I’m not going to lie. I’m completely addicted to Red Bull. I don’t smoke, don’t really drink alcohol too often, and don’t have much of a sweet tooth, but I don’t know where I would be in life if not for Red Bull. Hey, at least I stick to the sugar free ones. 
That small rush that comes with every popping of the can, as the sweet scent of taurine and vitamin B6 engulfs my senses, telling my brain it’s time to get some work done. I use to bartend, and nothing kept me going like a monster can of Sugar Free Red Bull. I’d be bouncing off the walls for hours, which worked great for keeping customers entertained and making that money. Now, as I sit in front of the computer day after day, it’s just an extra incentive I allow myself after lunch.
I know, it’s a sickness, really.
My heart skipped a beat this morning when I found out that congress is seriously considering adding a tax to most sodas to cover the $1.2 trillion health care reform plan. In a world where people are losing their jobs literally by the hour, and 46 million can’t afford health care, congress is about to take away one of the few superfluous treats I allow myself. What’s next? My football? My Friday night BBQ’s?
Among the leading proponents of the idea is the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a longtime crusader for less sugar, salt and other harmful food additives. It advocates a federal excise tax on sugary sodas as well as energy and sports drinks and sweetened tea drinks. Diet sodas would get a free ride. – Comsumer Affairs
Here’s the deal. President Obama’s Health Care Reform Plan is costing a big chunk of change, and congress is left to figure out how to fund it. While the Medical Mafia is claiming they will help by cutting back their costs, congress still has to find trillions of dollars. That’s where random tax ideas come into play. My poor Red Bull is on the table. Damn.
A three-cent tax on every 12-ounce drink would bring in $24 billion over the next four years. I guess it’s a small price to pay to subsidize our health care crisis. Taxing over-caffeinated soda and energy drinks would not only create health care funding, it would also help to eliminate many of the reasons patients see a doctor and dentist in the first place.
It’s not the first time something like this has happened. I mean, there is a hefty tax on cigarettes, and New York Senator David Paterson tried a soda tax that failed miserably not too long ago. This health care crisis is nothing new as well, and finding ways to dig ourselves out of this hole will take more than a soda tax. All I know is that our No Insurance Club offices will be a lot quieter if the Red Bull supply is limited.
