Sugar is the new "Devil"

I'm opposed to making humanity more vicious rather than more civilized by rewarding people with power for wealth accumulation. I see no reason why a Bush should have more decision making power in policies that affect my life than I do just because many great-great-grandaddy Bush's ago the family made a killing in the slave trade. I'd rather take my chances on direct democracy for anything that absolutely has to be decided on to maintain society together.

Thank you for the civil and intelligent discussion, though, hope you have a nice day! :flowerforyou:

I don't agree with the tax.

But one day I would like to see soda or sweet sugary drinks be more price wise than water. But that's more me wanting to see the price of bottled water go down because it's redic. I hardly ever drink it - but live in a town that has some horrible water so if I'm somewhere that dosn't have a filter I'll go buy a bottle. I find my self wanting water sometimes but getting soda because in the end it's cheaper.

That is just crazy!!!! I'm so lucky here in South Africa because the water on tap is pretty good by most standards. I rarely have to buy bottled water.

Now that's really one for the books - WHY IS WATER MORE EXPENSIVE THAN SODA? Does not make sense.

I'm opposed to making humanity more vicious rather than more civilized by rewarding people with power for wealth accumulation. I see no reason why a Bush should have more decision making power in policies that affect my life than I do just because many great-great-grandaddy Bush's ago the family made a killing in the slave trade. I'd rather take my chances on direct democracy for anything that absolutely has to be decided on to maintain society together.

Thank you for the civil and intelligent discussion, though, hope you have a nice day! :flowerforyou:

well let's be fair (i am no fan of the Bush family)
But there are wealthy on both sides of the political spectrum.
Clinton's are doing just fine
Gore is doing just fine
Obama is worth millons
Nancy Pelosi is worth a TON
Harry Reid, ditto

So let's just say politicians......not just direct it at one family.

I see no reason why 535 ppl have the ability to determine and make choices for my life in general....outside of what is in the constitution.

Yep, been a great discussion

We could just strive for a dictatorship.

Sugary drinks are not a necessity, similar to alcohol and tobacco. They are luxury items. Candy is also a luxury item. I could see a day where more things are taxed as such. It's not going to stop anyone because it's pennies on the dollar. It's a non-issue.

I don't think the government should be using that term anyway. It's a subtle violation of separation of church and state.

Not really "new"..Sugar,White Flour, and Salt have always been known as the "Three White Deaths" Reduce or get rid of these and you will be a long way on the journey to health

People want to work and have nice things

Are you sure about that?

Can you say it with 100% certainty that people want to work and have nice things because I have known plenty of people who lost jobs and sat back collecting unemployment -- and kept getting it extended when it ran out -- because they made more collecting than they did if they got another job. There are plenty of people who are capable of getting a job but they choose to sit back and stay on welfare because it's easier to hold your hand out and get money than it is to get off your butt and get a job.

I suppose I should have said 'most people'. I defy you to make the argument that we'll have less people working hard for long hours at dirty and dangerous jobs if they're actually paid well for those jobs.

The reason many choose welfare (aside from the fact that outsourcing has made it so we don't have enough jobs) is because working doesn't lift many out of poverty at all, so why work if you aren't getting anywhere for it?

Let me ask you a question. I work in 911 here in NYC. I've had days, where in one day I responded to a guy stabbed 16 times who we didn't let die, a guy shot in the leg, a drunk who's friend hit him in the head with a beer bottle and cut hit artery and a young boy playing football who broke his tibula in half, how much doe you think my job is worth doing? I wake up at 430am to go to work. Snowing a foot, my office doesn't close, because my office is the street, people will still need us.

How much should I demand before I accept going to work?

One thing I can guarantee to is i don't make anywhere near what I'm worth. What I deserve, for the role I play. Have you ever know what it's like to actually have someone's life in your hands? Like really, live or die if you get flustered?

Meerata,

Bumping my question because I'd like to hear what you think.

I'm not mixing anything. If you don't want to subsidize food so the poor can eat, I don't want to subsidize your military, police force, or National Guard. Hire protection or defend yourself.

You are mixing things

It is in constitutions both state and federal for those things....it is a government role...
It is not in those constitutions to influence the market place...
Or to take money from one group and give to another

And I do protect myself, I take advantage of the 2nd Amendment

Either you want taxation for society or not. If you don't, you're an old fashioned, all out anarchist. If you do, you're for government intervention. It's just a matter of your opinion on what government should be involved in vs mine. If we actually had real democracy we could find out what the majority of Americans really want. We don't. We have an oligarchy dressed as a Republic with a constitution that is conveniently ignored every time the real decision makers want something different.

