Philly Mayor Imposes "Soda Tax"

Citing "Obesity" and the serious revenue gap the City of Philadelphia is facing, Mayor Nutter has decided to impose a $0.02 per ounce tax on sweetened beverages.

This revenue will "raise $77 million a year and address the city’s high obesity rate, especially among children, aides said."

Address the high obesity rate? Sure it will. While your at it, why not impose a dollar a bag tax on Doritos, potato chips and Tasty-Kakes, while you're at it?

While this new tax may be put out there with good intentions, let's face facts...not a single penny of this money, slated to close an existing budget gap, will ever be used to fight obesity. As a matter of fact, the only thing that will get thinner is the wallet of Coke and Pepsi drinkers, and the only thing that will get fatter in regards to soda drinking is the Philly tax coffers.

It's time to honor that age old tradition in the Philly area, and, not unlike the "protest" purchases we make at Jersey and Delaware liquor stores, cross state lines to buy yourselves some "tax free" soda.

That is until Philly makes it illegal to bring a Mountain Dew across state lines, without paying duty on it.

To all my friends in Philly-I'm thinking of selling soda from a cooler at the Philly/Montco city line, near Pep Boys on Ridge Pike. Instead of $0.40 cents a bottle tax, I'll only charge you $0.20-

I'm glad I live in the 'burbs...sheesh!

Read the full Courier Times article here.



And here is the rest of it.