Today, New York state’s highest court refused to reinstate the city’s limits on the sale of big sodas, losing its final appeal. The Bloomberg initiative with the Board of Health had “exceeded the scope of its regulatory authority,” the court ruled. In a 4-to-2 vote, the judges upheld the previous ruling against the ban by two lower courts.
The overreaching initiative to combat childhood obesity and diabetes faced a very active opposition of soda companies and movie theaters, who along with fast food restaurants and delis were specifically targeted by the ban. It was also upsettingly inconsistent, applying the limits to popular soda drinks, sport drinks and sweetened teas but not milkshakes, sugar-filled fruit juice drinks and alcoholic beverages.Other city health initiatives were a bit more reasonable, like posting calorie counts on menus, so you know when you’re about to wolf down a burger worth your entire day in suggested calorie intake and make your own decision as to proceed. Kids shouldn’t be sucking down 16 oz buckets of sugary shit, but now, the government can’t tell them not to because the government isn’t their mom. (Photo: @mac-ash)
