Tax on Soft Drinks

Honestly.

No one needs sweet drinks--whether they are sweetened with corn syrup or cane sugar or honey from pedigreed bees.

Cigarettes and liquor are subject to sin taxes--why not sweet drinks?

You're right, no one really does need sweet drinks. It's not like water or milk or fruit juices. But I wouldn't put beverages with high fructose corn syrup in the same category as cigarettes and liquor. I like to drink soda every once in a while and as I mentioned, it's about moderation. I personally do not believe that hfcs is to blame for obesity, which the article mentions is the reason for the possible ban. There are many factors which come into play and it's important to be aware of them all and change our lifestyles accordingly.

HFCS is evil.

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I generally support taxes on junk food. We've had them here for a number of years. Food, no tax. Junk food, tax. Yup, like it.

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HFCS is evil. I check labels carefully to try to avoid it. Pure evil.

Yellow Rosebud--

Soft drinks have been implicated in obesity.

Could you possibly be a astro-turf lobbyist for the soft drink industry? A number of your posts have shown a commercial bias.

I just know that I can't completely cut certain foods out of my diet. I do much better when I allow myself to eat small portions of things I love. I'd be a disaster without my weekly chocolate chip cookie.

Noddy,

Sweet drinks contain sugar. Your body runs on sugar. Without sugar, you die.

Of course you can get sugar from other sources than sweet drinks, but there is no single food that contains a nutrient that can't be got from somewhere else.

If you are ever stranded on a desert island... sweet drinks will keep you alive longer than water (and sweet drinks even contain water). You can't say that about either alcohol or cigarettes (although high calorie alcoholic drinks like beer have similar benefits to sweet drinks).

Food should not be taxed.

You don't "need" milk or fruit juices either. :wink:

EBrown--

The rules for Desert Island Survival are different from the Rules for Groceries on a Tight Budget.

Long live complex carbohydrates!

Sure.... my point is that when it comes to the appropriateness of a "sin" tax there is a substantial difference between food (even junk food like sweet drinks) and true vices like cigarettes and booze.

I think the desert island test (i.e. it is better than nothing) is relevant.

((perhaps I should have made that a dessert island))

Ebrown--

Moderation in all things, including sugary drinks.

Meanwhile, I knows sin when I sees it and I'd like to tax sin when I see it.