Once again, various writers are praising the proposal, especially since the idea is to fund schools with the revenue.
At the same time, these people don't seem to understand just why this tax isn't going to help squat.
This Tax ISN'T About Your Health!
I pointed this out more times than I can remember last year, but lets get this taken care of: The City of Philadelphia doesn't care about your health in relation to soda. None. Nada. Zip. Soda, in and of itself, isn't that bad for you. The reason it can cause problems is if you drink too much of it. In fact, even if you take that out of the equation, the main problem with soda today compared to 20 years ago is high-fructose corn syrup. That stuff? No, it isn't that good for you. If the soda companies went back to sugar (and with some sodas, that is the case), it wouldn't be that much of an issue.
The said, this still isn't about your health! Why? Because this tax would affect EVERYTHING with sugar in it. That means Vitamin Water, Gatorade... even Apple and Orange Juice would be taxed! APPLE JUICE! You're saying that Apple Juice is just as bad for you as soda? Really? Did I miss a memo or something?
This Tax isn't on You, the Consumer!
Another thing is, while I may hate this tax with a passion, it isn't on me. No, not at all. Instead, it taxes the STORE that sells it! I talked to a few people about that fact, and the general reaction was, "Wouldn't the stores just pass that onto the consumers?" No, I doubt they would. Soda for a lot of stores is one of their main sellers, and the cost of everything else in the store itself could go up! Certain items could get marked-up to help off-set the cost because no one wants to raise the cost of it on the consumer and lose more money.
Where does it End?!
You currently have places banning Chocolate Milk in schools, banning Happy Meal toys, and essentially denying you personal responsibility! I'm sick of it! I'm sick of all these idiots thinking they know what's best for me! In school, the best way for me to drink milk was chocolate milk, and dang it, I was one of the fastest kids in my school! I went to McDonald's once a week for a Kids Meal, and you know what? I was one of the healthiest kids in my class!
With the sugary drink tax, shouldn't we just be more responsible? Shouldn't parents be able to say "NO!" Shouldn't ADULTS be treated like ADULTS?
The reason al lthe Nanny State crap bothers me is that it isn't really doing much to help ANYONE! It comes off as "feel-good politics" that don't solve anything at all! "I'm glad that little Johnny can't get his Happy Meal toys, now he doesn't want to go anymore! But he still sits on the couch all day just watching TV and playing video games."
To some degree, its sickening that I'm so upset over this! Someone once said people should be this mad about our property taxes going up, and I told them, "YES! We should! Our roads and bridges are great and the tax increase will keep them that way!" With this, its just the start. It's 2cents an ounce now (which is insanely high to begin with!), and then its just going to go up!
What happens when the city needs more cash? It can't raise the sales tax, it can't keep raising property taxes. Heaven forbid they raise the City Wage Tax 1% next year, raising it to $1 per $20k! No! Instead, they'll raise the soda tax another penny! "Crap, we need more money! We miss-managed funds and over-paid people on our pension program, and damn it, we still want DROP so we can retire for a day! RAISE THE SODA TAX!"
Soon they'll go for someone else in the name of "health"! Soon we'll have a cheese stake tax, a Tastykake tax, a fast food tax!
Meanwhile, they don't tax bottled water which hurts the environment, it's BAD FOR YOU, and it means less water fountains! They don't stop the cyclist rampaging through traffic who runs red lights or on the sidewalk (which is a $10 Ticket-able offense!) They don't propose ways of making the city feasibly BETTER with a tax!
Wait, no, they did. Someone said bars should be open later (until 3AM) and use the extra hour to fund schools. That could work. I'm still in favor of raising the fine for riding on the sidewalk!
This Tax Doesn't Solve ANYTHING!
Most people who support this don't drink soda, juice, or anything like that. Instead, they drink water. Mostly bottled water. Why? Because they live in places where there's a lot more choices on a whole. They cook well-balanced meals and drink water. They have easy access to good food and are surrounded by people who are eating healthy as well. The idea of having a soda is rare, and really counts as an occasional treat for them.
On the other side are the people who oppose the tax and don't have access to healthy foods.
Go ahead. Ask around your office. Ask people on the street. You'll see what I mean. People with access to healthy food choices drink water, while people who live in poor sections have no real alternative but soda and juice and aren't being told anything else.
As much as this is an issue about choice, about personal responsibility... its also about culture and education.
In a large majority of our public schools, there is no real food education. There is no concept that what you put into your body really impacts you. At the same time, even if you do crave decent fruits and vegetables, where will you go? For me, it isn't easy. There are some supermarkets around me (3 really good ones, thankfully!), but they require a lot of planning to go and take about 30 minutes to get to by foot, bus, or even the train. There are a lot of people in the same situation. The corner store? The healthiest thing there are week-old vegetables.
A lot of people live in these "food deserts", and more needs to be done about it. Not only that, but we need to do more to educate children and teenagers in school about healthy eating and providing better and healthier school lunches that they'll eat! It can be done cheaply, and it'll start teaching kids to eat better so that soda doesn't look as good.
If you support the tax, that's fine. I hate the fact that people who oppose it, much like myself, are constantly lumped into the same pile of people who work for the soda industry and we seemingly have no mind of our own. I've drunk soda for years, and right now I'm trying to go more towards juice and water. The main issue? Price.
If you support the tax, realize that if you do support it for the health of the city that it isn't that simple. You need to start writing people in City Council to start looking for a way to fund more supermarkets and healthy eating courses. You know what? If Nutter used the tax money for that... I wouldn't mind. Much. I'd still complain, but hey, at least its going to something decent.
