Quote:
Originally Posted by Dubious
Hi Mike,
While I agree with all the above, while in college I learned to never mess with advising someone on what to eat! Food selection is social, cultural and generally something that is very resistant to change unless pressing severe health issue preclude it. And even then, most regress back to a happier days and less healthy diet.
There are many other contributing factors to "health" not least of which is gender, ethnicity, age, personal genetics, etc. and the "x" factors of various co-morbidities that we may have or not have control over.
While I agree that eating the healthiest that can be tolerated (let's face it, ripping up raw cabbage out of the back yard for breakfast is hardly appetizing) I worry that once you start to co-mingle health care with diet and the Feds are then paying for it, penalties for being overweight, eating poorly or other personal lifestyle habits become targets of discipline. Just a thought...
Maybe that opens a new door for the ACLU, yeah?
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I don't think anyone is talking about a regressive obesity tax, but rather attacks on or, at the very least, far more high profile examinations of the industries at the other end of the food chain.
Especially with a senator from of decidedly urban state, if a self-styled "moderate," Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, taking the reins of the Senate Agriculture Committee in January, after Blanche Lincoln is either defeated in the primary or stomped on in November. Stabenow's other major committee appointments are Energy and Finance, and Jeff Bingaman is not about to give up Energy for anything other than Finance, and Baucus isn't moving anytime soon. Nor does Harkin want it back. Not sure, but that just might be enough to take care of federal subsidies for the sugar industry. That's at least where I would place even money bets.
And when the time comes for Stabinow to move on again, which can happen whether or not the Democrats are in power - by becoming the ranking member of a better committee - Ben Nelson will have retired and the top seat would likely go to Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who would then be next in line. See,
http://ag.senate.gov/site/cmtemembers.html AND
http://brown.senate.gov/senator/committees/ And he is someone else with a taste for domestic food programs,
and then some. At which point, bad taste jokes about eating the rich will not only be heard before the Agriculture Committee, but sooner or later make their way into bills passed out of committee.
Face it. Food, Inc.'s sweet days under the gentle hand of the (barely) Senior Senator from Arkansas are fast coming to an end.
Mike