Nyc Mayor Aims To Ban Super Sized Sodas And Sugary Drinks.

[Akheia]

Oh dear god now I know what to make for lunch. I have the most amazing white honey, I have greek yogurt, I have frozen berries. NOTHING HINDERS ME. Ouro, you're amazing, dear. Vigile: Ooh, sounds fascinating.

 

MWC's post about the uses of benefits was interesting, though I too don't particularly get what made it relevant. Could you explain a bit more, MWC?

 

(Going into lurk mode--shoulder is fucking killing me and I just took a painkiller, so nothing I say for the next few hours will sound particularly coherent.)

[Ouroboros]

I just made a smoothie with ice (of course), fresh berries, greek yogurt, and two spoons of organic honey. It's delish!

 

Sounds delicious.

 

They have a pelmini bar here in Riga, where I'm at for another couple of days (pelmini is Russian-E Euro ravioli) that serves glasses of berry kefir that tastes a lot like your smoothy sounds. Really scrumptious.

Kefir is amazing.

 

I might start culturing my own kefir or yogurt now too. I'm in this "natural" craze right now...

[Ouroboros]

Oh dear god now I know what to make for lunch. I have the most amazing white honey, I have greek yogurt, I have frozen berries. NOTHING HINDERS ME. Ouro, you're amazing, dear. Vigile: Ooh, sounds fascinating.

It was so good so I made another one, but with some modifications.

 

If you have a juicer you can juice the berries to get rid of the seeds first. Then it's a drink.

 

The trick is to use right amount of yogurt and honey so it's not too sweet. The yogurt adds a lot of creaminess. So it's like a shake-smoothie. (Now I want more! )

[Vigile]

I just made a smoothie with ice (of course), fresh berries, greek yogurt, and two spoons of organic honey. It's delish!

 

Sounds delicious.

 

They have a pelmini bar here in Riga, where I'm at for another couple of days (pelmini is Russian-E Euro ravioli) that serves glasses of berry kefir that tastes a lot like your smoothy sounds. Really scrumptious.

Kefir is amazing.

 

I might start culturing my own kefir or yogurt now too. I'm in this "natural" craze right now...

 

The dairy products in general -- sour cream, yogurt and kefir -- over here are just so much smoother and creamier than anything I've seen in the US. The only place I've seen that compares is Germany.

 

You probably had the same in Sweden as I know the dairy products in Finland are comparable to Russia and other E Euro nations.

 

The last time I was in the US I couldn't believe how disgusting I found the sour cream after being spoiled by the Russian stuff. In the US it's like gelatin or something and way more sour.

[florduh]

The dairy products in general -- sour cream, yogurt and kefir -- over here are just so much smoother and creamier than anything I've seen in the US. The only place I've seen that compares is Germany.

 

 

Oh yeah? Well, I just had a hot fudge sundae at Buffy's. Hand dipped Blue Bunny ice cream, tons of hot fudge, real whipped cream, crushed peanuts and a cherry. Not effete, snobby, communist health food, but DAMN it was good. And I had a fuckin' Coke, too!!!!!!!!!

[Ouroboros]

The dairy products in general -- sour cream, yogurt and kefir -- over here are just so much smoother and creamier than anything I've seen in the US. The only place I've seen that compares is Germany.

That's why they have "Greek Yogurt" now. It's more creamy than the regular kefir. It gives a bit of ice-cream creaminess to it, or like whip-cream.

 

You probably had the same in Sweden as I know the dairy products in Finland are comparable to Russia and other E Euro nations.

There's a sour kind in Sweden that I miss here. Most of the stuff in US (like mentioned before) is sweet. Everything is sweetened. It bugs me. Things can be savory, bitter, and sour and be good too. That's probably why I like dry-hopped beer over standard lager or ale.

 

The last time I was in the US I couldn't believe how disgusting I found the sour cream after being spoiled by the Russian stuff. In the US it's like gelatin or something and way more sour.

Really? It's more sour here? Perhaps the Russian sour cream is more like creme fresh, it's less sour and slightly different texture.

[Ouroboros]

Oh yeah? Well, I just had a hot fudge sundae at Buffy's. Hand dipped Blue Bunny ice cream, tons of hot fudge, real whipped cream, crushed peanuts and a cherry. Not effete, snobby, communist health food, but DAMN it was good. And I had a fuckin' Coke, too!!!!!!!!!

