I mentioned in a previous post that NYC Mayor Bloomberg has lost his mind and decided to ban large sweet beverages in the five boroughs. In the last week, he has not only doubled down on that ban (see e-mail text below), but he’s expanded his war on personal liberty to include the choice of whether to breast feed your baby or give them formula. He’s ordering hospitals to hide the formula and decline to give it to those who ask for it unless they have a medical reason for not being able to breast feed. And you folks thought I was KIDDING when I wondered what would be next on the banned choices list. Heck…*I* partially thought I was kidding!
Here is the website of the Mayor’s office – contact him here and let him know what you think of his dictating our lives to us by fiat:
And here’s what’s being said by the citizens of New York in response to Bloomberg’s insanity:
Now…enjoy Bloomberg’s poignant and well-thought-out (sarcasm meter explodes) response to this response:
Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and concerns about our plan to limit the size of sugary drinks at some food establishments.
Like the rest of America, our City is facing an obesity epidemic. Nearly 60% of adult New Yorkers and close to 40% of public school students are overweight or obese, putting them at greater risk of developing a host of diseases and conditions, including Type 2 Diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Obesity is now the second-leading cause, just after smoking, of preventable death in New York City.
Our success in cutting smoking deaths to record lows shows that we can tackle the toughest public health problems head-on—and make a huge difference—but only if we are willing to act boldly, and target the problem comprehensively. We are confronting the obesity epidemic on several fronts, including our most recent proposal to curb consumption of sugary beverages. We are also offering healthier options through programs that allow more New Yorkers to buy fresh and affordable produce. In addition, an expanded public education campaign will build on the work we have already done to give New Yorkers more information—just as calorie counts in restaurants do—so they can make better choices about the food and drinks they and their families consume.
Although we may disagree on this issue, I appreciate your input as we work to reduce the number of preventable, obesity-related deaths throughout New York City. Thank you again for writing.
Sincerely,
Michael R. Bloomberg
Mayor
Special, ain’t it? He makes ZERO attempt to actually answer citizen concerns over the overreach of his soda ban. No attempt to defend against criticisms that his ban won’t even work. No attempt to explain exactly what he feels he can accomplish with this. Nada. Just “LA LA LA LA I’M NOT LISTENING LA LA LA!!!”
You know what I especially love? Being completely ignored. Yep…that’s AWESOME.
everymatt 