OPINION: For American fatsoes, shrinking sodas is a start
Freedom is under attack! In the largest city of our giant country, the liberty to drink over 16 ounces of sugar syrup is in the crosshairs of the "gubmint." New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has proposed (and will most likely implement) the nation's first prohibition on over-sized soda at public venues.
Now the AstroTurf outrage over this alleged ban (in reality, a size reduction) is bubbling up! This week a rally brimming with dozens of soda jerks calling themselves the Million Big Gulp March, shook their high-fructose fists at the mayor. The polling reveals a polarizing 50/50 split in support/opposition to the ordinance. Throw in a couple of commercials by the beverage industry saying they're offering more fewer-calorie choices — and you have pandemonium!
In 1908, New York City was also the first in the country to have an ordinance against public smoking. Sure it only applied to women and was quickly thrown out, but still, a hundred years later eliminating smoking tobacco just about everywhere has cut down American smokers to only 20 percent of adults (most of whom live in West Virginia). When compared to the 45 percent who smoked cigarettes in the 1950s — it's a success. Was it a knock to the liberties of smokers? Yes. Do we care? Nope.