And Whose Fault Is That?

Jonathan McCullum, 17, recently returned from a four-month exchange study in Egypt. During his stay, his weight dropped from 155 pounds to a paltry 97 upon his return. He claims that his Egyptian host family, Coptic Christians, withheld food from him due to their fasting customs, although they "hid treats" in their bedroom for themselves.

Just like Disney's Aladdin, who's "gotta eat to live, gotta steal to eat", McCullum was forced to steal from a supermarket. He says that his daily food consisted of a piece of bread, cucumber, and cheese for brunch, then beans, vegetables and sometimes fish in the late afternoon, and a snack of bread in the evening. His host family denies this.

According to them, he ate enough for six people, taking an hour and a half at every meal. Also, he was incessantly exercising and playing sports.



Neither story really makes sense, but any way you slice it, McCullum's to blame.

Scenario A: The host family withheld food.
Solution: Walk to Burger King. If you're out of money, ask your parents to wire you some.

Scenario B: He ate like a cow at every meal, then exercised often.
Explanation: He's a bulimic, or otherwise ill.

So there you have it: he's either ill or too stupid to get himself something to eat. But fear ye not--he's apparently doing much better, because he recently dragged himself out of bed to go snowboarding.