It would appear that fast food chain Burger King has beaten McDonalds, Wendy's, and the rest to the punch and made the move into widespread delivery.

It is the next logical step after the drive-thru window. People wanted to be able to purchase a high-fat, low-nutrition meal without having to make the arduous walk from the parking lot to the counter, and why not. If you are going to spend a full $5.95 on a meal that is basically calories on a bun, why waste your hard earned cash losing some of those calories on your way to buy them?

But Burger King has gone one step further. In a move that will surely make it pioneers in this glorious field, customers in Virginia and Maryland will not even have to walk from the sofa to the car thanks to the new delivery service. The only calories burned in these states when eating a Whopper will be those used when moving from the sofa to the front door, and those used while changing the TV from "American Idol" to "Jersey Shore."

It really is ingenious. The service is currently available at nine stores in Maryland and three in Virginia, with six more to be added next week.

It is perhaps surprising that McDonalds did not take the bull by the horns with this idea, as it does deliver from two of its New York locations. Why it did not run with the idea is a mystery. It seems to be a no-brainer. People who are regularly eating fast food are presumably too busy to make real food and money might be an issue too. An inexpensive delivery service would surely be most welcome.

Burger King is the company with the courage to give it a go. The service runs from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and it tries to deliver within a 10-minute proximity so the delicious food stays fresh. Nobody needs a limp Whopper.

There is an $8 to $10 minimum order (so lonely fast food addicts have to want a lot of food  probably not a problem), and there is a $2 delivery fee tacked on. Bargain! Oh, and they will not deliver shakes, coffee, fountain drinks, or breakfast food. We are not sure why, but does that immediately mean that you cannot have a value meal delivered?

At the time of writing, there is not word about whether Burger King will expand the service to other states and stores, but it is surely only a matter of time. The experiment in Virginia and Maryland is key, but it seems inevitable that, before too long, fast food freaks across the globe will be able to chow down on greasy mass-produced food while doing the absolute minimum amount of exercise.