Fat Tax...

[nutmeg]

After the shellacking cig smokers took in the interest of health, I support a fat tax - a hefty one too (yuk yuk). I propose a fat tax based on BMI. I could care less what the gov't does with the fat tax revenues- just tax fat people based on the fact it is a health issue.

I look forward to fat people becoming second hand citizens, where strangers pass by and preach benefits of eating healthy. Worked out quite well for smoking - being rude to people, ostracizing fellow Americans for lifestyle choices. (Spare me the second hand smoke science - we are going to legalize smoking dope with no thought to contact highs.)

 

[Mayhem]

When I read crap ideas like this, I get the feeling that the commies and wannabe overlords view me as some kind of livestock that needs to be in some sort of technocrat designed cage where I can be tended to maximize returns for someone else.

Hey, if I want to eat ribeye steaks, smoke cigars, and drink scotch everyday on my dime, and die at the age of 55, then that's my effin business.

If you're concerned about healthcare costs and state-funded medical care, then I have a most elegant solution for you: Let people pay for their own medical care, and/or buy their own private health insurance. Then, my eating and exercise habits will be between me, my family, my bank account, and my insurance provider.

Some people have bought into the slave mentality so deeply that they have forgotten what freedom is.

 

[Scataphagos]

Quote from Mayhem:

"... If you're concerned about healthcare costs and state-funded medical care, then I have a most elegant solution for you: Let people pay for their own medical care, and/or buy their own private health insurance. Then, my eating and exercise habits will be between me, my family, my bank account, and my insurance provider.

Some people have bought into the slave mentality so deeply that they have forgotten what freedom is.

That's mighty "Freedom" and "Libertarian" of you. The Leftists will have NONE of that, you know.

 

[Mayhem]

Quote from peilthetraveler:

I have NEVER in my life seen a person that did a constant diet & exercise program that was overweight. I've seen plenty of overweight people that say "its their genes" and they just eat & watch TV all day though.

Depends on how you define "overweight." If you have a constant diet of high protein and weight training, your BMI measure will mark you are obese even though you're probably fitter than 98% of the population.

 

[Mayhem]

The problem starts when kids are young, so I propose that it should be socially acceptable for thin kids to make fun of fattie-fattie-fat-fats... Spit-balls, purple-nurples, atomic wedgies, wet willies are not acceptable when done to normal kids, but they should be kosher when done to fat kids.

 

[huh]

Quote from Mayhem:

Hey, if I want to eat ribeye steaks, smoke cigars, and drink scotch everyday on my dime, and die at the age of 55, then that's my effin business.

Thats fine but why should everyone else have to pay for your eating habits? The cost of taking care of a fat fuck are passed on to everybody else in the insurance pool hence the constant rising cost of premiums for everybody year after year. If insurance companies could deny coverage for the obese then thats fine eat whatever you want.

If you're concerned about healthcare costs and state-funded medical care, then I have a most elegant solution for you: Let people pay for their own medical care, and/or buy their own private health insurance. Then, my eating and exercise habits will be between me, my family, my bank account, and my insurance provider.

Again this sounds like a great solution but I am forced into an insurance pool with fat fucks. Where is there an insurance company that doesn't cover smokers and fat fucks cause thats the one I want? Unfortunately I don't think this politically correct society would allow it. Let all the fat fucks pay for each others health care....they'll probably get skinny cause they won't have enough money left after the insurance premiums!

 

[sculptor66]

Quote from Mayhem:

When I read crap ideas like this, I get the feeling that the commies and wannabe overlords view me as some kind of livestock that needs to be in some sort of technocrat designed cage where I can be tended to maximize returns for someone else.

Hey, if I want to eat ribeye steaks, smoke cigars, and drink scotch everyday on my dime, and die at the age of 55, then that's my effin business.

If you're concerned about healthcare costs and state-funded medical care, then I have a most elegant solution for you: Let people pay for their own medical care, and/or buy their own private health insurance. Then, my eating and exercise habits will be between me, my family, my bank account, and my insurance provider.

Some people have bought into the slave mentality so deeply that they have forgotten what freedom is.

+1

 

[LEAPup]

Quote from Mayhem:

When I read crap ideas like this, I get the feeling that the commies and wannabe overlords view me as some kind of livestock that needs to be in some sort of technocrat designed cage where I can be tended to maximize returns for someone else.

