sin tax vs ex-lax

About 31% of Americans are obese and 65% are overweight. America has earned the bad reputation of being fat pigs who eat portions big enough to feed a family of 5 in Paris. A large contributor to obesity is the price of the junk food people are buying. Flamin' Hot Cheetos, Twinkies, and a quart of ice cream adds up to half the price of 3 bags of fresh produce. This leads to the issue of sin tax. Fattening foods are generally cheaper then fresh fruits and vegetables. Government officials believe that a tax could help offset that imbalance, and push people to eat more of what is good for them and less of what is not.

If I'm having a bad day and I just want to treat myself to some ice cream, I would feel pretty bad to reach for the carton and be faced with a sin tax- I already feel bad enough eating unhealthy food, so I don't appreciate the government telling me I'm sinning. But then again, it could make me not want to buy it because it is more expensive, I could buy something healthier for the same price, and the name makes me feel guilty.

Sin taxes have been placed on cigarettes, alcohol, gambling, and gas-guzzling vehicles. The taxes have turned out to be very effective in reducing and preventing those activities. However, when it comes to taxes on unhealthy food, some people aren't so supportive. Dietitian Kellie Glass says, "folks are just not going to give up all the foods they love, even if they are more expensive." While this is true, 63% of the people who opposed the tax said they would change their minds if the money they were spending on the healthy food was used to fund a health care over-haul and combat heath problems related to obesity.

I think the sin tax is a good idea because I think it would actually be effective. I was talking to my mom's friend who said she would buy chicken breast at Whole Foods, but it costs $10 more then it does from a cheap grocery store where it is drowned in salt water. She said if the chickens were the same price, she would buy the healthier one. I think people do want to be healthy and make the right choices, but living in a time with the economy like it is, people are trying to save money wherever they can. Although I think the sin tax would be beneficial, I think a lot of people would be really angry. Nobody wants to have anything taxed right now, especially not food that fat, broke people eat everyday. So, either this sin tax goes into effect and people become healthier, or they spend less money, eat like crap, and then lose weight with ex-lax. ew... so, which one- sin tax or ex-lax? I choose sin tax.

A Step Toward Equality

This is my first blog entry, so why not start out with something controversial; gay marriage. As you will learn, I'm very opinionated when it comes to basic rights and people being treated equally. The other day while flipping through the Sacramento Bee, I came across an article titled, "Obama backs repeal of federal marriage law". I was so happy to finally see something about gay marriage. My family and I were big supporters of Obama during the 2008 campaign and election- I even have 3 shirts, a book, and a poster. His popularity, youth, and fresh attitude made him appealing to me, but honestly, an candidate that was in no way related to George Bush and the Republican party would have my support.

During his campaign, Obama was supportive of gay marriage and idea that people should be able to marry whether they were gay or straight. From the time he took office in January, to now, I have been waiting for him to take action to help these poor unfairly discriminated people. However, also in the time from January to now, our country's issues have escalated to a place where half the country feels screwed over. With the economy and health care reforms, gay marriage has not been a priority. Some supporters on the issue have been disappointed (including me) but I do understand that he has a whole lot of crap to deal with right now.

This article said that Obama is backing the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, which denies benefits to partners of federal employees and allows states to reject same-sex marriages preformed in other states. So technically Obama isn't allowing gay marriage but is attempting to get it recognized. Fine by me... it's a start. This process is a slow one no matter how hard the administration tries.

I'm sick of gays being treated like they are so different, so un-human, that if we dare allow them to express their love and marry, the world will definitely end. How could two men possibly be in love?? Their parents must have been gay or raised them to be gay, right? WRONG. Senior trail counsel W. Scott Simpson even used evidence found by prominent medical groups, saying that "children raised by gay and lesbian parents are as likely to be well-adjusted as children raised by heterosexual parents."

I remember when California made it legal for gays to get married for a few months. Thousands of people seized the opportunity and wed the love of their lives. That was short lived. Thanks prop 8, you single-handedly broke the hearts of hundreds of thousands of people wanting an equal chance at life. But they can't have an equal chance because of the discriminating people in this country who are too selfish and conservative to understand that gay people are humans too.

Imagine being a gay man living in Connecticut and you just married your long time boyfriend. Life is going great, until your partner has a career change and must relocate to Texas. Because you are devoted and in love with this man, you move together. But wait, Texas doesn't recognize gay marriage, so once you move, you aren't even married anymore. Sucks for you. Come on Obama, keep working to make this country discrimination free and repeal this dumb Defense of Marriage Act. All people are equal!