Mayor Bloomberg is a businessman... and a fine one at that. This is a fact we cannot take away from him. So, if we apply the logic of a businessman to the sugary drink ban, we see how it's going to result in more money for businesses, and help boost consumer spending. You may not be able to get that extra large soda, but nothing's stopping you from getting two mediums or three smalls... and nothing's stopping business owners from raising the prices of the prices of their smaller sized beverages.

Dunkin Donuts is distributing information to customers explaining the changes set to take place in stores Tuesday, when a ban on large sugary drinks begins. In an effort to curb obesity, the City's Department of Health is limiting the size of sugary drinks to 16 ounces or less at restaurants, delis, food carts, and concession stands.

Business owners who don't comply with the new rules face a $200 fine from the City. Many merchants have protested the regulations, since New Yorkers will still be able to buy larger sodas at supermarkets and grocery stores regulated by the State.

The ban is just one of the many health initiatives Mayor Bloomberg introduced in recent years. His administration has cracked down on smoking, banned trans fats, reduced sodium, and forced chain eateries to post calorie counts on menus. Next up, a $250,000 marketing campaign to warn teens they shouldn't listen to music at a high volume.

Do you welcome the large sugary drink ban starting Tuesday? How will it affect you or your business? Do you want to see your tax dollars used for these types of health initiatives?

Send your thoughts using the link above.

Bloomberg has been certified insane. He will spend the rest of his term in the psycho ward at Bellevue reading all about his mentor Hugo Chavez.

Joe
Port Richmond, SI

This Mayor needs to get his head checked and once and for all stay out of our business.
I would like to know if he does his own shopping for groceries and do his daughters ever drink or eat what he is telling us not to. He is just looking for self praise so that he can ad it to this phantom legacy of his. [THERE IS NO LEGACY AND THERE NEVER WILL BE] This will harm the business again. He seems to be so bent on inflicting such a hurt on us little people/hard working people/the homeless.

HE IS JUST A SADISTIC PERSON=I DON'T BELIEVE HE HAS EVER BEEN HAPPY A DAY IN HIS LIFE.

SO MUCH FOR THE 3RD TERMS

maxxiee
mp

I welcome the attempt.

Although it is not a cure, it helps.

Damond

BANNING OF SUGARY DRINKS OF A CERTAIN SIZE AND TELLING THE PEOPLE THE DANGERS OF THE SOUND OF LOUD MUSIC PALES IN COMPARISON TO THE ILLS OF POVERTY AND THE SOUNDS OF GUNSHOTS.

THE PEOPLE OF THIS GREAT CITY AND COUNTRY ARE HURTING FINANCIALLY AND WE NOW SET RECORDS FOR THOSE IN SHELTERS.

MAYOR BLOOMBERG, WHY IS IT YOU CAN REALIZE A $ 5 BILLION PROFIT INCREASE IN YOUR PORTFOLIO, WHEN YOUR CONSTITUENTS ARE GETTING SLAMMED BY YOUR POLICIES?

IMPRESS ME WITH BANNING HOMELESSNESS, POVERTY AND KIDS WHO MIGHT NOT MAKE IT TO THEIR ADULTHOOD.

OTHERWISE REMAIN MUTE WITH YOUR NANNY INVECTIVES.

JOE, BAY TERRACE

I am for it BUT I think it should only ban people who are already "obese" from getting large size sugary drinks!!

Since they still don't have the idea of taking care of their health, and we DON'T want to pay for their medical expense on their indulgence on sugary drinks!

Thanks!
LiLei Liu

As we all know Mayor Bloomberg thinks he can do whatever he wants because he is mayor. I can not believe that people actually agreed with him regarding the soda ban.

I for one don't care about the ban since my children and I only drink Diet soda and such.

I feel Mayor Bloomberg does not have the right to dictate what we can drink or eat . I understand he feels he is doing the right thing, but this is supposed to be a free country and be able to do what we want as long as it doesn't break any laws. In this economy I feel awful for businesses who are going to hurt even more come Tuesday due to this ban.

Annette
Flushing, Queens

The mayor wants to control what and how much we drink, how about we place a control on how much money he can make? He needs to be brought back to the reality faced by the masses in NYC.

Why is Bloomberg focusing on the pleasures of the masses? Is he going into the expensive restaurants and stopping them from selling sugary deserts? I'd like my tax dollars going somewhere else.

David from Brooklyn

If our society wants to pay for everyone's healthcare who can't afford insurance than we have a right to legislate their unhealthy eating habits to save taxpayers Dollars due to unnecessary illness associated with these drinks.

You can't have your cake and eat it too !