IT IS NOT A MATTER OF OPINION
It is written down in black ink on parchment, that government has a role in those areas.....
You live in this country, it is what our law states

Exactly
WE ARE A REPUBLIC, not a Democracy...
Democracy is mob rule....
it is 2 wolves and a sheep sitting and deciding what is for dinner

A Republic is
Two wolves and a sheep deciding what is for dinner, but the sheep has a gun

I'd rather mob rule than rich rule, which is, if you know your history (and I suspect you're intelligent enough to know it) is what we've always had.

Oh boy. Really? The only reason you can say that is because of how far we have come as a society. If we were a mob rule government, minorities would never have a fair shot. Women's suffrage would have never happened. And people would still find a way to gain the system for their benefit.

Joining the "Weepy, left wing commie 'murica-hating sissy government sheep " in the pro "sin" taxes corner.

Where I'm from (not 'merica) the taxes are pretty darn high, on most thing actually, but the benefits are substantial. We have FREE health care and free education for everyone so there is nothing stopping anyone from getting the help they need or the education they desire. Just sayin

It ain't "Free", you are paying for it in many ways....and not just taxes.

and here in "merica", no one is turned down for health care.
Hospitals cannot turn a person away it is against the law, so they are forced to treat people.
Regardless if the person can or cannot pay

What you are referring to only applies to emergency situations or women in labor. Many people cannot afford the maintenance treatments they need for chronic diseases or other diseases like certain kinds of cancer. Those aren't considered emergencies - until the person is about to keel over for it. And even then, they are given the basic treatment that will prevent death - not necessarily the maintenance treatment they need. And they are still billed for it.

I was talking to my Mom's oncologist, who we trust and have a good relationship with. He says that the unregulated pharmaceutical companies and biotech manufacturers are driving up the costs of healthcare. By comparison the doctors are cheap. My Mom's ONE medication of the ten she takes costs $100,000+ a year. We are lucky that insurance covers it. Others are not so fortunate.

One of the most disturbing trends I've seen (not saying you feel this way, just what I've seen in the media) is the blatant disregard for the lives of people who can't afford basic healthcare. Can't afford it? Too bad, you're poor so you don't really deserve to live anyway. And if you get the treatment you need? Be prepared to be hurdled into even more debt if you don't have insurance.

What's happened to us?!

I'm not an economist, so I can't tell you if sin taxes or socialized medicine are the right answer. I know that SOMETHING needs to change - both on the healthcare end and on the personal responsibility end. People need to start taking personal responsibility for their health (read: obesity) but the healthcare system needs some sort of change too.

Before you offer an opinion on health care please be sure you really know how it works. I, work in health care, live in america, and let me tell you something, people are not stupid and they know how to get around things. So you say it has to be an emergency situation where someone is Keeling over? Have you ever considered going to the ER for the flu, a headache, a toothache? No? Well I have picked up hundreds of patients that dial 911 that want to be driven to the ER due to those issues. And I'm told plenty of times that they do that because they can't pay for a doctor. Guess who pays that bill? Us, who work and pay for insurance.

I didn't say that ALL people in the emergency room are ready to keel over. Many people wait to get treatment because they weren't able to go to a regular's doctor's office. They wait until things get bad.

You're absolutely right - people do go the ER for little things too because they can't go see a regular doctor. What does that tell you about how screwey the system is, if people can't afford to go to the doctor? The hospitals do end up covering the cost. That's not right - because the system is not right in the first place.

That doesn't mean people who can't afford it don't deserve healthcare, in my opinion.

I'm sorry but I do not agree with the whole 'people can't afford to go to the doctor' argument.

So you don't have insurance. Big deal. Guess what? Doctors take CASH and it's NOT as expensive as one would think for a simple visit. Don't have a doctor? Go to a clinic. My husband sprained his ankle really bad several months back. We don't have a GP so we waited until the after hours clinic opened up. We have insurance but we have a $10,000 deductible because our insurance is for a catastrophic emergency only so we always say we don't have insurance. His exam including the 6 x-rays they took was around $250.

Oh, and you know what else? Doctors and hospitals will put you on a payment plan if you can't afford to pay the bill up front. A friend of mine had to go to the hospital and she had no insurance and was put on a payment plan and they worked with her and asked her what could she afford every month and that's what she paid.

So not being able to afford a doctor/not having insurance is a weak excuse. And since Obamacare came into play more doctors are going to be only accepting cash.