from Hacker News

Weightless Project

by mrmaddog on 11/21/13, 10:59 PM with 9 comments

  • by jhandl on 11/22/13, 12:50 AM

    Although the basic idea sounds great, I can't help but think this is a scam. I watched the video and bolted out in disgust.

    Starting with irrelevant video footage: big-city homelessness and world hunger are different problems; a healthy newborn baby is hardly an example of a malnourished child; several scenes attempt to associate being black with hunger but show well fed kids instead, one even being fed with a spoon by an overweight caregiver...

    Then, the video never explains how the system works. Could have explained the idea while you had me watching.

    Not to mention that world hunger is not something you can simply throw cash at. It's been done, doesn't work. This is a very complex problem, involving distribution costs, poverty, corruption and many other factors.

    And Deepak Chopra? Seriously? You lost any credibility you might have had.

    The whole thing reeks of "for every forwarded email Bill Gates will pay $1 to X". Except Deepak gets that $1.

  • by jurassic on 11/22/13, 12:38 AM

    Seems like a neat project, but they definitely need better endorsements than Deepak Chopra. My bullshit detector is on red-alert.

  • by dylz on 11/22/13, 12:27 AM

    Initial thoughts: great idea for a startup.

    As soon as Deepak Chopra scrolls into view: Ugh, new age bullshit and lies.

    I have no idea why this thought process is the way it is.

  • by dirtyaura on 11/22/13, 7:36 AM

    Recent research shows that guilt is not a good motivator for behavior change. People are already struggling with their own health problem, obesity, and many feeling guilty about it. Adding guilt about poor kids dying of hunger on top of it seems a bit tough.

  • by firat on 11/22/13, 12:52 AM

    Where is the money coming from? Why wait for people to lose weight if they already have the money?

    I'll assume the device manufacturers are donating the money. Looks like a marketing gimmick to me.

  • by mooted1 on 11/22/13, 4:52 AM

    Dear companies supporting this project, I've got a better idea: pledge a fraction of your profits with a charity of your choice instead of conditioning your philanthropy on some arbitrary metric.

  • by metl_lord on 11/22/13, 12:25 AM

    This seems really neat, but how does such a well designed site miss the title tag?