Hey, if I want to eat ribeye steaks, smoke cigars, and drink scotch everyday on my dime, and die at the age of 55, then that's my effin business.

If you're concerned about healthcare costs and state-funded medical care, then I have a most elegant solution for you: Let people pay for their own medical care, and/or buy their own private health insurance. Then, my eating and exercise habits will be between me, my family, my bank account, and my insurance provider.

Some people have bought into the slave mentality so deeply that they have forgotten what freedom is.

Agreed!

I'm a bodybuilder. I eat 5-6 high protein, low saturated fat, slow carb, and heart healthy fats like omega 3's small meals/day.

That being said, I may personally eat healthy, but at the same time, we don't need the government taxing fat asses. If people want to get fat, let them get fat. WE DO NOT NEED ANY MORE GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION INTO OUR LIVES!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We have enough now!!!!!!!!! Way too much imo!!!!!!!

Can't believe so many people look to the government for every situation that needs remedy... Scary!

Btw, I do like a good cigar! Especially Cubans!

 

[tomdavis]

This is exactly the kind of intervention we don't need. For one, it encourages people to eat grains and non-fat dairy products, both of which are extremely unhealthy. Second, it punishes people like me who eat a very healthy diet, but eat a fair amount of fat. The fat I eat is from wild-caught cold water fish which are very healthy.

Please tell which government bureaucrat is going to be in charge of punishing me for eating a healthy diet and rewarding people who eat an unhealthy diet. A former IRS agent, perhaps?

Quote from Blue_Ice:

I've been discussing lack of preventing health initiatives and how the health industry is basically encouraging people to be diagnosed ("sick" for healthcare industry purposes) so there are more medicines sold and medical services provided.

Heart related diseases are affected by eating habits with tons of research showing how people with higher consumption of sugars/fats are more prone to suffer such diseases and/or get them much earlier in age (average) compared to two three decades ago.

Many argue that food choice is/should be personal and population should be free to eat whatever they want regardless of the consequences; such argument basically disregards the financial burden on healthcare system as people need treatment for heart related disease much younger and tie up resources (increasing insurance premiums across the board) that could be better spend in other diseases for which there is no cure/prevention known yet.

Fat Tax sounds like a good compromise, it still leaves the option available for people to chose to keep consuming sugars/fats. Due to higher food prices it will encourage people to look for alternatives diminishing the consumption of such foods and improving their health as a byproduct.

In the long run it would be similar to cigarrettes: they're still available, some people still smoke and cigarrettes carry a high tax. We don't hear about lung related diseases due to smoking as much these days (real improvement in health for everyone), and not many people feel their "right of free choice" severed by the policy.

Food industry could find alternative products made from the same raw materials (sugar, oils) so the issue of unemployment generated by the tax (increased consumer price) would have a smaller impact. Ethanol could be an example. There's 10% ethanol in the gas we use today, current gas engines could use at least twice as much ethanol in the solution and still work fine.

So, what say you? FAT TAX: yay? nay? why?

 

[Blue_Ice]

Quote from Kassz007:

I think the fat tax is a bad idea. I would never advocate putting more of the citizens' money in government hands. I'm all about freedom of choice. I would support programs educating citizens on healthy food choices, exercise etc., but it is unfair to tax people because they're fat. Maybe some people like being fat, in which case they should have the freedom to be fat.

As an earlier poster mentioned, money from the "fat tax" would just go to serve more government bureaucracy and waste. Just like the proposed "bank tax". We all know those funds would go straight to the government's pockets and not to some kind of contingency fund...

Just to clarify, FAT Tax is a "generic name" given to the initiative as a revenue source for government. It is not intended to Tax fat people per se, there are several proposals for implementation but in general terms it will tax food products and raw materials that are known to be direct culprits of obesity.

There is a fine line there, as fat people are the higher consumers of such foods. However, that's where the compromise lies in: it is not intended to eliminate the choice of consuming sugar/fat food products but it does foster an environment in which health of the population as a whole will improve as consumption of such foods will decrease (due to the tax).

As to the money going to government bureaucracy and waste, i agree. I think part of the implementation should tackle that issue as well.