On the Ridiculousness of Soda Taxes
There has been a growing movement among legislators to place taxes on soft drinks. The justification put forth by these righteous folks is that soda is a big contributing factor to obesity and therefore it’s in the public’s best interest to discourage their consumption of these sugary beverages. Their argument is based on the soggy logic that healthier choices are more expensive and that’s why consumers choose to drink soda. The logic follows that by making soda expensive, the public will flock to the healthier choices. Ridiculous.
Let’s begin with the fact that tap water is virtually free, or at any rate cheaper than any beverage you can purchase. It could be argued that when you’re on the go, you don’t take your tap with you. However, reusable water bottles can be filled and brought along, and there are plenty of freebie water bottles given out, if you were about to object to their expense. If you have to purchase one, it’s a one time expense.
So what’s really going on here? Well, first and foremost this provides a convenient excuse to levy more taxes on consumers. It’s also a way for politicians to pretend to CARE about their voters. Really, this is for their own good. And what’s more, they can go home and feel really good about their efforts on behalf of the public welfare.
Again, I say ridiculous. There are about as many contributing factors to obesity as there are obese people. I’m no lover of soda, but hey, a piece of chocolate crosses my lips on a pretty regular basis. I certainly don’t want legislators to begin to tax my chocolate because I need to take off a few pounds. What’s next? Installing cameras in our homes to measure the length of time we spend as couch potatoes, and taxing anyone that didn’t move around every 15 minutes or so? Hey, that would probably go a lot further to improving our health than taxing soda.
I’m all for the government raising our awareness of healthy food and lifestyle choices. But, please, don’t disguise an excuse for taxation as doing something that’s good for me, because the prospect of higher taxes is stressing me out enough that I may just need to eat a piece of chocolate to feel better.
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6 Responses to “On the Ridiculousness of Soda Taxes”
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I guess there are two reasons to tax. One reason is to raise money. The other reason is to influence behaivor. We live in a democratic society so if our politicians are looking to tax soda we as a society ultimately either want the money or want to influence behaivor. What do you think as a society we really want?
My cynical belief is that it’s all about the money. But they’re choosing a popular issue to execute their evil plans.
I’m no fan of taxes, but with 12 teaspoons of sugar in a 12 once can of soda, and the popularity of soda as a primary drink, it is a big contributor to the health problem of the nation. Many people drink soda morning, noon and night. It is not good for the health of the drinker but ALL of us pay the price in higher health insurance premiums (which means we are ALL being taxed). Why not shift some of the cost of the soda habit to soda drinkers? If we manage to force some people to cut down on or eliminate soda from their diet, that will be a positive side effect.
I think what society really wants (or at least what I really want) is to be left alone to make my own lifestyle choices.
But as I said in my post, where do you draw the line in punishing people for their sins? Are we going to tax people for eating butter? A candy bar? Not exercising? The more excuses the government can come up with, the more revenue they can collect. How convenient.
The total cost of any product is composed of a number of items (the product itself, packaging, marketing , taxes etc.) Some products have a heavier tax levy than others for various reasons. If it’s not worth paying the price, don’t buy the product. There is no great loss to society if soda sales are impacted. As for the “where does it stop” argument: Don’t worry I can guarantee the state or federal government will not put a tax on whole grains and leafy greens. Off to Bobby Chez, to pick up some health crab cakes!