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1. Soda Tax : Stay Out Of My Food

Soda Tax : Stay Out Of My Food

Jolene Sugarbaker talks about the alarming announcement from Governor Patterson of New York to charge a tax on Sugared beverages. The Soda Tax MUST ...

User Comments

scizophrenicpanda commented on 10 Mar 2010

You're a dumbass. I said the government would be thinking for you if they BANNED soda, not if they taxed. You just keep repeating the exact same argument, that I "can't think for myself". Nice debating skills. Right now, the government is subsidizing corn that goes into processed foods to make it cheaper. By your logic, the government is "thinking for me" and trying to make me buy those kinds of foods. So the government can think for you when it doesn't involve taxes? I think for myself, do you?

scizophrenicpanda commented on 09 Mar 2010

Do you think taxing cigarettes was a terrible idea? Was it awful of the government to tax something that kills thousands of people? Sorry, I forgot, cigarette use is declining, and anything the government wants to happen is BAD! I said the government isn't "thinking for you" if they tax soda, they're just collecting money from you to save up for when you're on medicare and having heart attacks every other week. The Boston tea party was about taxation WITHOUT representation. You're just whining.

scizophrenicpanda commented on 11 Mar 2010

I'm sorry if I'm misinterpreting your slaughter of English spelling and grammar, but it seems like you think that subsidizing corn is irrelevant. If making things more expensive to discourage people from buying them is the government thinking for you, then making things cheaper to encourage people to buy them is also the government thinking for you. It's the same thing. As for "what America USED to stand for," there were many founding fathers for stronger government. Hamilton. Learn about him.

jteeselink commented on 02 Sep 2010

The entire idea of taxing soda is not necassary. It comes down to US farm policy. What is in our sodas and other junk foods.. HFCS! All you have to do is stop subsidizing the production of corn and the price of soda will increase naturaly. The only reason to grow corn is subsidies. W/o subsidies, corn production will stop until the market the price rises (due to lower supply). Just let basic free market econ take over & the price will go up on it's own. HFCS is only cheep because of subsidies!

zeragito commented on 05 Dec 2009

@mizzpeller, so they choose junk-food over their cholesterol, blood-sugar and blood pressure lowering medication lol. I don't mean to be cynical, but the irony is there. Yes junk-food is cheaper than healthy food. But make its producers pay for its long term cost on public health, productivity and the environment. Then use the income from that industry to subsidize healthy food, health care and organic farms. This way old people will need less - but afford more medication and healthier food.

scizophrenicpanda commented on 11 Mar 2010

I'm not arguing? All you seem capable of doing is yelling about how you don't need the government to think for you and insulting me. You still haven't addressed why you're ok with subsidizing corn but not taxing soda. I need to brush up on my American history?! I'm pretty sure the Pilgrims left to set up a Puritan settlement, not because of soda taxes. You seem to have a very basic knowledge of the founding fathers. Some of them supported strong government. They were called the Federalists.

formerchildmessiah commented on 04 Jan 2009

WildCherry7777. I don't know where in Dallas you are. But, it's $5.60 a gallon for whole milk at the Tom Thumb on Lovers. It's .88 for one orange. For ONE orange. And it's not just food. I paid $360 for my org chem book for this term. My roommates and I live on huevos con chorizo burritos, fideo (it's like a poor mans hamburger helper only Mexican), Ramen noodles and care packages from home.(BTW Jolene. You should do a show on the foods you can add to Ramen noodles to make them quite tasty)

vcovreson commented on 02 Jan 2009

the gist of the overall video is 'cheaper is better'. if this were a decent mantra to live by, we would be the healthiest ppl in the world. funny how ppl bitch and whine about the cost of this and the taxes on that, but we always seem to find money for beer, cigarettes, internet, lottery tickets, iphones, cable t.v.... maybe, just maybe it's time we look past the ends of our own noses when making decisions. take responsibility for what you put in your own body. your health is the payoff.

vcovreson commented on 02 Jan 2009

hey boy genius, try doing a little research regarding the colonists and the 'tea party'. you may find out that was 'hella' more than about taxes on tea. look into 'taxation without representation'. it may open your eyes a little. or do you think we american citizens are motivated and organized enough to fight ANYTHING? when is tha last time you saw americans effect a change in anything (with the notable exception of the voting process)? i doubt we could get the jaywalking law repealed.

zeragito commented on 04 Dec 2009

@Diosdebaca exactly! I'm not blaming the consumer tho, like Jolene said, that's all some of us can afford. I blame the f-ed up prices. I am all for a soda (sugar) tax, I'd even support a fat tax that increases according to level of saturation and cholesterol. Subsidize organic fruits and veg. instead of high fructose GM corn and animal products...With taxes, we still have a choice, you just pay for the long term effects brought on society and the environment by our (over)-consumption.

