Food Is the Real Thing - Mayor Bloomberg is right: taxpayers shouldn’t subsidize soda.

City Journal ^ | 9 June 2011 | Nicole Gelinas

[Alberta's Child]

There's an easy way to implement this in a state like New York:

Any product that is taxed under New York's sales tax law simply shouldn't be eligible for purchase with food stamps. Most food products are exempt from sales taxation because they are considered "essentials," and things like soda and junk food are not exempt because they are, well, not essential for people.

Why these things were ever permitted for purchase with food stamps is beyond me.

[Quiller]

Or is it just buzz, process shut down, cashier needs to figure out what went wrong, everybody else held up for 15 minutes while customer argues with cashier?

That's more like what I've seen happen -- hold up the line while arguing and wearing the cashier down.

Then when fatigue sets in, the cashier just rings it up as something else of equal value.

Then plod out of the store to climb in the car illegally parked either in the fire lane, or in the handicapped spot.

And before anyone righteously jumps in, this isn't perpetuating stereotypes -- it's reporting observations.

[sergeantdave]

This isn’t about banning pop purchases with foodstamps. It’s a set up to eventually ban pop in New York City. Look at bloomberg’s history of banning food. It’s fascism 101. First go after an unsympathetic group before enforcing your decrees on the entire population.

The fascist pig bloomberg won’t stop until everyone is a slave eating slave food - collards, black eye peas and catfish.

[GailA]

Yay! he got something right for a change. No sodas, cookies, candy, or snacks foods. They provide no nutritional value to the body.

[Don W]

honestly, I think you miss his point:

If you TAKE government (taxPAYER) money, you are compelled to spend it on government sanctioned products.

IF the government no longer sanctions your buying soda pop with your welfare cheque, and you want to drink soda pop, GET OFF WELFARE! Use the money YOU earn to buy what ever the dickens YOU want!

It’s not rocket science, and it’s not “unfair”, it is REALITY!

[jocon307]

It’ll be everyone else who can’t buy soda next. Soon our lightbulbs will be gone.

The government needs to stop controlling the minutia of everyone’s life.

They just need to STOP.

[VanShuyten]

Sucrose is 50% glucose and 50% fructose and is split into those two starting in your mouth.

Just don't eat so much sugar and you'll be OK.