NYC Sugary Drink Ban. What do you think?

[Najja]

I really like how this ban is on Sugary drinks but lets the liver destroying alcoholic beverages which are so much more dangerous just scoot right on past. Really? So letting someone buy a 20 ounce soda is a terrible thing but go right ahead and buy yourself a 40 ounce beer? Seriously this makes absolutely no sense.

[Sorrior]

Am i the ONLY one more worried about the "diet sweetener" bit? Yeah the law itself is TOTAL BS...But alot of those "diet sweeteners" like splenda and aspartame are pretty downright nasty things to consume....They can REALLY mess you up so THAT bit has me even MORE worried.

[Adam Jensen]

That could be a possible deterrent though couldn't it? Who want's to pay for the same thing twice?

Refills are typically free.

And anyways, I think this sort of thing oversteps the bounds of government authority. Not a big fan of nanny state government.

And I'm a liberal.

[Veyne]

Government should at least promote eating healthy and wisely not "YOU CAN'T TAKE X DRINKS NOW CAUSE IT ILLEGAL HUR HUR." Not trying to insult anyone here, just pointing out what I feel.

How do you propose they do so? It's not like they haven't been promoting healthy eating for YEARS now.

Also, adding something as asinine as "Hur hur" to an imaginary quote from the opposing stance only serves to show your lack of capacity to carry on an intelligent debate on the matter.

This ideal of Freedom I keep seeing pop up is silly in its own right. The concept of freedom was thrown out the window the very moment the first law was written in this country. The government has long since had the power to choose which substances are illegal, which substances are restricted and controlled, etc... There have been products taken completely off the market for what was deemed too high of levels of certain substances. This happens all the time, and I see no reason why they should not restrict how much of something with countless negative health effects and absolutely zero redeeming nutritional qualities can be sold in a single item.

[Shamburger]

I'm not American so I'm not sure, but shouldn't at least some of you be pleased with the steps your government is making towards a healthier life style?

With the introduction of your new healthcare system I figure you'd be glad that -in theory- your tax dollars will not be going to take care of some person that chooses to be obiese, and leeching off the system.

[valliant13]

here's a crazy idea....why dont they just make the unhealthy food more expensive than the healthy food? Ever go to the grocery store and see that buying produce costs a shit ton more than a half gallon of ice cream, potato chips, and candy? How about mcdonalds with their dollar menu...i can get a meal for 5 bucks..If I go to panera bread and get their healthiest items im dropped 15 or so.

I honestly love to hate this great country I live in called america. Land filled with the stupidest people on earth...yes lets keep cheap food unhealthy and healthy food expensive and wonder why america is getting fatter by the second(im including myself in this list)

---------- Post added 2013-03-11 at 12:32 AM ----------

I'm not American so I'm not sure, but shouldn't at least some of you be pleased with the steps your government is making towards a healthier life style?

With the introduction of your new healthcare system I figure you'd be glad that -in theory- your tax dollars will not be going to take care of some person that chooses to be obiese, and leeching off the system.

The reason people don't like the new healthcare system is because people who dont contribute to are going to get it.(aka the illegal immigrants that provide a large example of whats wrong with america)

[darkwarrior42]

How do you propose they do so? It's not like they haven't been promoting healthy eating for YEARS now.

Also, adding something as asinine as "Hur hur" to an imaginary quote from the opposing stance only serves to show your lack of capacity to carry on an intelligent debate on the matter.

This ideal of Freedom I keep seeing pop up is silly in its own right. The concept of freedom was thrown out the window the very moment the first law was written in this country. The government has long since had the power to choose which substances are illegal, which substances are restricted and controlled, etc... There have been products taken completely off the market for what was deemed too high of levels of certain substances. This happens all the time, and I see no reason why they should not restrict how much of something with countless negative health effects and absolutely zero redeeming nutritional qualities can be sold in a single item.

The difference is that in the past, items removed were inherently harmful. With this, the items being removed are only harmful based on how they're used.

