Taxing Processed and Junk Food

You really want our government to decide what is and isnt junk food? The usda recomends you eat 250 grams of carbs a day.

In a utopian society we could possibly get away with this, without losing all semblance of control. But when you hand something over to the government that is not how it works. So you say, "we want the food not on the perimeter of the store taxed." they say, "great we are on the same page!" Then in a few years when another road needs to be paved, or china is demanding we pay up, they would start to creep into the foods you think are healthy. Why? Because the government like any organization is run by flawed people with flawed ideals, and flawed desires. The more we "hand" over to them the less control we retain. Someone on this thread reminded us that the government is suppose to be the servant of the people.... when we slowly hand things over, we become the servants. Look how it is already. Doesn't matter what party you are with, no one feels like anything is getting done who we the people want it done.

You can't just tax a problem and hope it goes away, look how much gas costs, people still drive. Look at cigs, people still smoke. They will cut spending on other things.
I think lowering the price of healthy food would be more beneficial. Produce is high sometimes.

Increased taxes on items doesn't make people not buy said items. If that worked, then no one would smoke.

My proposal is that EBT (good stamps) be redesigned to not allow crap food - frozen dinners, cakes, sodas, candy, etc. EBT should cover the essentials to live - veggies, fruits, basic dairy, meats, grains - and not luxury foods - soda, chips. Redesigning food eligibility would still allow poorer families access to much needed government assistance, but would reduce their calorie load by default.

Poorer people often have poorer nutrition and are more likely to be obese. Instead of the government giving them free money to buy whatever they please, the government is well within their rights to put stipulations on that money. That may reduce health care costs by essentially forcing a healthier diet for poorer Americans.

If people want luxury foods, then they can pay cash.

Well then if this is your passion, go on your crusade. But I will ask you this... Do we want to become Denmark? (If you don't know, look up Denmark food and safety). They have even banned Campbell's soup.... really.

I'd live there in a heartbeat. Not just for the lack of sub-par canned soup

(And before someone says "Well then just move there and stfu" - it's not that easy to just drop everything and move half way around the world. Gotta convince my guy to move with me, but he's got a fantastic job, so I don't see us going anywhere any time soon.)

Well then if this is your passion, go on your crusade. But I will ask you this... Do we want to become Denmark? (If you don't know, look up Denmark food and safety). They have even banned Campbell's soup.... really.

I'd live there in a heartbeat. Not just for the lack of sub-par canned soup

(And before someone says "Well then just move there and stfu" - it's not that easy to just drop everything and move half way around the world. Gotta convince my guy to move with me, but he's got a fantastic job, so I don't see us going anywhere any time soon.)

Okay.... but that ain't America, baby! Land of the free.......

QUOTE In a time where junk foods, junk cereals, processed crap, etc is pushed and marketed to the height it is - people are not going to be personally responsible. UNQUOTE

Yes, people are too stupid to do the right thing for themselves. Luckily, we have the smart people like you and our government who know better and will make sure you do the right thing... or else. Sorry but we have to tax the crap out of anything that we think isn't good... for your own good, because you're an idiot.

Why don't you tax unprotected sex while you're at it? TV watching too?

Where does it end? And for that matter, since when has the government become a master of the people rather than servant of the people?

I have spent many years in defense of our freedom, ideology like this (and all the coolaid drinkers nodding in agreement) make me wonder if my service was in vain.

I also spent years of my life in defense of this country. Adding a tax is not taking away anyone's freedom - it is making them pay more for the crap and junk they want to stuff their faces with.

However, I have had enough. I did what I was supposed to do to get off all medications and control my health through diet and exercise..............have I lost all the weight I want to lose yet? No, but I am still working on it as I am going to get down to my military days weight again.

If I did the right things and got off the medications, so can anyone else. Especially those suffering from complications from Diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol issues, etc.

For the most part people think I can eat anything I want..............I don't need to control my high blood pressure.........why??? Because there are pills for that.

All the while the Big Pharma, food companies all get richer while the people of this country get sicker and sicker. This is the reason that health care is out of control.

I am tired of paying for everyone else's sickness through my high premiums, co-payments and co-insurance. The bottom line is the subsidies lie in the wrong spot.

Why not start subsidizing brocolli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, hell, even potatoes and sweet potatoes (even though I am not a fan).

Why not give extra tax cuts to the local farmer who humanely raises and grazes his cattle and then humanely slaughters them ?

Maybe no one else cares about what is happening to our food supply - but I do.

You are completely wrong my friend, this does take away freedom (though that wasn't my original point) from all of us. Just another ***** in our personal freedom's armor. EDIT NOTE: HAHA, like the ***** in my second sentence, ***** is c h i n k. So much for freedom of speech!
What is distressing is that you don't see it. So I will ask you this;
how well has the government with the taxes it has already collected? I would say that is a fail of monumental proportions.
Will adding yet another bureaucracy actually save ANYONE any money? Never has, never will.


