Would soda pop tax cause you to pop your top?
An article in Thursday’s Post-Dispatch reports that a group of health officials are advocating for a penny-an-ounce tax on sugary soda waters.
The group, which had an article in Wednesday’s New England Journal of Medicine, say the tax could raise $14.9 billion in its first year and help reduce American’s caloric intake by 10 percent.
The group argues that the tax could help curb consumption of sodas and other sugary drinks just as tobacco taxes have curbed cigarette use.
While President Barack Obama has said the tax would be worth considering, the idea is a tough sell to members of Congress who are wary of new taxes and have heard loud lobbying from the beverage manufacturing industry.
Do you think sodas should be taxed? Do you think such a tax would cut down consumption of soda waters?
It’s absurd. Taxing soda will not curb intake, unless the tax is much steeper, which would then be even more absurd because soda is not harmful like alcohol or tobacco. It’s just a money grab by greedy government agencies. Let’s have a national vote on it and watch it get kicked to the curb. What next..taxing life because it causes death 100 percent of the time?
The esteemed men and women of the NEJoM need to set soda pop up against “sugary drinks” like orange, apple and grape juice. Even grapefruit cocktails. Guess what? Per ounce the sodas contain fewer calories and less sugar. In point of caloric fact, they are less caloric than whole and about equal to 2% milk. The other fact is: no one drinks 72 ounces of OJ in one afternoon.
Kick the tax idea. Sell small sodas without overcharging. (Ever seen the price on those cute 8 oz. half cans of soda? It’s half as much product for 3/4 the price of regular. We’re smart. We can read and cipher. A 12 oz can is a better deal, and a 2 liter bottle better still. Make the largest fountain soda a 20 or 24 ounce, not double or triple that.
If food science people could ever come up with a caffeine delivery system which does not require sugar to mask its bitterness, or an artificial sweetener which sweetens and has no aftertaste, people would drop regular soda in a New York minute. They haven’t.
I think any product that is on the market, that contributes to obesity, should be taxed heavily. That way the people (who with their obesity and health issues) driving up health care costs pay their fair share. Right now they are getting a discount deal. This also should go towards fast food!
I’ve got a novel tax idea: Eliminate all the special and targeted sales taxes, license fees, user permits, and the like. Then, stand up and say, “hey folks, if you want these government services (list them all off), then we’ll need a general income tax increase to pay for them.
This would bring both simplification AND honesty to the tax argument.
After all, whether you call it a tax, a user fee, a license charge, or whatever…any time money leaves my pocket and enters the pocket of a government agency….it is a TAX.
By the way, just admit that taxes have been used since time immemorial to manipulate the behavior of the tax-paying public.
What’s next? A tax on Chocolate? A tax on sugar added to coffee drinks? This “tax” is something I would want to vote a resounding NO to.
hs I’ve got a novel tax idea: Eliminate all the special and targeted sales taxes, license fees, user permits, and the like. Then, stand up and say, “hey folks, if you want these government services (list them all off), then we’ll need a general income tax increase to pay for them.
Got to agree great idea. If you would get rid of all hidden taxes, fees ,etc. Then we could have an honest discussion about who pays for what in our society.
In Illinois, this has already happened. Sodas and candy are taxed as much as other non-food items now, instead of the 1% tax that was charged before.
A radical idea here that solves this and all other tax issues. Eliminate income tax and institute a 5 percent federal sales tax on everything. 5 percent on everything you buy, rent or pay for in any way, including services. Individuals and companies alike would pay. Rich and not-so-rich would pay. You don’t penalize any segment of society because you don’t approve of their eating or drinking habits. After all this is the Land of the Free. If I want a Dr. Pepper I should be able to have one without having to pay an extra 20 cents above the already outlandish price for one. And 5 percent of the U.S. Gross National Product should be more than enough money to run things.
Good to know they isn’t anything that can’t big fixed with a tax,
and that someone is looking out for all that is broken and needs fixing.
Don’t know about soda since I don’t drink much of it but Bottled Water should be taxed out of existence. It’s a scourge and outright scam! I’m sick and tired of seeing the empty plastic bottles everywhere and they’re polluting the oceans! OUTLAW BOTTLED WATER!