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Originally posted by needtoknow:
[] Forkman,
I don't think we can just say individual responsibility is the solution, Nancy Reagan's "just say no" approach doesn't work.
Individual responsiblity is always the ultimate solution... "just say no" doesn't work because people are unwilling to exercise the personal reponsiblity and restraint involved in just saying no.
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I go back to the overweight/diabetes issue as an example. As a society we spend billions subsidizing bad for your health foods such as corn and it's by-products to a far greater extent than fruits and vegetables.
You can thank all the politicians from both side of the isle for the pandering to the farm lobby and large agri-business concerns. Although, corn itself is not "bad for you". Just like anything else, excessive consumption however isn't healthy.
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We also allow food corporations who manufacture fattening bad for your health foods to advertise to children on a constant basis. We engrain and subsidize bad habits and decisions that last a lifetime but for which the people who do the brain washing and make the profits bear no consequences.
This smacks of removing personal responsiblity and parental responsiblity from the equation. Its not the parents fault that they buy what amounts to junk food and let their children consume excessive quantities of it (there is nothing inherently wrong with junk food... moderation is the key). Its instead the "evil" corporations who are at fault for making and marketing the product.
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People need to see an instant consequence for certain action. In this economy that tool seems to be price and taxes.
Yes, rather than asking people to exercise perosonal responsibility and restraint, we'll simply protect them from themselves by taxing the "bad" goods to the point that they are no longer affordabe in large quantities for the average consumer. People don't need to see instant consequence, they need to be able to actually think about the long term impact of their actions... That's a tough sell in an instant gratification society such as ours.
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Simply putting out government feel good ads as are now being done will not work. ]
And further removing any personal responsibility is also not the answer.
Look at the recent McDonalds lawsuit that was thankfully thrown out. Plaintiff claims its McD's fault that hes grossly obese and suffering from health problems because he ate every day, multiple times a day from McDs. Its not his fault that he couldn't think through the fact that large amounts of greasy burgers and fries were probably not the wisest choice for multiple meals in a week.
If I subsist off of nothing but Swanson Hungry Man tv dinners which come in at about 45g/fat on average for 2 meals every day and also don't bother to do anything other than set on my rear and play video games can I then sue both Swanson for producing the food, Sony for selling the PS2 and the game producer for making such an addictive game? Its my own fault for choosing the above actions... but we should tax Swanson products and the company directly to force the price beyond affordability for me? We should also tax Sony and the game manufacturers along with their products so that they are also beyond affordability for me to protect me from my own stupidity, sloth, and gluttony?
I guess I'm just old fashioned thinking that people should be held responsible for their own actions and making the correct decisions instead adopting the "its not my fault" attituded and looking for a convenient scapegoat.
[ March 25, 2004, 11:54 AM: Message edited by: Forkman ]