Well then if this is your passion, go on your crusade. But I will ask you this... Do we want to become Denmark? (If you don't know, look up Denmark food and safety). They have even banned Campbell's soup.... really.

Success of the nordic countries: more prosperous than the US and with a population in better mental and physical shape:

http://jotman.blogspot.com/2009/06/is-nordic-model-worth-emulating.html

No! We get taxed too much already. This is the last thing we need, as the man said before "sin taxes" are ridiculous. Let people make their own decisions. Make it so that we don't pay for their medical bills then it wont matter if they are unhealthy.

Well then if this is your passion, go on your crusade. But I will ask you this... Do we want to become Denmark? (If you don't know, look up Denmark food and safety). They have even banned Campbell's soup.... really.

This is hardly my idea of an infringement on my liberties. I'd thank the government for having some concern over my health, rather than giving in to the almighty dollar. Sure, I can make my own decisions. But I am educated and I care, a lot of people don't care.

In a utopian society we could possibly get away with this, without losing all semblance of control. But when you hand something over to the government that is not how it works. So you say, "we want the food not on the perimeter of the store taxed." they say, "great we are on the same page!" Then in a few years when another road needs to be paved, or china is demanding we pay up, they would start to creep into the foods you think are healthy. Why? Because the government like any organization is run by flawed people with flawed ideals, and flawed desires. The more we "hand" over to them the less control we retain. Someone on this thread reminded us that the government is suppose to be the servant of the people.... when we slowly hand things over, we become the servants. Look how it is already. Doesn't matter what party you are with, no one feels like anything is getting done who we the people want it done.

Well said, the government is made up of human's and human's are flawed. Best to leave people the right and ability to succeed or fail on their own accord, whether it be with a career, or their personal health. The problem with everyone's insurance rates rising is caused by government involvement in the first place! Let's not have more of the same.

The whole foundation that made our country GREAT is the idea that man CAN govern himself.

Why do people keep believing a bunch of beurocrats who can't balance a budget, and have what a 10% approval rating now??? accomplish ANYTHING at all that wouldn't be better left in the hand's of the people! If you're so passionate about a healthy lifestyle, start a non-profit program and go to schools/churches/after school programs and offer to do a teaching!

Stop throwing OTHER PEOPLE's Money at things. It isn't yours, it's mine, stop stealing it.

I personally believe there is also the implication that this happens most when personal responsibility is not only valued, but a necessity for survival. If there is no nanny state to fall back on people WILL start to make GOOD choices, and if they don't their suffering is brought upon themselves.

Do I believe that we don't have some responsibility to care for the less fortunate? I do think that as INDIVIDUALS we should care for those we believe need to be cared for...however the insane level of abuse in such a large government system has destroyed our nations prosperity and perhaps our nation's ability to survive.

Oooh, them's fightin' words. I won't even get into a definition of "freedom," as that is a hot topic.

Really? Ppffhhhht!

Definition of FREEDOM

the quality or state of being free: as
a : the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action
b : liberation from slavery or restraint or from the power of another : independence


there is more of course but the point stands

While I agree with the sentiment, I disagree with the implementation.

Taxes and subsidies just give the government permission to reach further into our lives and dictate our decision. Education is still the best route. If more people begin to chose healthier options there will be less junk on the shelves. It is simple supply and demand.

The reverse side of this though, is that we, as a nation, do not have the resources to feed every American fresh meats and produce. So as less and less junk food is being sold, the prices of fresh meats and produce would increase because the demand would increase but the supply cannot. So in reality, the people buying all the junk food are keeping the meat and produce prices lower for you and I.

Me, too. But what next? Cheese? Butter? Whole milk? Fatty cuts of meat? Things will just cost more if people buy less. They already are sky high.

We just met a guy from New Zealand this year who said he was totally blown away by the sheer number of extremely obese individuals and whole families that he saw here in CA. He was beside himself because he said in NZ he is considered very overweight and an oddity and yet he would be considered "normal" here. Probably 6'1" and 235 pounds. I asked him what he thought was different. His reply was obvious to me: "We don't have 4 different fast food restaurants to choose from at every single intersection." His culture is that people "make dinner". It is from actual food, not packets or cans.

I don't know what the solution is. You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. The info is out there. We all got it some how. We were all fat and eating junk most likely, yet we are just a small handful of people that is actually doing something about it for any number of reasons. Congratulations, guys! I guess it is live and let "live".

Haha I had a friend live in New Zealand and when he came back he would toast bread butter it then put Top Ramen noodles on it, haha it is delicous and he said they ate it all the time over there. I really think it is portions and our lifestyles, europeans are much healthier and they eat processed foods at almost every meal.

But it is kinda hard to deny that according to that definition, taxing junk foods would be an infringement on our freedoms.