Hypocrisy, thy name is Food Fascism in 2012.
New York Mayor Bloomberg's edict banning large-size soft drinks is a classic case of arbitrary bureaucratic silliness, and of health-conscious thinking gone inconsistently awry.
The Mayor wants to make it a minor crime for restaurants, theaters, sports venues, fast-food purveyors, even food carts and kiosks to sell sugar-laced drinks... soft drinks, sports and energy beverages... in containers larger than 16 ounces.
But Mr. Bloomberg provides a plethora of bewildering exceptions, including:
The beef, pork, and poultry you buy at the market is more likely from a diseased animal because of laws in five states severely restricting free speech about meat-industry factory farms.
Iowa, Utah, North Dakota, Montana, and Kansas legislatures have all passed "ag-gag laws," a moniker earned because of extreme pressure from agriculture industry ("Big Ag") lobbyists to pass such statutes.
And Big Ag, via politicians receiving Big Ag donations, has proposed ag-gag laws in more states, including Missouri, Minnesota, Nebraska, Indiana, Tennessee, Florida, Illinois and New York.
State ag-gag laws and penalties vary, but per Food Safety News, mandate:
"In North Dakota, it is a class B misdemeanor to enter an animal facility and use or attempt to use a camera, video recorder, or any other video or audio recording device... Violators face jail terms of 30 days."
