"It's the state's job to provide the best environment for the production of goods and services that people value, and not to interfere in people's lives."
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America’s Golden State—California—is home to about 1.5 million Filipino Americans. An estimated 278 thousand kids of those Fil-Ams are considered to be obese. Don’t believe me? Spend some time eating out with your Fil-Am relatives and friends on your next trip to Los Angeles or San Francisco and you’ll know what I mean.
To fight childhood obesity, California continues to march toward becoming America’s most restrictive state as its governor—Jerry Brown—signed S.B. 1192, a piece of legislation mandating that restaurants and fast food spots may no longer list sugary drinks on their kids’ menus. The only drinks they can properly advertise is water and milk—that’s right.
Interestingly enough, parents will still be allowed to order juices or sodas (that’s “soft drinks” to Pinoys), even if these items are not listed as “default” beverages. However, if a restaurant fails to follow the new law and it advertises sugary drinks, it could face a fine of up to $500.
To state lawmakers, the law is necessary to keep children healthy.
“Kids’ meals shouldn’t come with a side order of diabetes, obesity, or cardiovascular disease,” Assemblyman Kevin McCarty, a Sacramento Democrat, said while carrying a cup with nine packets of sugar to make a point about how much sugar a child ingests when drinking a small soda.
According to legislators’ logic, despite the fact that most American children consume almost twice as many calories when they go out to eat with their parents, compared with how much they consume at home, it’s the state’s job to make sure restaurants are aiding parents in keeping their children healthy.
The state’s job? It’s the state’s job to provide the best environment for the production of goods and services that people value, and not to interfere in people’s lives. It’s the parents’ job to teach their kids that drinking water is better for them (and cheaper too) and not ask the state to do it for them.
When governments get into the business of regulating or taxing people’s personal lives, the role of personal responsibility loses its importance and all matters become someone else’s responsibility. No wonder so many people nowadays resort to the “somebody ought to do something” call for action whenever society faces a new hurdle.
The Philippine government also followed suit with a sugar-sweetened beverage excise tax that is supposed to help promote a healthier country. The Departments of Health and finance support this as part of a comprehensive health measure aimed to curb the consumption of sugary drinks and address the worsening number of diabetes and obesity cases in the country, while raising revenue for complementary health programs that address these problems. The bureaucrats promoted the tax as a measure that is meant to encourage consumption of healthier products, to raise public awareness of the harms of sugary drinks, and to help incentivize the industry to develop healthier products and complements.
Over time, however, what appears to be an overzealous attitude reveals itself as what it truly is: An attempt at keeping voters hooked on the state and the “solutions” provided by politicians and bureaucrats.
The more the elected politician “looks after” the voter, the more the voter feels compelled to vouch for him, his colleagues, and the state in the next election. “All for the greater good,” as they love to proclaim.
This isn’t the first time that California or the Philippines has tried to curtail the obesity epidemic by legislating or taxing the problem away.
In 2009, California banned the sale of soda in public schools. But while supporters of the practice said children started consuming less soda as a result, the reality is that consumption of sugary beverages continued to grow among teenagers. Why? Well, they just switched to sports drinks instead.
In 2013, however, the party was over as it was the US federal government’s turn to ban sports drinks in schools nationwide. But despite the countrywide ban, the national obesity rate among kids aged between two and 19 years actually increased from 17.2 percent in 2013 to 18.5 percent in 2016. If anything, this increase proves that no matter how many new laws, regulations, or taxes are implemented, you cannot solve problems by restricting consumer freedom.
This lesson is particularly lost on California officials, as the state wastes no opportunity to ban something new whenever possible, or to Philippine officials, as the country also wastes no time in taxing something new whenever possible.
eric.jurado@gmail.com
