I have to say, I've read a lot of Garrison Keillor's articles and listened to A Prairie Home Companion, and have tried to see what it so interesting to many of my friends. Perhaps I am stating the obvious, or perhaps saying something insightful, but GK is the liberal who writes like a conservative. We all know his politics are to the left but everything he does is a love letter to the past, to All-American values. So while it may be fun to be nostaligic, we have to remember, this is subtle comedy. In the past people died from lung cancer and emphysema. Babies died in car accidents. And your life was severly circumscribed if you weren't a white christian hetertosexual male. As for happiness, well, the human animal is capable of adapting to any situation and finding happiness, so maybe we were happier in the past. Then again, maybe we just have selective memory.

The Dems should take a lesson from the Texas legislature and just leave en masse. It's the only response to a lose-lose vote. And if it shuts down the government, so be it. Maybe people would wake up if they did.

I don't know why this prejudice exists. I am proud to be an introvert because 1. I think (a lot) before I speak. 2. I prefer to research a problem rather than ask someone else. 3. I don't have a need to chit-chat with everyone who walks by. 4. I keep good records of everything I do, so the information is there when I need it. This adds up to a good worker in my opinion.

I think both an extreme introvert and an extreme extrovert are a problem and I personally get upset at certain people I work with who just don't think, they talk, but don't think. The truth is, you need a balance in the workplace, that's kind of the point of Myers Briggs.

P.S. I have on many occasions said at work "I don't like humans" Everyone giggles. Do they realize there's an element of truth to it?

Lesbians see this and denounce it as politically incorrect and insulting to lesbians, something they would never participate in. Believe me if there was any trend that would get two straight men to show affection in public, gay men would see it as an opportunity to seduce straight men.

Another difference is obvious, and I was taught it in sex educationin the 1970s "women play at sex to get love, men play at love to get sex" Put simpley, for women, sex is means to an end, while for men sex is an end in itself.

Many of the letter writers here see some kind of political point in this article, that it is making a statment about sizeism and the marginalization of fat women. Be assured chubby chasers/fat admiriers are some of the most sizeist men there are. Josh says he's dated smaller women, but many of them would simply, and sometimes bluntly, reject anyone who doesn't fit into their preferred size category. So rather than decry male sexuality as objectifying and looks-ist if not perverted, we should celebrate it because the fact of the matter no matter how far your looks are from a runway model, there are some men out there who focus all their perverted horniness on you.

Letters on this subject illustrate exactly what the problem is. People are extremely poloarized on this issue, not only letter writers but the actual people, groups and countries involved. Instead of considering your enemy homocidal fanatics, which both sides seem to do, they need to find some common ground. And Israelis and Palastinians have sat down together and come to an agreement about how to settle this, only these were not the people who had the power to carry it out. By refusing to talk to your enemy you create perpetual conflict.

It is the extreme elements on both sides which have profited from this conflict, drawing people to their side with their show of power. It is the only way groups like Al Qaida and Hamas, as well as the political parties that currently run Israel and the US can maintain their power. It is the common people who pay the price.

What this all boils down to is the underlying problem of environmental degradation as well as poverty, war etc. is overpopulation. And yet so much of our resources get put into increasing fertility and longevity. I think most people know it is the quality of life, not the length of life that is important. As my mother told me many times, it's not fun being old and if I am to die ten years younger than she did in exchange for feasting on high fat and starchy foods and rarely breaking a sweat that is fine with me. We've got to get over this fear of death, it comes to everyone, some sooner, some later. It is what happens before that that is important.

And I speak from exerience...

You can change your tastes in regards to physical attractiveness, especially if you have other kinds of attraction to the person

There are plenty of people who will find this man attractive, either in spite of his weight or because of his weight.

In a long term relationship physical appearance becomes less and less important fairly quickly.

Relationships based heavily on a mutual physical attractions seldom last.

Having said that, I agree with Cary. You have to decide what you can handle. If the fat thing is such a glaring negative quality for you, then don't continue. It's shallow, it's immature and it's something that's going to get in the way of finding a meaningful relationship, but don't beat yourself up about it.