Ok, I will be the first to say that this tax seems to be a bit over the top! However, the reasoning behind it makes sense. The tax was first brought up in 1942 when A.J. Carlson suggested that all over weight people pay a tax of $20 in efforts to feed the troops who were fighting over seas. Now, decades later, this tax is being considered as part of the efforts to counter act the raising cost of health care. While some believe that the individual should be taxed; others think that certain foods should be taxed instead.
The notion hasn’t generated much enthusiasm in Congress, but fat taxes are spreading through state legislatures: Four-fifths of the union now takes a cut on the sales of junk food or soda. Pleas for a federal fat tax are getting louder, too. The New York Times recently endorsed a penny-per-ounce soda tax, and Michael Pollan has made a convincing argument for why the insurance industry may soon throw its weight behind the proposal. Even President Obama said he likes the idea in a recent interview with Men’s Health. (For the record, Stephen Colbert is against the measure: “I do not obey big government; I obey my thirst.”)(source)
Taxing junk foods could be the more reasonable choice to avoid discrimination. This is much like the increase on other less favorable habits such as smoking and alcohol. In the end, people are going to make choices… not based on money but based on “want or need.” If they make less favorable choices, these taxes will help the government stay afloat without punishing others in the process.
Adria Ali
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