Tax sodapop to fight fat, US health officials say

WASHINGTON (AFP) – US health sheriffs want to ride the sugary drinks that are helping to make Americans fat out of town, or at least off Americans' menu of choice, and one way they suggest going about it is by taxing sodapop.

"The average American consumes roughly 250 calories more today than they did two or three decades ago, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Thomas Frieden, said at the "Weight of the Nation" conference on obesity held in Washington this week..........

"The estimates we've seen suggest that a one-penny-per-ounce tax nationally would raise something in the order of 100 to 200 billion dollars over a 10-year time frame, as well as significantly reducing caloric intake -- at least from soda and sugar-sweetened beverages," Frieden said.......


http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090730/hl_afp/healthusobesitytaxdrink_20090730232047


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so if you have more money and can afford it you are allowed to be fat

but if you are lower income forget it

and would diet soda be taxed

and were will the money go

private insurance companies ??????????

after all it is to offset costs of health related obesity

and what about those not obese that drink soda

interesting concept

tax it out of reach of those making less than 250k

another of a no tax of any kind -- tax increase possibility

Obama will probably hide the fact that its a huge tax on the poor by calling it a fee or a surcharge. Its good to know that Obama has gotten very little done this year and his approval ratings are sliding more and more. At least the people that voted him in realize he promised everything and has given very little, and lied about quite a bit.

will candy be next???????????????

or bread


or pasta


or what ever

yea, I have seen commercials about taxing drinks so people will get off all the sugar drinks.... that it will force people to drink healthier. If people want to eat and drink bad, a tax will not stop them from buying unhealthy.
Just like the increase in cigarettes.. didn't slow down the smokers.
Just another silly tax to make things harder on the consumer...

what happened to the "I won't raise 99% of peoples taxes one dime"

what a JOKE...

I was wondering why the CEO's of such companies were attending a luncheon at the White House recently.

imho we should watch very closely who attends these things... Bet they are working out the details. Or maby just being told to 'get on board' or get 'bailed-out' and taken over.

You people sure do expect a lot to get done asap. Tackling large issues takes time, no? We already have progress in stem cell policy, military repositioning, international dialogue to rebuild our image and energy and pollution initiatives. Those things are important, whether you want to acknowledge them or not.

His approval is sliding on the basis of the healthcare debate alone. It'll rebound as Congress organizes a plan to meet his objectives.

If you don't want to have faith, at least have some hope. Otherwise, your working attitude is that you want America to fall further into quicksand. And, if that is the case, feel free to move out of the country and take Mr. Cheney with you. You can root for another terrorist attack with him from afar.

Sorry so harsh ... but I'm tired of the pessimism void of alternative ideas. Let's have a debate instead of a gripe session. That's far more productive for everyone.

I also wonder such things. That's why I am perplexed why energy company execs were making our policies in the Bush White House via closed meeting. I also wonder why Halliburton was given so much money without competitive bid by our former Vice President (who ran Halliburton).

It's all quid pro quo - doesn't matter who's in charge.

What alternative ideas? Everything he's done has been done before. Tax instead of balance, say one thing and do another. For a guy promoting change, he's done zero change. Since coming in he's tripled the deficit, made the economy worse, and now wants to destroy health care. Meh, some people will believe anything.

What congress is doing right now is figuring out how to pay their backers under the current 'change'.

Each is organizing their own plan to further their own needs... Time has proven this yet blindness prevails.

TIME TO REPLACE OUR CONGRESS WITH 'people' INSTEAD OF POLITICIANS.

I'm not griping... I am stating what I think is the BEST alternative idea.

Cull congress... It's WAY past time.

I agree totally. Term limits for Congress are long overdue.

As for alternative ideas, I wasn't talking about Obama. I'm talking about us. What ideas do you/we/I have to fix this mess? And, btw, the economy is not worse. It's actually getting better. And the mess wasn't Obama's fault at all. It was a complacent Congress to regulate when the economy was strong to mitigate against the mortgage crisis. The same speculative type behavior led to The Great Depression.

Obama is looking to strengthen The Fed so better oversight and liquidation processes are in place in advance of large business failure in the future.

Obama has not slipped on my internal poll. If anything he has gotten better... I had him rated as 0 when he took office.

I have no problem with the President... Yet.

As far as strengthing the FED... Did I read you right?

Why would you want to strengthing the mouth of the octupus that is eating you?

obama on tax increase of those that make <250k year

"Not income tax, not your payroll tax, not capital gains taxes, not any kind of tax.

watch the video at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8erePM8V5U


i guess he forgot bush sr saying read my lips no new taxes (clinton beat him because he lied to)

I am just glad Bush isnt in there anymore.

that is probably why obamas rating were as high as they were

but they are slipping a bit i hear

hhhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

maybe this is starting to change a little .......

The rating would slide anyways. They always do. But I think a lot of people are just glad it isnt Bush anymore. No one could be worse than that. But Obama will never slide as low as the last president because he will always have support from certain segments of society no matter what he does. The last administration pretty much lost everyone there at the end