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pagtatalo What would you do if your city enacted a sugary drink tax? (An extra tax on drinks like sodas, sports drinks, and some juices.)

17 fans picked:
I don't drink that stuff anyway.
   53%
Quit, or seriously cut back on my sugary drink intake.
   24%
Pay it. I need my sugar, man.
   12%
Switch to a diet version that the tax doesn't apply to.
   6%
Buy my sugary drinks elsewhere.
   6%
 DarkSarcasm posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas
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12 comments

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zanhar1 picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
Not much anymore. But if I didn't I'd get it elsewhere. I don't think that the government should infringe on dietary choices like that. Especially if they refuse to lower the price on healthier options too.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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applebear123 picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
^
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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DarkSarcasm picked Buy my sugary drinks elsewhere.:
Especially if they refuse to lower the price on healthier options too.
That would lead to link, like companies lobbying and scheming with politicians to determine what's "healthy" and get their own products on or off the list. If the government stays out of it, there are no favors to trade, and people can make their own decisions.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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zanhar1 picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
Tbh I feel like we're living in the reverse of that; the gov is bitching that we have an obesity problem and yet they are pushing fast food and junk down our throats. It's much cheaper to buy a dollar burger from McDonalds than the healthier alternatives. Or if you're really in a bind it's cheaper to pick up a fifty cent candy bar than a nutrigrain bar or something.
As things are now in America the healthier choice is taken away from Americans who want it. As things are now the gov is already interfering with people's dietary decisions via twisted capitalism. My biggest example; I went to a fast food place only wanting a four piece set of nuggets to hold me over and a small soda. The large soda and (idk how many pieces it was exactly) bigger quantity of nuggets combo was more cost effective. In other words because of money I was pushed to get the less healthy option; granted I only ate what I wanted of it but I felt kinda bad for wasting food.

Over all though I think that the government should just stay out of peoples' food habits in general and let people make their own choices.

So what am I saying then of the prices; I think that there should be a balance. To go with our dollar burgers and fifty cent candy bars an dollar salad and fifty cent granola bar should be offered. That way people can have the healthier option at a reasonable cost as well as the junk food.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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DarkSarcasm picked Buy my sugary drinks elsewhere.:
How is the government pushing fast food down our throats? They didn't step in and demand that fast food joints create dollar menus. The restaurants did, when they realized that's what the customer wanted, and that's what would sell.

How is a healthier choice being taken away? Who took it? And if prices of healthy food should be regulated, who should be in charge of that - individual restaurants or stores, local government, federal government, newly created task force The Health Brigade? Who gets to determine that this granola bar is healthy, but that one isn't? How much money will the food companies waste sucking up to politicians to have their products included (or excluded), which will then get tacked on to the customer's price? It just gets more and more complicated, and that leaves the consumer with less options for more money.

Re-reading your comment, I think your issue is with fast food companies? I believe we may have both gotten slightly off topic. XD
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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zanhar1 picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
Yeah my issues was more or less with the fast food companies and some grocery stores.

I think that the problem lies in that they are basing it on money and not on commentary. So many people state that they'd like to eat healthier but can't afford it. So they keep spending on the cheaper stuff because it's the more affordable option. So it creates the illusion that people would prefer it. If that makes sense. That's a huge flaw of capitalism. Sort of like Apple products. Everyone bitches about the shady practices of iTunes and how Apple glitches its own products. But there aren't many other options if you just want to buy a touch screen music player. Though I'm definitely looking into it now that Apple outright confirmed that they do glitch their own tech.

I mean I'm kind of glad for the dollar menu because at least it gives low income people a chance to eat. But it'd be nice if they added some healthier options to the dollar menu.

