Yet another 'sin tax'. These things make me want to scream. The Boston Globe reports that New York State Assemblyman Felix Ortiz is pushing for passage of sweeping new sin taxes.

A proposal to tax junk food, video games and television commercials to pay for an obesity prevention program faces stiff opposition from politicians and business groups. [...]

The 1 percent tax hike floated by Assemblyman Felix Ortiz would apply to junk food, video games and television commercials, which Ortiz blames on New York's growing obesity problem. Ortiz, a Brooklyn Democrat, did not rule out proposing tax increases on other things that he believed contribute to obesity.

This is nothing less than governmental attempts at behavior modification. "You eat what we want you to eat, you watch what we want you to watch, you do what we want you to do. We know what is better for you than you do." Most of it comes back to government provided health care and services.

The evolution goes like this. Employers originally provided health care as an incentive to lure good employees. Gradually, people develop a sense of entitlement, and conclude that employers must provide health care for them. Then politicians convince them that health care should be taken away from employers and implemented by government. This spreads the sense of entitlement to everyone; those that are unemployed, and those that simply don't have health care. Now that the government is providing health care, be it to everyone or merely the "less fortunate", they assume the right to tell you how to lead your life, in the interest of lowering health care costs and solving health care "problems".

Where does this end? These standards can be applied to anything in life. Your type of car is more dangerous than mine, so you should have to pay a penalty tax. Your computer monitor causes more eye strain than mine, so you should have to pay a penalty tax. Your mobile telephone generates more EMFs than mine, so you should have to pay a penalty tax. Your brand of toilet paper doesn't degrade as well as mine, so you should have to pay a penalty tax. Your hairspray contains more tert-butyl alcohol than mine so you should have to pay a penalty tax.

I think it's about time we go back to the good ol' days, when politicians that came up with ideas like this were met on the capital steps with tar and feathers.