John
Manhattan

Its someone telling us what we can't have. As for myself i want to chose what i want to drink. The mayor should ban himself from New York . my plan is to leave this city in a year or less Florida bound enough of this citys stupid policies. Next ban in the Mayors agenda ear buds

Frank
Carroll gardens

The mayor is helping us. With the limit on beverage size and heavy fines. We need to obey the laws to keep us safe. We should also need to eliminate all guns. Poverty and crime is what we should should be try to eliminate 1st. But this is also necessary.

Rudy

I am not a proponent of heavy sugar use. I scrutinize labels in the
supermarket and try to eat sensibly.

If the Mayor is going to curtail heavy sugar use through this method , then why not continue....

Store bought yogurt has 26 grams of sugar. Should he limit the number of containers of yogurt that are sold. Why not go after liquor stores.

It is well known that liquor, in excess is not good for you. Should he limit the number of quarts one can buy?

The point , I feel is we need to make our own choices, in a culture based on profit, and better educate folks, early on, as to what sugar does to our health. We label cigarettes, and don't limit their consumption. Why not label sugary drinks?

Chris

I am in full support of this ban. It should make super-sized New Yorkers more aware of what they are putting into their bodies. I am truly hoping that this ban will result in smaller butts on the subway, making more room for all of us.

Ramona, Harlem

Sugar kills people it facilitates diseases. Cancer and diabetes. Stop destroying are children. Drink water green tea, and healthy fruit drinks.

Zhou

The new ban on sugary drinks will have some impact, but not what Bloomberg is hoping for.

Nutrition needs to be taught in our schools. People will consume the amount they want just to be defiant.

All I can say is don't tax me to pay their health costs.

Melanie
Park Slope

They are concerned about SUGAR, but cigarettes that kills people why they don't ban that?

I think a person should be able to drink whatever they want.. there are a lot more important things in the world and this is the one the mayor decides to do!

Servete

Now that we mandate the sharing of health card costs so all can have insurance we also have a right to legislate to keep those costs down!

Soda is poisonous to the body long term and will be negative for health care costs

John manhattan

I think this ban is great. It's either going to tax people extra via an additional purchase or tax people when we are paying to compensate for increased health problems; one way or another, we are paying for this problem. Also, if people were more responsible and aware of their own health and body, then the government wouldn't be forced to save then from themselves.

And that woman Mary Ellen is a moron-who cares if you are walking and drinking soda; you'd have to walk from Howard Beach to Westchester to burn off the calories, which is the point.

Abra

Obesity is not victimless. We all have to pay for it, and large sugared drinks are the leading cause. This ban addresses that. It also may educate ignorant parents that they are killing their children.

As in all situations, laws are created because of the worst behaved people.

Jared from the East Village

You know you live in an American city when its mayor starves its public education system, buys himself a third term against the will of the voting public, raises real estate taxes for middle class homeowners and not for corporations, suppresses free speech, approves unlawful search and seizure, and does nothing for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, but the people are finally outraged when he says that they can't have a large soda.

Jonathan
Harlem, NY

I am a true capitalist and believe everyone should have the right to do and consume what they want. But when other peolpes choices affect me then I believe gov't has a role. They way if affects me is in higher taxes for caring for all the obesity and all the other countless ways this will help.

No one ever ordered a 32oz drink 20 yrs ago and this country wasn't as fat.

Too much of a good thing is a BAD thing.

Controlling smoking in public areas had the same outcry for the same reasons - infringing on peoples rights but the reality is that the costs to everyone else is an impact to everyone and that deserved and needed a law to ban it and now worldwide it is the NORM.

David

On the one hand you have a majority of the country overweight, with consumption of soda and unhealthy foods the cause. And since now everyone is paying for everyone's healthcare I should be able to tell someone , "hey put the supersize Big Mac fries and coke down it will make you fat and with that comes all types of disease which cost money to treat and I'm not paying extra because you cannot maintain self control and responsibility.

However on the other hand this is a slippery slope where the government is over stepping its bounds on freedoms of Americans. As citizens our constitution has afforded us the right to make our own decisions without the intrusion of the government. This can be seen as the first step to limiting our choices...a step towards communism.

Gina
Bayside

This, like other Bloomberg initiatives, is designed to punish low-income New Yorkers. Will it lower the elevated cost of healthy organic foods? Will it lower the outrageous cost of health care in this city? Who does this really benefit?

Kat, Upper East Side

The real problem here is that people are not utilizing their constitutional right to vote. Why are we more concerned with our "constitutional" right to soda or coffee and not voting? If people don't like the regulations their lawmakers are making, then they should vote them out of office and get someone who will let them eat and drink whatever they want.

Mary

I don't like to be told what should I drink or eat.

But looking around when you walk in the city you can understand this large soda ban.
Lets learn how to drink water. Diet soda is not healthy either, all those chemicals. Drink water or try getting soda water as an alternative, it helps.

Everton from South Harlem.

