Posted on 01/26/2008 10:36:47 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
A Democratic lawmaker in New Mexico wants to tax televisions and video games to raise funds to fight childhood obesity and improve education in the state, officials said Friday.
"I have asked our legislative council service to prepare the "Leave No Child Inside" bill and am hopeful that it will be ready for me to introduce on Monday," educator-turned-lawmaker Gail Chasey told AFP.
"Leave No Child Inside" -- a play on the federal education initiative "No Child Left Behind" -- is backed by grassroots environmental group, the Sierra Club.
"The bill proposes levying a one-percent excise tax on the purchase of TVs, video games and video game equipment and would create the 'Leave No Child Inside' fund to receive those revenues," Michael Casaus of the Sierra Club told AFP.
The author and sponsors of the bill, who include dozens of other organizations besides the Sierra Club, according to Casaus, expect to raise four million dollars (three million euros) a year through the tax.
The items that would be taxed have been carefully chosen because of their links to obesity and poor school performance, the Sierra Club says, citing medical studies.
Around one-quarter of New Mexico's children are obese or overweight, and just over half finish high school, said Casaus.
"The goals of the bill are to improve the academic performances of our kids, to promote a more healthy lifestyle and to provide our children with outdoor learning experiences, using our state parks and public lands as classrooms," he said.
According to a study cited by backers of the bill, hands-on, outdoor study leads to better grades among students, including in mathematics and science.
Another study has shown a 27-percent improvement in the science test scores of students who participate in outdoor education programs.
Earlier this week, a high school in the US state of Georgia launched another unique initiative to boost the math and science grades of students.
Creekside High School near Atlanta offered students money to attend remedial classes in the two subjects for 15 weeks and a monetary bonus for maintaining a "B" grade average afterwards.
Sounds like something Huckananny would suggest.
Creekside High School near Atlanta offered students money to attend remedial classes in the two subjects for 15 weeks and a monetary bonus for maintaining a “B” grade average afterwards.................
I’m sure paying kids will create open minds for learning. (sarc)
Come on!
Makes just as much sense as criminalizing marijuana and cocaine and herion, even for medical purposes, and fighting our big, inane, useless war on drugs. The only basis I’ve ever seen people use for our “war on drugs” is that some clueless politician they voted for syas we need it, or because weed and heroin and coke are bad for you. Well so are tobacco, pizza, cheeseburgers, cheesefries, most things served at fast food joints and processesed snack foods. Why not use the notion of gov’t regulation of things bad for you on all those things, rather than let tobacco companies use all sorts of unethical means to profit off cigarette sales or letting them along with alcohol brewers, Frito-Lay, Burker King, McDonalds and Pizza Hut expand exponentially. Is it the logic based on how much weed, coke and herion can wreck lives? Then what, like alcohol doesn’t lead to premature deaths or self destruction? And what about the lung cancers, heart failiures and strokes casued by smoking? What about the obscene numbers of Americans with dire, chronic health problems from abuse of artery clogging foods. I can confidently say I have never heard a single logically sound, remotely rational argument for criminalizing and fighting the drug war agaisn’t weed, coke and marijuana while not applying those same kind of standard agaisnt everything else that isn’t good for me.
The state has no business attempting to punish people for legal activities—and using the revenue for Government Sodomy Education Centers is positively evil.
Fat, sugar, starch, and abortion are the main income sources for Berkshire Hathaway.
Okay, i guess there’s always that. You know, if you could convince the county they could profit as much of drugs as they do an all those thinks, not only would it be legal, but weed, coke and heroin would be on supermarket shelves, 7-11 stores and hospitals everywhere.
No one mentioned the dimRAT gov of New Mexico who would probably sign this bill into law- Bill Richardson...
Maybe his next social project law will be to tear down the schools since outdoor education seems to produce better students...This is an example of PC legislation at it’s worst...
If we could get them to tax the stupidity of these so-called “law makers,” we could have an unlimited flow of tax dollars!
I swear, the only things that are infinite are the universe and the stupidity of politicians, or at least they seem to think that WE are!
Mark
Mark
“If we could get them to tax the stupidity of these so-called “law makers,” we could have an unlimited flow of tax dollars!”
We could pay off the national debt.
"Leave No A$$ unwiped" -- a play on the federal education initiative "No Child Left Behind" -- is backed by grassroots groups and the Democratic Party.
The bill proposes levying a one sheet per roll excise tax on the purchase of toilet tissue, and would create the "'Leave No A$$ Unwiped" fund to receive and abscond with any and all revenues.
The author and sponsors of the bill, who include dozens of other left leaning liberal organizations besides the Democratic Party, expect to raise four million sheets of toilet paper (50,000 rolls) a year through the tax.
The items that would be taxed have been carefully chosen because of their links to eating, toilet useage, clogged septic lines, destruction of the habitat of the the Red-Nosed Gimmee Bird, global warming, global cooling, bird flu, swine flu, ebola, and poor political performance resulting from stinky trousers and runny noses, citing medical studies.
"Around one-quarter of the Democrats are obese or overweight, and just over half finish high school", said a well known Democrat, who refused to give her name.
The goals of the bill is to relieve the taxpayer of a very important, yet undertaxed item, to promote a more healthy socialist A$$-Wiping lifestyle, and to provide our democratic politicians with tissue to wipe away their tears at the polls.
According to a study cited by backers of the bill, hands-on A$$ Wiping leads to better results than the hands-off method.
SAVE THE WHALES-daggummit!
(Sarc on-off-on-off-on-off-....fugitaboudit!)
“leave no child alone.”
People still smoke despite higher taxes. The real problem is that areas where childhood obesity is a problem is that those areas have higher crime rate and broken down parks. Also, those areas are food deserts. Instead of taxing TVs and video games, we should make those areas safer and improve public parks. We should encourage grocery stores to come and operate in those areas. They should be given tax breaks for doing that.
They can start by putting Bill Richardson on a diet.
Seriously, setting a personal example would be a good way to gain support.
All for “Richardson Weight Watch?” Hands?
hi — I’m sorry, I just replied to your question from last year. I know, I know, that’s a really long time, apologieS!
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