A very interesting article that made me think. I am not sure exactly where my thoughts line up with yours, so this will be primarily a means of clarifying what I think.

It seems to me that the entire purpose of framing obesity as a disease is a means to deflect the "blame" for obesity elsewhere. The disease-ness alone may not be the entire issue.

For example:

Person A bothers morbidly obese person B about trying to lose weight.

Person B says that obesity is a disease and not her fault.

Person A objects to obesity being a disease, in their mind person B is very much responsible for their obesity.

I do not think their dispute is about whether obesity is a disease but whether person B has obesity as a result of her own choices and actions.

To clarify:

Cancer patients are not responsible for cancer as the cause of cancer is separate from decisions that you make.

Yet we would say that someone with several STDs would be responsible if they were going around having frequent unprotected sex with several partners. The disease is a result of their own actions.

Obesity seems to fit more into the second example then the first.. Whereas even if it is a disease, society holds the person responsible for the disease.