When people demonstrate that they can make good choices then they should be permitted to do so. My taxes pay for health care surrounding issues related to obesity and there is no law ensuring that people will make good choices. There is a law that says I must pay my taxes. The attention that this ban draws to awareness of what you put in your body, if nothing else, is worth all the discussion about our rights. The 59% of people who feel that the ban is not effective should pay additional taxes towards health care. Change/education needs to begin somewhere.

Terri

I believe that Mike Bloomberg is doing the right thing, yet that isn't going to stop people getting obesity. Some Fast Food Chain like Burger King have refillable cups, so whoever wants to drink more soda can simply refill their Small or Medium Cup again. Therefore this ban wont be much effective. What Bloomberg really needs to focus is to Stop MTA Fair-hikes, its simply ridiculous that service doesn't change but the price always goes up. I am full time student, and its really hard for me to keep up with the fair hikes.

-Albert, from Rego Park, NY

the Mayor wants to stop large sodas first it was cigarettes now its sodas why don't he stop the number one killer and that is Alcohol

Ervin

I think the ban on sugary drinks is a great idea!!! If NYers (and people in general) aren't taking some necessary steps to prevent obesity, then someone else has to. Health care is expensive and many cannot afford to have it but they're not doing anything to maintain a healthy lifestyle and stay out of the hospital. Someone has to pull the reins and why not our elected Mayor. Thank You Bloomberg.

Quiana

I don't mind the beverage ban, personally because I am pretty health conscious & don't drink sugary drinks.My children like nothing more than a big cup of ice water regularly!
Also, I think that people who mindlessly guzzle empty calories & teach their kids to as well just create a host of health & social problems we all have to pay for!
Diabetes, poor dental health, & inevitably low self esteem!

Erin, Rego Park

Bloomberg is nothing more than Muammar al-Qaddafi. He cut-down Financial Aid now is Soda. I never for ones heard Bloomberg talk about employee wages so that they can afford healthy food. People like Bloomberg will suffer in Hell with the devil. The course of Obesity in America is not the Soda is the food and the chemicals. The food are not healthy and old enough to eat. From my speculation most of the chicken are less than 4 months. My advice for Bloomberg is that he should know his descendant will not remain rich for ever, one day they we be like me who make less than $300 weekly.

Vitalus

For the people who drink enough of these sugary drinks to have a major effect on their health, the ban won't have an effect - they'll get it one way or another. People my roommate - he's very obese, and he's drinking a two liter a night at home, yet he's not drinking as much if he eats out. It's really dumb in instances like pizza delivery, bottle service or movie theatres - I don't want to get up in the middle to get another drink! Bloomberg needs to worry about the *real* problems in the city instead of intruding in people's lives.

Ben

Exercise and eat right America! Bloomberg that's the answer, banning large sugary drinks is not going to help. If a medium is not enough and you really want more you'll buy another one.

Tanya, Park Slope

How did NY get saddled with this petty tyrant who cannot handle serious issues, but tries to micromanage citizens' lives? I feel I am living in a totalitarian dictatorship.

Frances
East Village

I wonder what exactly is next on Mayor Bloomberg's agenda other than his means to ban headphones that are over 85 decibels? I am wondering is it chocolate, muffins, ice cream -- other deserts? Does he realize that he is affecting small business owners -- that he is cutting their profits? He always toots his own horn when it comes to protecting small businesses. New York City is no longer a democracy it is a dictatorship and Mayor Bloomberg needs to stop this nonsense. And when does the City Council get involved -- or do they really ever -- you know the members that claim that they fight against Mayor Bloomberg's policies?

Lisa

I think Mayor Mike is going a bit far this time...I don't drink soda, but people should be able to choose for themselves. But thanks to him I don't have to breathe cigarette smoke in bars and restaurants and now maybe more people will be able to sit on the subway.

Rich
Rego Park

Can any of the Mayoral directives be changed in the next administration?

Nick, Hell's K.

If the mayor is so interested in our health, why not make sure we all have healthcare and to bring our stress levels down, make sure we can have affordable places to live?

Nancy from Hell's Kitchen

There was a time when there was no ban on smoking before scientists and doctors discovered the health and cancer risks that smoking and nicotine pose. Now recent scientific studies and research has shown than excess sugars in our diet are just as dangerous to our health and longevity. There was a time when 32 oz. drinks didn't exist, and nobody had a problem with it. Some ignoramus one day decided that a 32 oz drink should become the norm, and even 64 oz drinks as well in some locations. And now people are up in arms thinking that a 32 oz. drink has somehow become a right. Thank goodness we have a mayor who is looking out for us, when some don't have the good sense to.

Rain

Dear Mr Bloomberg,this a free country, thanks for caring, but, I think you are being
more of a terrorist than the afghanistan people, mine your own business, let the business owners get their share profit

Bernard