http://www.forbes.com/feeds/hscout/2009/09/16/hscout631029.html?feed=rss_forbeslife_health Anyone support or oppose this soda tax proposal? I'm pretty tired of taxes and taxes...we're overly taxed already but if this is going to help America's obesity epidemic a little bit then I'm for it. I hardly drink any sodas so that's why I don't really have a problem with this.
I wouldn't mind. If I drink a soda a day for a week, my stomach feels like crap for 3-4 days so I've severely cut down on the amount of soda I drink. Less soda just makes me feel healthier. Taxing it can pass that healthy feeling down and raise money for health care reform... That being said, I don't think it's nearly as necessary for public health as taxing cigarettes was. This does have that "excessive" feel to it.
I drink a ton of Diet Coke. So much that I'm kind of embarrassed to write exactly how much. It should suffice to say that I would be one of the most affected. I think it is a great idea as long as the funds go to paying for health care reform. If they route the money to some fat bombastic southern “anti-tax” senator's pork barrel project, I would be pissed off to no end.
Would it really help to curb soda drinking? I have a brother who smokes and yet he makes less per hour than a pack of cigarettes costs him these days and that doesn't stop him.
I support it. Soda and high fructose corn syrup make people overweight. It's a danger to people's health, whether they like it or not. I'm not a big fan of the government telling people what they can or can't consume, but it's completely within their right to tax people if it's in their best interest, as long as they don't outlaw it. It's also just a waste of money for the average person. Water is free, good, and worlds better for you. Maybe the increased costs of soda would make some people think twice about getting fast food as well and just make something at home, like drinking milk or making chicken that comes from Americas farms and not a grease factory that's 2 to a corner.
That is immediately what I thought when I read the OP. I doubt a few more cents per can of soda is going to slow anyone down but it might and it will definitely generate revenue to put into the health care system.
I agree that all of that tax money better go to the health care, not to a politician's agenda. Diet sodas are not good for you either.
It will help those with common sense and any rudimentary form of money budgeting. If someone is going to go broke buying sodas and cigs I don't really feel too sorry for them. With those rationing skills, they were likely to be broke sooner rather than later. Luckily soda doesn't have nearly the same addictive quality that nicotine has, so it probably won't be a problem. Expect tea and Kool-aid stocks to soar
i have limited my soda intake to one half-can (the little cans they sell) a day of Dr. Pepper! Ok, I'm pretty proud of that!
I'm in a similar boat. I stopped drinking soda cold-turkey and went almost two weeks with nothing. In the last week I have slipped and had 3-4 sodas and even now I am craving one.
You can do it...you shouldn't have quit cold-turkey but wean off sodas. That's how I did. Now, we don't keep any sodas at home. The only thing we drink is water. It will take time but you can do it. I'll drink a soda if i'm drinking or am in a mood to drink a soda.
I'm not sure I like it from a simple administrative point of view. Maybe if it's taxed at the manufacturer level, but taxing at the retail level would be a pain for restaurants/etc to have to tax different items at different levels. But it is an effective solution when linked to health care. Either it reduces soda consumption (reducing obesity and thus cutting health care expenses) or it raises money for health care. Either way, it helps pay for health care costs and targets the people that cause some of that problem.
I haven't had a soda since I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I don't even like soda's much but I have to admit when they are completely off limits they are more tempting. Mostly I just drink large amounts of water or a cup of unsweetened tea these days. Should the tax apply to sugar sweetened sodas? From a sugar intake point of view, even 100% fruit juice isn't a great choice. And most juices are packed with High Fructose Corn Syrup as well. Should those be taxed?
I don't have a problem with it at all. They tax beer, cigarettes too. Unless your a person who drinks a six pack of mountain dews a day the price would only rise a bit. I still drink soda but only about two or three a week. I really could care less.