There are numerous things that are sold that are safe in certain quantities or when used properly, but harmful if used in excess. Should the government start passing laws limiting how many candy bars can be bought at a time? How much red meat is sold at a time? If not, what is the difference?

@Shamburger: Living a healthy lifestyle is good. Having the government decide what is and is not healthy, and take it upon itself to force citizens to abide by the government's definition is bad.

Also, our new "healthcare system" is not universal healthcare. It's "everyone is required to buy private insurance, which is no more useful than it was before." Please don't be one of those people who thinks that what Obama did actually gave us a federal health care system.

[Rend Blackhand]

This is stupid. Instead of getting one big coke, people will just get two mediums.

[Vongimi]

Complete and utter bull crap. The government should not be trying to live people's lives for them. Same reason I am against weed being illegal (despite being a staunch conservative), let people decide for themselves what they want to do. I want to go buy one of this gigantic buckets and fill it with something like Mtn Dew, travel to New York, and walk around central park sipping on it all day and laugh. Sure they can't sell them, but if you buy it elsewhere and bring it in, there's nothing they can do!

[Deadvolcanoes]

I believe that Government absolutely has a large role to play in reducing the obesity epidemic. This statute alone probably won't do much by itself, but combined with a greater effort, it could definitely be effective.

[Corleggy]

All this will do is make fake sugars go up in value and "diet" drinks that are terrible for you slip by under the law.

[Deadvolcanoes]

and prohibition has been shown to never work...so.

This isn't about prohibiting a substance, it's about portion control. You can still buy soda, just in smaller portions.

[muto]

What a stupid rule. People will just buy more than one 16 oz. drink.

[Kujako]

What a stupid rule. People will just buy more than one 16 oz. drink.

Which is kind of the point of the rule (not that I fully agree with it). If people want to fatten themselves up, more power to them. The issue is people who inadvertently do so due to not understanding what effect callories have. This law is not saying people cant drink more then 16oz of soda, its saying that you cant just give someone a 20oz soda and act like its a normal thing for someone to consume.

[aztr0]

Good INTENTION, won't make a difference. People will do what they want. As a NYC resident, I just hate the fact that they downgraded the size of the drink, but the price didn't follow. People may say Mayor Bloomberg is heavy handed, but he does have the interests of NYC residents in mind. It is just the American way to disagree; people don't want to be told what to do, because of the "I am American, I can do whatever the hell I damn well please" attitude.

[Bigbamboozal]

Should it be legal to torpedo local companies biz? Is that ok? Has anyone considered that a lot of places will go out of biz without these? I am 100% sure people will just go buy it somewhere else if they want it....so it's a moot point and almost for sure a string of expensive lawsuits for the city/state.

[bekilrwale]

I don't agree with messing up the free market like this just to act as a babysitter. I also don't think that it will have any real affect if you can work around it by buying more of a smaller size.

[Deadvolcanoes]

It is just the American way to disagree; people don't want to be told what to do, because of the "I am American, I can do whatever the hell I damn well please" attitude.

Which is funny because this law doesn't tell private citizens what they can and cannot do. If they want to drink 200 oz of soda, they can still do that. The law specifically targets businesses.

[Vyxn]

It was very hard to read this thread without becoming outraged. what have we become? have we become a nation of children that still needs their mommy and daddy to make the decisions for us? are we not responsible for our own decisions and actions in life anymore?

this is why liberalism is so wrong. they don't want anyone to suffer the consequences of their own decisions in life so they pass laws so to make the decisions for them which in turn takes our freedoms away .

[Deadvolcanoes]

have we become a nation of children that still needs their mommy and daddy to make the decisions for us?

Once again, no one is making decisions for us. If you want to drink a shit load of soda, you can still do that. This law is a regulation placed upon businesses. Business regulations are quite common when they effect public health, and where an immense amount of tax dollars will be spent combating the problem.