NY tries to ban large soda sales- gotta hear from my fellow Grokkers! page 9

[Grok]

The Government's only power is their monopoly on the ability to use force to subject its citizens.

Speaking of ironies, the statists always argue that monopolies are bad and that you need the state to break up monopolies (which were created by the state). In fact, monopolies are so bad, statists argue, that we need to have a monopoly on protection services because that is the worst kind of monopoly imaginable.

When it comes down to it, all statists are contradictory. They all have their reason for having a state. Some think the state is good for enforcing moral behavior, some think the state is good for enforcing economic behavior, and vice versa. That is, some think the state is bad for enforcing moral behavior, and some think the state is bad for enforcing economic behavior.

A few of us think the state is good for everything, and a growing majority are beginning to realize that the state is bad for everything.

[Call Me Twitchy]

Speaking of ironies, the statists always argue that monopolies are bad and that you need the state to break up monopolies (which were created by the state). In fact, monopolies are so bad, statists argue, that we need to have a monopoly on protection services because that is the worst kind of monopoly imaginable.

When it comes down to it, all statists are contradictory. They all have their reason for having a state. Some think the state is good for enforcing moral behavior, some think the state is good for enforcing economic behavior, and vice versa. That is, some think the state is bad for enforcing moral behavior, and some think the state is bad for enforcing economic behavior.

A few of us think the state is good for everything, and a growing majority are beginning to realize that the state is bad for everything.

People are beginning to see the State getting in the way of freedoms for causes which they and those who support the State deem important. The rule of law is more often just than the changing whims of the people. Except when a majority of people can decide the law should be different. The issue comes down to there is no absolute and unchanging rule which the people agree on.

[Grok]

The issue comes down to there is no absolute and unchanging rule which the people agree on.

The non-aggression principle[1] is a rule which I can agree on.

[1] Non-aggression principle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Grok]

[jammies]

Well, I just got carded at Whole Foods for buying kombucha. I guess someone is worried that minors might drink 20-30 gallons of kombucha at a sitting to get drunk?

[Chaohinon]

You could accomplish a whole lot more by cutting the corporate welfare and artificial market privileges that concentrate wealth and power into the hands of a few large soda companies.

Put another way, Coca Cola and Pepsi got to where they are, in part, by taxing us. Why pile more taxes on top of that? That's irrational and short-sighted.

some details on Coca Cola here: Dissenting Leftist: Don't Tax the Rich, Smash Their Privilege: A Response to Warren Buffett

[apple]

Oh my goodness you have a lot to learn about freedom and economics.

I don't want to spend too much time on this, but let me give you some pointers.

First, all subsidies do reach the consumer. It is impossible for you to know what the price of anything should be. The only thing you as an individual should be concerned about is if something is worth the price in your opinion. The people who run the companies don't pocket all the subsidies, they would be destroyed by competition if they tried to do that. They only way they could get away with that would be to use government to eliminate all their competition.

Secondly, there is no such thing as a good government subsidy. All government interventions in the free market cause distortions and are bad.

The reason why government isn't choosing healthy foods to subsidize is because government is not here to take care of you, government exists to benefit those in government.

Russia's government is no different than America's government. They are both corrupt, stupid and evil and easily bribed.

Government is nothing more than violence, and the less of it you have, the better off you are.

Oh my goodness thanks for opening my eyes. I had NO IDEA that Russia was corrupt at ALL. Here I was just listening to their government controlled TV news thinking everything was perfect there because that's what they told me to believe.

I don't really see how we as consumers are benefiting from any subsidies provided by the US government. Also, I AM against subsidies in general; I was only providing the facts here. Russia doesn't provide welfare (don't get me started on the US welfare system!!), it simply provides a means to make staples available so you literally could be a part time working mom with 3 kids who managed to scrape together a few measly rubles a day and survive.

Oh and a nice bottle of vodka is about $4 also. Makes them all not care about anything going on

People still talking about giant cokes, carry on

[VeloCity.X]

Grok, I don't think you really agree with Julie there, from what I remember from previous discussions....

'Soda, trans-fats, happy meals and corn syrup'... it's not some free choice. It's a rigged system by the State to support corporate interest. Sure it's a stupid decision to use those products, but we have a state sponsored food system built around these products. An anology - I choose to drive my car as little as possible, but we have a state sponsored transportation system and patterns of land development based on private automobile use. And this system (euclidean zoning, arterial road networks, lack of sidewalks, dismantling of the public transportation infrastructre of the early 20th century) makes it near-impossible to use alternative means of transportation (public, bicycle, walking...) as a way to get around in many (most?) areas of the country. We didn't get this way by 'choice' or the 'free market', it has been designed and intentional.

'They don't like Capitalism'... Please... this isn't capitalism. It's corporatism and the game is rigged. That's what bugs me so much about the conservatives, tea party, and most main-stream libertarians I hear. Of course the liberals want government to solve all problems. That's expected. But conservatives and tea partiers calling for rolling back of regulations to allow the 'free market' to sort things out?? What a joke. It's not a free market and they are just being used as pawns by the corporations to increase their control.

Folks can cry all they want about Bloomburg infringing upon your rights by taking your Big Gulp away. They're still puppets and just too ignorant to see the strings. Your 'rights' and your 'choices' aren't nearly as 'free' as you think. Everyone up in arms about Bloomburg needs to set their sights a bit higher and see who really are the puppet masters. The State and the Corporatioin are one.

[Grok]

Oh my goodness thanks for opening my eyes. I had NO IDEA that Russia was corrupt at ALL.

If you think Russia is bad, we have the Bilderbergers meeting in Virginia right now planning out how they are going to take over the world.

Bilderberg 2012: The Official List of Participants

[Grok]

'They don't like Capitalism'... Please... this isn't capitalism. It's corporatism and the game is rigged. That's what bugs me so much about the conservatives, tea party, and most main-stream libertarians I hear. Of course the liberals want government to solve all problems. That's expected. But conservatives and tea partiers calling for rolling back of regulations to allow the 'free market' to sort things out?? What a joke. It's not a free market and they are just being used as pawns by the corporations to increase their control.

Rolling back regulations? How about completely eliminating regulations? You can't eliminate Glass-Steagal without also eliminating the FDIC, you need both statist regulations in place because the statist Glass-Steagal regulations were put in place as a band-aid for the statist FDIC program.

Also regulations is only the tip of the ice berg. I don't know what "Tea Partiers" and Libertarians you are talking to, but the ones I associate with want to end the Federal Reserve system which would pretty much destroy all the fascism in this country.

Warning: bad language.