Politicians love to pretend that they care about you, but in reality all they care about is re-election and special interests. This month's Nanny Award goes to Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City, who thinks that it's government's role to end the obesity epidemic in the United States.
Mayor Bloomberg, who recently proposed a ban on soft drinks sold in containers larger than 16 ounces, appeared on MSNBC to discuss with Andrea Mitchell his ban, stating, "The idea here is, you tend to eat all the food in the container in front of you. If it’s a bigger container, you eat more. If somebody put it in a smaller glass or plate or bowl in front of you, you would eat less.” Bloomberg also made the point that this does not solve obesity, nor is this the sole root of the problem, but that, "We have an obligation to warn you when things are not good for your health.”
Similar to other nannies, Bloomberg believes that big brother government can solve all of the woes of the world; that individual people are too stupid, too naive, to make this kind of decision for themselves. His logic, to my understanding, is that if individuals want to drink more soda, then they must make the conscious effort to buy another can or bottle, because the ban places no restrictions on the individual to buy the soda, solely on the vendor to sell the size of container.
There are already nutrition facts on every food product out there. Taking it to the next step, as if people cannot read it for themselves, Bloomberg wants to end the sale of large soft drinks. It is a slippery slope my friends, and it is only a matter of time until our old friend the sugar-tax on soda rears it's ugly head, or the government wants to implement calorie/sugar restrictions. You're too stupid to make healthy life choices for yourself. But hey! Now that every one has/will have health insurance this is a good thing! We can stop paying for everyone that needs a triple bypass because they've been too busy drinking soda daily.
Unfortunately, we are moving in the wrong direction. More big government only yields more big government. Our government believes that the solutions to our problems are to tighten the collar on individuals, restricting freedom, and as more and more universal services are offered, this will only get worse. Politicians in office believe that in order to get things accomplished, they must put in place more rules and regulations, but to me, a good politician repeals and vetoes more often than proposes and passes.
