I am not sure how many of you out there remember the late, great comedian Rodney Dangerfield. He made his mark as a stand-up comedian, but also was had his break-out role in the classic comedy “Caddyshack”. Dangerfield was known for his one-line jokes that was often preceded or followed by his tagline: “I Get No Respect”. Here are some of his classic jokes that followed the “I Get No Respect” line:
- When I was born the doctor came out to the waiting room and said to my father, “I’m very sorry. We did everything we could…but he pulled through.”
- I come from a stupid family. During the Civil War my great uncle fought for the west!
- My father was stupid. He worked in a bank and they caught him stealing pens.
- My mother had morning sickness after I was born.
- My mother never breast fed me. She told me that she only liked me as a friend.
- My father carries around the picture of the kid who came with his wallet.
- When I played in the sandbox the cat kept covering me up.
- I could tell that my parents hated me. My bath toys were a toaster and a radio.
- One year they wanted to make me poster boy… for birth control.
- I remember the time I was kidnapped and they sent back a piece of my finger to my father. He said he wanted more proof.
- My uncle’s dying wish was to have me sitting on his lap. He was in the electric chair.
Okay, away from Rodney Dangerfield one-liners and to reality: This entry was prompted by my musings about how I am treated at shops, restaurants and other venues during the weekdays when I am dressed in my usual suit and tie vs. other situations when I am dressed down. Or, when I am introduced to others as “Doctor Posner” instead of “Bob”. It just seems that the level of “respect” rises from others when those “others” believe you are someone of “importance/prominence”. We all find ourselves acting a bit differently if we are introduced to a movie star, famous sports player or well-known politician.
As unfortunate as this is, reality is such that to some extent, our weight control will impact others’ respect for us. I know as a physician helping others control weight, I feel an added motivation to keep my own weight under control, lest my “credibility factor” suffers if I cannot keep my own weight under control.
Society/human nature can be brutal in many ways, and one of these is the “respect” we get from others based on our appearance. By no means is this one of the most important reasons to control weight, but one of the added benefits will be an enhanced level of respect from others.
For those Rodney Dangerfield fans, here is a cool collage of his one-liners: