Information vs Money — which one wields more power?

Giving people the right information is empowering, right?
And being informed will help in making the right decisions.
Sounds great but in reality things are different.
Much different.

Take the sugar consumption.
We’ve been touting the harmful effect it has on children and adults alike.
(As evidenced by a steady increase in diabetes and obesity.)
Yet the purchase of sugar beverages has remained high.

Sugar tax
If information alone doesn’t seem to work, then what else needs to be done?
People in Berkley, California, seem to have come up with something that works.
In 2014, Berkley’s residents voted to enact a, “sugar-tax” of a penny-per-ounce on soda and other sugary beverages.
It produced results: the low-income neighborhoods cut their consumption by more than a fifth.
(I suppose this could be called a, “pocketbook intervention.”)

Information vs money
As to whether one wields more power than the other: they seem to work best when used concurrently — at least in this case.

Speaking of money and pocketbooks: the soda industry has spent millions of dollars.
Just to keep things the way they are.
And not have the extra tax levied on sugary drinks.

The movement for the, “sugar-tax” is gaining momentum.
Philadelphia will start taxing sodas this coming January.
And soon two other cities may do the same — San Francisco (CA) and Boulder (CO).
The voters in these cities will decide his November on enacting a soda tax (or not).

My thoughts
I don’t think soda industry is the “villain” here.
Or at least not the only one.
Yes, we like to consume sugar in its many forms.
(I should know — given the “industrial” quantities of chocolate I eat every day.)

But sugar is not the only culprit that causes the rise in diabetes and obesity.
We lead such sedentary lives.
We are glued to our technological devices for hours on end.

Does it help having the sugar-tax?
I can’t argue with the data — it did lower the sugary-drinks consumption by a fifth.

If the sugar-tax works so well then what type of tax do we need to get off the couch?
Leading a more active lifestyle would do wonders for our health.

(Hmm. What would happen then with the pharmaceutical industry?)

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OBI Blog changes

Beginning this month, new blog postings will be once a week.
The new day and time: Wednesdays at noon (EST)

In November we’ll also start, “Stories or people that have influenced me” series.
To lead us on this new path is OBI’s new guest-writer, Chris Mott.
With her compelling story, “Never be defined by your past.”
Come back and visit with us tomorrow.

Mariana Fieraru

Mariana Fieraru, an Eastern European transplant, fell in love with her new home shortly after landing in New York. She "discovered" pizza! Years later she still loves pizza. And so do her two feathered-kids, Sunny and Flipper

Mariana worked on both, the east and the west coast.
Big or small, each project she worked on helped define the importance of gaining and sustaining a competitive edge in an increasingly complex business environment.

Business know-how, love of teaching and writing – all combined in 2006 to form OBI.
Its mission: to make learning fun! And easy.

Through its training, consulting, and publications OBI builds bridges of knowledge to take you from where you are to
where you want to go. Using a mix of serious, informal, analytical, and optimistic approach, OBI truly makes learning fun.

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