This is nuts...

Lincoln University students will now have to endure a physical exam determining each student's BMI (body mass index) before they are permitted to graduate. An individual's BMI measures the amount of body fat. Amid fierce criticisms, Lincoln University has recently installed a new requirement for its undergraduate students. If your BMI is over 30, you are required to take a physical education class.

This new requirement has caused an uproar from some students and professors who argue that the university is actively discriminating against those who are obese. Some students argue that their time at Lincoln may be prolonged because of an additional class.

There are so many problems with this I don't even know where to begin. If someone has done her required coursework, she deserves her diploma, regardless of the size of her ass. Or his ass. Also, the BMI—which I have never defended—is a crude instrument and Lincoln's standard will sweep up plenty of non-obese students. And if Lincoln University thinks that students would benefit from a physical education requirement, then the university should require all students to take a physical education course, not just students with BMIs over 30. The fat activists are right about one thing: there are plenty of unhealthy skinny bitches out there who could benefit from a little physical education. Everyone could benefit.

People have a right to live their lives and make their own choices even if their choices aren't necessarily healthy. I have no argument with big people—some of my best friends, favorite relatives, etc., are big—who aren't in denial about the elevated health risks that come with the added weight. I have an argument with big people who insist that it's bigoted to assert that there's some connection between diet, exercise, and size, or that obesity doesn't carry certain known health risks. Basically I have an argument with people who expect others to coddle and excuse in order to make them feel less conflicted about all the chow they're shoveling in. But I don't believe university administrators—who should focused on brains, not butts—have a right to meddle in the private lives of students like this. It's intrusive and it's discriminatory.