. Sending people to be slaughtered was - it had to be - harm.
Some professionals remained sceptical that the Obesity Game would scare anyone into losing weight. 'After all,' they said, 'We've told them about how obesity increases your risk of heart disease, cancers, depression, complications of surgery... Compared to the risk of dying of those, the risk of dying in the Obesity Game is really very small.'
The other side of this new Act was the promise of television coverage. Fat people had been the number one comedy group for cruel reality TV shows for year. The Biggest Loser, fat women squeezing into unflattering wedding dresses...the list continued. Equally, progressively rising national deficits resulted in vicious cuts which in turn gave an 'every man for himself' attitude to the nation resulted in an overall crueller society where abuses such as these could flourish unchecked After all, it's hard to be generous when you have so little to share. A lack of empathy pervaded the land, where Other People -especially the ridiculously fat ones - could be seen as inferior. War and violence had long been seen as a game by this population - the sales of war RPGs and the growing popularity of violent films was evidence of this.
The promise of a televised death show concerning fat people set the nation aflame with anticipation
In the face of what was regrettably strong public support, the bill ultimately made it through the House of Commons.
The country was divided up into 12 districts, of roughly equivalent populations. GP practices were asked to provide lists of patients with BMIs over 40 (the morbidly obese). These were then accumulated so that 1 man and 1 woman between the ages of 18 and 65 were selected from each region to represent that area as 'Tributes' in the Obesity Game.
Now. Let the games begin.
And may the odds be ever in your favour.
Please please review! I am genuinely very curious as to what people think of this.
That said, I have no idea what to do with it.
Because I'm curious, I'm going to say of you have a idea for an (obese) tribute, please submit them! (I can't guarantee any other chapters will ever be written but Some Characters would definitely provide me with some motivation.