t4705mb6 commented on 31 Dec 2008

Thank you for this video, Jolene! You have a great forum that allows you to address the things that are causing the public a lot of suffering lately. I think people need those with the means to do it, to identify with the publics strong concerns about where our "leadership" is taking us. I also believe that subjects like this can be handled in a comic or "light hearted" way but still hit the nail. In my opinion, its best to connect with others on the concerns of the day. Thank you.

zeragito commented on 03 Dec 2009

@Diosdebaca this video was made before Obama and maybe Jolene exaggerated a lil bit but junk food is always cheaper than fresh fruits. Maybe that's where the problem is. If you're gonna make bad stuff expensive, then you should make the good stuff cheaper so people at least have "the right choice" left, rather than no choice. jstherapeutic makes a point tho. Here's an idea, you can't use food stamps to buy alcohol or cigarettes right? So then junk food should be off limits too:)

RobertaBobbiCatpurr commented on 30 Dec 2008

Hey you! Thanks for the hello the other day. I cant answer back thankyou YouTube mobile! Yet do have on my playlist my email. Your wonderful and I read your Wikipedia very neat! Now onto the topic! I work at a huge grocery chain here in Ottawa Canada as a cashier. The costs are terrifying. I now work overnight alone making salads and fruitbowls. The kicker? My wage is nine bucks an hour and many bowls cost that! I cant tell you except when I have yogurt when I had fruit! SAD.

scizophrenicpanda commented on 12 Mar 2010

You can stop replying any time you want. The colonists fought taxation without REPRESENTATION, which you have if you're over the age of 18. And corn has everything to do with soda, because it's the reason why soda is so cheap and available. You're not arguing with me at all, you're just failing miserably at trying to invalidate my arguments, which you haven't yet done. Some founding fathers supported taxes after the war. Ever heard of the whiskey tax? Washington passed it.

SaganAppreciationSoc commented on 30 Dec 2008

All non-essential foods that have health negatives should be taxed into oblivion. I say this as a person with a chocolate & sugar problem. :-) A bigger problem is probably meat, dairy and eggs. Tax those first, and kill the subsidies for those industries. Tell you what, we'll let you eat that crap, but you sign a waiver saying you'll never ask the taxpayers to help you if you stroke out, wreck your joints or otherwise become disabled- noo medicaid, no medicare. Deal?

Ryan Joynt commented on 24 Sep 2009

As for the government invading your free choice, well, if your opposed to the idea of taxes, then, I can't exactly argue with you. But, excise taxes are applied to anything from gasoline to cigarettes. A tax on soda is, to me, a fine idea because soda incurs a cost to society in the form of an increase in health care costs due to higher rates of diabetes and obesity. Soda costs society. Society has a need, and right, to mitigate that cost in a reasonable manner.

dreadnaught09 commented on 16 May 2009

the food "industry" & the fda are the reason farmed goods are so expensive. they have fooled you into thinking its about "grown folks" making there own choices. the choice has already been made for you. they want you to buy cheap unhealthy "product" so they tax organics, (farm foods) and the farmers almost out of business while @ the same time allowing companies to create thousands of chemical combinations atop corn based space fillers @ little cost to them.

formerchildmessiah commented on 08 Jan 2009

Next time you go shopping...take his ass with you. Seriously! I'm near SMU in the Park Cities/Highland Park area. We don't have a WalMart near here. I think the closest is in Richardson on Central Expressway. There is a word they use in economics. It's called hyper-inflation. And this is what's happening. Upside...my roommates and I, all got care packages from home, and my mom sent 20 dozen tamales and a equal amount of tortillas. WHOOOHOOOOO

Omar Spence commented on 08 Jun 2010

Its your life, live it how you want it, but if you want to make stupid choices you really should pay. Other peoples' stupid choices cost the rest of us billions of dollars every year to deal with the consequences. There should be a heavy tax levied on cooking fats as well. Gluttony is wasteful, unhealthy and expensive, but it seems to be very common in America, this needs to change in order to bring America's healthcare costs under control.

Ryan Joynt commented on 24 Sep 2009

Risking restarting that firestorm, I find this an interesting issue. While I understand that idea that this is somehow restraining public choice, and taxing food, people are correct when they say that soda and the like is a LUXURY ITEM. It has no nutritional value, you don't need it to survive, or even have a good meal. Stop acting like the government is taking your food and leaving you to starve. Its /SODA/. You don't need it. At all.

Ferntube123 commented on 26 Sep 2012

Bring back soda macines in school. I though the purpose of school was to teach kids. I guess they fail again as usual, they can't even teach kids how to make the right choices. No they remove the machines and everyone hurts. I know because the place where someone dad works loses money because of this. Does Dad or Mom need to lose work or hours because of this? Now this same kid wont go to college. Dad couldn't save enough.

Maphiro611 commented on 30 Dec 2008

Yeah, and don't forget how the CIA scientists created Bigfoot by genetically engineering a hybrid from yourself and a normal human being. They did this to create a perfect fighting being to battle the aliens that the former KGB brought here to defeat capitalism. Then there is Elvis, John Kennedy, the loch ness monster, Marilyn Monroe and the other endless Goverment conspiracies. Take the dam pills already!

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