So, according to Wikipedia, that song was made at the request of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness, performed by Robert Preston and written by Meredith Willson. This was in 1961.

First of all, I will admit that I can’t hear that song without thinking of the part in Orwell’s 1984 where Winston Smith is forced to exercise by the severe woman on the telescreen. But the real point is that government health initiatives are not exactly new.

I think most people have a certain aversion to being told what to do by anyone–or feeling like they are–even if they know it is the right thing to do. The old Libertarian in me understands this impulse. But that said, I think the Republicans really ought to get over their visceral hatred of Michelle Obama’s anti-obesity campaign. I am becoming quite tired of them saying things like “she’s telling us what to eat”, and trying to paint her as a hypocrite over nonsense like this.

What I wonder is: did anybody complain about that Robert Preston song at the time?