Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Taking on sugar

With all the new potential laws being bantered about with cities, states and municipalities trying to tax sugar as a method of fighting obesity, we at TOR are having a hard time deciding what is right.

In general we don't like too much governmental intervention although in cases involving major vices: alcohol, tobacco, heavy drugs and gambling there does seem to be some justification. Now my libertarian friends will say that there is no place for government in regulation and that people should be allowed free-will. We don't disagree with this in theory but it takes society in a vacuum. People are stupid, lazy, immature and dependent and will make many decisions will have greater harm to society. I am all for telling a dude he can drink himself into a coma but I don't think he should get behind the wheel and put somebody else in one. I am fine with somebody squandering their money at the blackjack table as long as I'm assured that I'll never have to worry about his kids or family

But when I walk into a bodega and see a bunch of sugar water in baby-bottles with a nipple on them it does feel like it's gone too far. Like marketing sugary cereal to kids or adding Joe Kool to a pack of butts, this just feels wrong. To produce a sugar infused product which is marketed to kids to hook them on sugar is criminal.

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2 comments:

  1. ChrisMay 31, 2011 at 10:41 PM

    You say that people are "stupid, lazy, immature and dependent," but trying to legislate morality and reduce free will only serves to _increase_ people's dependency to the nanny state. Making people responsible for their actions is the only effective (and certainly the most cost effective) way to handle these problems. If people actually had to bear the cost of their own healthcare, do you think you would see the obesity levels that we have today?

    And your DUI example is misplaced in critiquing the libertarian viewpoint. Protecting individual liberties (here drinking) should only go so far until the point where someone else's liberties are endangered. Hence, it is entirely consistent for a libertarian to wholly endorse DUI laws.

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  2. RighettiJune 9, 2011 at 5:12 PM

    I think this TOR was a bit off-the-mark.

    the point is more than parents are ridiculously stupid and unless you hold their hand they are likely to kill their kid

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