Friday, March 30, 2012

Spoonful of government won’t make obesity go down

“Preschooler’s Homemade Lunch Replaced with Cafeteria Nuggets”
“Is Drinking Soda Worse than Smoking?”
“Fatty Foods as Addictive as Cocaine?”
Are these newspaper headlines from The Onion? Sadly, these are actual story titles from respected media outlets. The headlines reflect the near-hysteria that currently pervades discussion of America’s collective weight problem and supposed government policy solutions.
It would be easy to simply dismiss such hyperbole as trendy Big Food bashing. But behind the overblown headlines lies a calculated campaign. Its architects want you to believe that businesses are manipulating your diet and imposing harmful choices on you. Since you can’t trust yourself or the people who make your food, government must step in to protect you.
This campaign comes straight from the Activism 101 textbook and is modeled after the successful war on tobacco. The goal is to demonize, regulate and sue food companies.
The demonization efforts are well underway, with advocacy-tinged “studies” declaring sugar a toxin; allegations that soft drinks contain carcinogens and lead to heart and lung diseases; and accusations that food companies make products that are as addictive as cocaine.

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