As for the who took the healthier option away; it isn't a who. It's a what. The what is money. Healthier more balanced diets are pricier. People are less inclined to take up such diets because they are more expensive. Especially if diet isn't really a big focus in a person's life. Who determines if it's healthy; doctors, gym instructors, and dietitians. The experts on the subject. Soda is obviously high in sugar and fat. Lots of calories. All one has to do to determine if something is healthier or not is look at the nutrition facts. If it's a good source of vitamins and is low in carbs usually that indicates a healthier option (if I have my facts right). In other words the individual kind of determines whether or not its healthy and the companies should listen to the commentary instead of the cash-flow--not that that's ever gonna happen. Of course they could lie about the nutrition facts but that's pointlessly assholey to do.
As for the sucking up; that's why I said that there needs to be a balance. Have both a salad and a burger on the dollar menu for example.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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DarkSarcasm picked Buy my sugary drinks elsewhere.:
In other words the individual kind of determines whether or not its healthy and the companies should listen to the commentary instead of the cash-flow--not that that's ever gonna happen.
That's the thing, though - people keep buying $1 burgers, and sodas, and things they know are bad for them. So the companies keep producing them. Because that's what the people want. How many people really go into a fast food restaurant because they want a salad?

According to internet price lists (since I have never paid attention to the salad section of a fast food menu): Wendy's, McDonalds and Burger King all have side salads for less than $2.

Also less than $2: A whole head of lettuce at the grocery store, which could salad-ify a whole family.

Think about healthy food vs. junk food: What grows faster? What keeps longer? Weighs more? Takes up more room? How much time and effort does it take to prepare? How far does it have to be shipped? How many people harvested, processed, or transported it? There are a lot of factors in how much something costs. Organic produce, for example, might not grow as fast as something helped along by chemicals, and if it's out of season where you are it has to be shipped in, and since there are no preservatives, it has a considerably shorter shelf-life, so it has to get to the store fast. That's probably why it costs more than, say, a bag of chips - potatoes are cheap to grow and process, chips are light and easy transport, they're loaded with preservatives so they can sit in the factory or in your pantry for much longer than a few days.

And by this long and unnecessary comment about organic produce, I mean that prices aren't just random numbers. They need to cover all the manufacturer's costs and give 'em a little profit. Otherwise, why would they even bother?

I just watched a video yesterday about link, which may have something to do with the fact that there isn't a lot of competition in the touch screen music player biz.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
last edited sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas
 
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misanthrope86 picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
Sugar taxes work to reduce consumption (y'all can Google Scholar it yourselves - there are billion studies in various forms) which can help prevent illnesses that burden individuals, families, communities and societies. What these studies rarely account for is how they work. Anecdotally, families go without.

A major problem here in NZ is that poor families can have 2 parents working 2-3 jobs each, so going to a supermarket, buying the ingredients and cooking a meal any night of the week, let alone every night of the week, is an impossibility. Fast food becomes the only option for feeding a family. Fast food is already expensive, so taxing it further presses the boot down on poor families.

We also have an issue with supermarkets making massive profits at the expense of customers, suppliers and entry-level staff. Supermarket prices are extremely high and that money is not going into the pockets of staff or suppliers.

This is one of the many reasons why capitalism is a pile of ass: it requires participants to consume in ways that maximise profit, and when that consumption creates issues that then prevent the participants from participating (ie for health reasons, financial reasons, death) the boot comes down harder.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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Cinders picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
Seattle did that, and to be honest, while many SAID they'd go out of their way to buy the sodas, the convenience factor of just paying the tax (rather than driving thirty-forty minutes just for soda) or just not buying them at all and opting for other beverages means more people are paying it rather than traveling. I rarely drink soda in the first place (though I do drink fancy lattes more often - don't care, I'll pay) and the taxes here are going to fund health programs and education, so I'm not complaining about it. And I'm really not worried about Cocacola Corp's profits. They are literally everywhere, and people still love soda.

I don't think a sugar tax is right for every city or state, but I think it works in some places. I would be against enacting one nationally, but support most local initiatives.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
last edited sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas
 
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AudreyFreak picked I don't drink that stuff anyway.:
Please do. America has a junk food addiction and this may help. People do not need 5 Cokes a day or even one. Just drink tea and honey/juice and club soda if you need a sweet drink.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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ShadowFan100 picked Quit, or seriously cut back on my sugary drink intake.:
If they do, that's all the more reason for me to switch to just water and chocolate drinks. Hell, they put taxes on food, why not go an extra miler?
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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sunnyfields picked Quit, or seriously cut back on my sugary drink intake.:
I rarely have it anyway. Usually for family get togethers, birthdays, or holidays, so it wouldn't impact me too much.
posted sa loob ng isang taon na ang nakalipas.
 
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