Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4th, 2021 (Eastern Time) and beginning April 20th, 2021 (Eastern Time) the Yahoo Answers website will be in read-only mode. There will be no changes to other Yahoo properties or services, or your Yahoo account. You can find more information about the Yahoo Answers shutdown and how to download your data on this help page.
Trending News
US has greater than 30% obesity rate. Should Food Policy be addressed concurrently with Health Care policy?
Current food policy: Subsidize surplus crops (like corn and soybeans), make the most calorically dense foods available at the cheapest possible price. This is why a McDonald's hamburger costs as much as a pear.
Low income Americans are at a higher risk of obesity than middle or upper income earners. Why is that? It's because you can buy more junk food calories with a dollar than healthy food. It currently requires 10 calories of oil energy to cultivate 1 calorie of food energy, but government subsidies allow that to continue, so that big companies keep getting rich and funding our politicians' campaigns. Big Ag and Big Pharma control the government agencies that are supposed to regulate them (e.g. Michael Taylor, Linda Fisher, Tom Vilsack, it goes on and on).
I do not propose that the government decide what we eat. I simply suggest that the government stop interfering with our agricultural markets, giving companies like Monsanto a monopoly over our food supply.
Whether you support new health care legislation or oppose it, can we all agree that 1) we are the fattest country on Earth and 2) that is adding to our health care costs? Our problem is not only unaffordable insurance. Obesity is quite clearly an epidemic. Don't we need to look at both issues at the same time?
8 Answers
- 1 decade agoFavorite Answer
The agriculture lobby is much too strong. If we couldn't get around ethanol, which costs ten bucks per gallon, we wont get anywhere with this.
We are not the fattest country on earth by far. Tonga is.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
If obesity is clearly an epidemic why not let the government have some effect on what we eat?
Epidemic means bad right?
Government should do good right?
So, how about a tax on transfats?
How about a tax on High Sucrose Corn Syrup?
Would doing good really be that bad?
Would helping health really be the ultimate evil - No evil in the universe worse than helping people's health.
Would a .000001% infringement on liberty that creates a 5000% gain in human health be the most evil thing that anybody could ever imagine?
Would saving a million lives be the ultimate terrible idea, which we should never do because we are people of "Principle".
Transfats -- out go to jail
High Fructose Corn -- out go to jail.
Why are the so-called rational beings so totally illogical?
Is logic a crime?
Is reason a sin?
Source(s): Aristo-Ayn-Rand told me - 5 years ago
Whenever the gov't gets involved, the whole system will fall apart. The Canadian system will not work here in the states because most people will not stand for a 2 year wait for a elective surgery. Salaries {including Md's} will go down, so you will have a mass exodus of well trained professionals. Competition will suffer, new research will diminish. The rich who can afford private health care will do so, and then there will be whining about the rich get better health care...and so on ....and so on... It has been proven that social health care is not the answer here in the states. We need to find out where the waste is and go from there. Stop frivolous law suits, so malpractice insurance can come down, raise nurses salaries {just kidding}, just a few thoughts.
- vexingconfectionLv 41 decade ago
Wow-you nailed it!
I've read some of your posts-it's a damn shame you post here and Pelosi is in Washington-
Middle America is being forced into a vicious cycle-With our money going to health care insurance and govt programs we don't support, we have less to spend on appropriate family costs (healthy food, health care for Grandma, day care, education) which in turn causes us to depend on government programs- which raise our taxes...
- How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
When the government starts telling you to be fat or thin, what is to stop them from telling you what to read or think. Oh yeah, they are already doing that in government public schools. Groupthink
Source(s): I like individuality. It doesn't take a village to raise a kid - Anonymous1 decade ago
YES!
people should be held accountable for their lazy, piggish ways.
Obese people cost the rest of us in higher healthcare costs.
I heard today that 50% of healthcare costs in the US goes to pay for 5% of people!
- Anonymous1 decade ago
it is...haven't you heard about the death panels
