The Strange, Sordid World of Professional Eating

The July 4th Nathan's Hotdog eating contest is always good to watch for a moment or two, to wonder aloud to your friends how these people can gorge themselves on hotdogs, and how others can find enjoyment by watching it all in person.

This year saw some controversy as Tackeru Kobayashi was not only banned from competing, but also arrested for protesting his banning.

So apparently professional eating is a lot more serious than we give it credit for. So much so that Mayor Bloomberg of New York weighed in on the competition...

While the U.S. immigration service gave Kobayashi his special visa, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg all but endorsed Kobayashi's chief rival at last week's "weighing-in ceremony" for the hot-dog contest. Standing beside MLE star Joey Chestnut, Bloomberg hailed the contest as "the World Cup of eating up," dismissed Kobayashi as a coward for not participating, and saluted Chestnut for "eating an amazing 68 dogs … in just 10 minutes."