Posted on 01/10/2018 9:50:02 AM PST by Hojczyk
As noted in the article, in one of the more creative and admirable moves by a retail chain in recent memory, Costco took to changing their price signs, showing how much the beverages should cost, and then tacking on the new tax as a separate line item.
The city government appears to have been caught totally off guard by the visceral response from consumers. The majority opinion out on the streets seems to be that shoppers will be heading outside the city to shop. And considering the fact that a case of soda has now increased in price by enough to more than pay for the gas, perhaps they’ll just do all of their shopping there. Talk about behavioral modification!
I read how one Seattle City Councilor didn’t think people would drive out of the city “just to buy soda”.
No, you idiot, people will drive out of the city to buy soda AND the rest of their groceries.
You can’t fix stupid.
Better yet, the only people who can’t avoid the tax are people who don’t have cars—punish the poorest of the poor, clever aren’t we?
Good for them.
I wish this extended to gasoline.
A big amount if what you pay for gas consists of taxes.
Here in California, we have multiple layers of taxes on gasoline. There’s the federal gas tax, the state gas tax, sales tax is levied on gas in California, and then there’s also a global warming tax per gallon. As I understand it, the latter will fluctuate based on the price of carbon credits on global warming exchanges.
I’m not a big drinker so don’t buy much alcohol, but aren’t there some major taxes on that product as well?
If the liberals are so big on transparency, then let’s have labels on products to show how much in taxes you are paying.
I don’t even drink soda, but I’ll be damned if I think it’s the government’s place to make it prohibitively expensive to keep others from enjoying it. I know that once I do that, they’ll come for my coffee!
For those people who live in Seattle, but near the city limits, it won’t be a.long trip to just do their shopping in a nearby suburb.
“Better yet, the only people who can’t avoid the tax are people who don’t have cars—punish the poorest of the poor, clever aren’t we?”
But even better yet than that, the poor will still continue to vote for these morons. So they are getting the government they deserve!
I live in a suburb of Albuquerque. They had this monstrosity on the ballot a few months ago. It failed, barely, by like 400 votes.
Friends of mine and I had actually started planning a drive through soda store on our side of the border with Albuquerque. Would have made me rich.
Albuquerque just elected a leftist as mayor. He has publicly stated he would like to impose this by city council ordinance or an executive order, both of which are technically illegal.
I still have hope for untold riches...
Not just soda
Beverages affected by the tax include soda, energy drinks, sports drinks, sweetened ice teas and coffees, and juices or waters that contain added caloric sweeteners.
Exemptions to the tax include beverages that use natural milk as the primary ingredient, 100% fruit or vegetable juice, and beverages with fewer than 40 calories per 12 ounce serving. Diet soda is not covered by the tax either.
Wonder if this hits Starbucks
Maybe the Seattle City Council should tax the rain.
They did something stupid like this in Baltimore a few years ago. For one small grocery chain, it was the last straw toward staying solvent. They went out of business after over 100 years.
Democrats are complete economic illiterates.
“I don’t even drink soda, but I’ll be damned if I think it’s the government’s place to make it prohibitively expensive to keep others from enjoying it. I know that once I do that, they’ll come for my coffee!”
Well, Seattle is “the coffee capitol of the US!” I guess they need a lot of coffee up there, but it still isn’t enough to “awaken their citizens enough” for them to realize they are screwing themselves!
Also, as an aside, Costco is headquartered in Kirkland, WA, a small city not far from Seattle.
I wonder if soda is served at events that the mayor attends or hosts?
“Wonder if this hits Starbucks”
It can’t hit them hard enough. Their coffee tastes like someone pi$$ed in it, and they are run by a Liberal by the name of Schwartz.
Indiana and Missouri benefit greatly from the Illinois tax burden.
A 12-pack of premium beer or an 18-pack of adequate domestic beer costs about the same as that case of soda. So I’ll have the beer!
Seemingly, but the keep getting elected, don't they?
Perhaps their appeal is to economic illiterate voters.
I am suing Seattle, Chicago and New York. Their taxes are causing people to drive farther for items which is contributing to Climate Change.
This one ‘act’ makes a consumer think ‘big’. So he’s driving not only to buy six cases of his favorite drink, but probably to buy the rest of his groceries as well.
I will take a guess here but probably one out of three folks are now moving grocery shopping out of Seattle. It’ll go to two-thirds by mid-summer. For the city-tax base, it’ll be felt within sixty days and folks who run grocery stores will be shaking their heads.
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