Was the Coke larger than 16 oz? You friggin' libertarians and your soda sizes!

[florduh]

Was the Coke larger than 16 oz? You friggin' libertarians and your soda sizes!

Here's the deal with the Coke - the cup is 20 oz. but there is 14 oz. of crushed ice in it, see? There is room for about 6 oz. of Coke in that giant cup. Tempest in a teapot, so to speak.

[Vigile]

The dairy products in general -- sour cream, yogurt and kefir -- over here are just so much smoother and creamier than anything I've seen in the US. The only place I've seen that compares is Germany.

 

 

Oh yeah? Well, I just had a hot fudge sundae at Buffy's. Hand dipped Blue Bunny ice cream, tons of hot fudge, real whipped cream, crushed peanuts and a cherry. Not effete, snobby, communist health food, but DAMN it was good. And I had a fuckin' Coke, too!!!!!!!!!

 

Never heard of Buffy's, but sounds good -- but you better borrow your diabetic buddy's insulin shot before you eat it.

[Vigile]

Perhaps the Russian sour cream is more like creme fresh, it's less sour and slightly different texture.

 

Yeah, I believe so, though not as fat as creme fresche. When I'm cooking and the recipe asks for creme fresche, I get the 20% fat sour cream.

 

That's why they have "Greek Yogurt"

 

I tried Greek yogurt last time I was in the US and didn't notice much difference. But it was grocery store brand. You might get something more authentic in CA than they have in Spokane, where I was at.

[Ouroboros]

Was the Coke larger than 16 oz? You friggin' libertarians and your soda sizes!

Here's the deal with the Coke - the cup is 20 oz. but there is 14 oz. of crushed ice in it, see? There is room for about 6 oz. of Coke in that giant cup. Tempest in a teapot, so to speak.

So true. Most places fill up the whole cup with ice and there's no room left for the soda. That's how they make money.

[Vigile]

I think the Mexican sour cream the sell in the US might be closer to Russian. They sell it in a lot of stores in ID and WA where there are a lot of hispanic migrant workers. Crema ??? I forget the name.

[mcdaddy]

Last year, the Obama administration rejected the mayor's request to bar city food-stamp recipients from using their benefits to buy soda and other sugary drinks.

 

Seems smart of Bloomberg and pretty stupid of the O admin if you ask me. No doubt lobby pressures were involved in the admin's decision here.

Replace "food stamp recipients" with pretty much anything else. "Black." "White." "Male." "Female." It's a fail.

 

They're not lower class citizens because they need assistance.

 

mwc

 

You're kidding me right?

 

Food stamps are for sustenance. Sugar doesn't have any serious nutritional value. Why should tax payers be paying for something that doesn't add nutritional value in a program designed for that very purpose? Why do you think they get stamps instead of dollars? To ensure they buy food and not gamble, make car payments and buy cigarettes.

 

So, no I'd say you are equivocating when you use the discrimination card.

 

I used to work in a grocery store btw and I saw what many (most?) people bought with food stamps. It's not like this is just denying them a coke to be used as a guilty pleasure. It's more like denying loads of people who just buy pure shit and feed it to their kids on the tax payer dollar. It is a serious problem.

 

Thisthisthisthis

[Ouroboros]

I think the Mexican sour cream the sell in the US might be closer to Russian. They sell it in a lot of stores in ID and WA where there are a lot of hispanic migrant workers. Crema ??? I forget the name.

We have family and friends who are hispanic, so I'll check into that.

[OpheliaGinger]

Last year, the Obama administration rejected the mayor's request to bar city food-stamp recipients from using their benefits to buy soda and other sugary drinks.

 

Seems smart of Bloomberg and pretty stupid of the O admin if you ask me. No doubt lobby pressures were involved in the admin's decision here.

Replace "food stamp recipients" with pretty much anything else. "Black." "White." "Male." "Female." It's a fail.

 

They're not lower class citizens because they need assistance.

 

mwc

 

You're kidding me right?

 

Food stamps are for sustenance. Sugar doesn't have any serious nutritional value. Why should tax payers be paying for something that doesn't add nutritional value in a program designed for that very purpose? Why do you think they get stamps instead of dollars? To ensure they buy food and not gamble, make car payments and buy cigarettes.

 

So, no I'd say you are equivocating when you use the discrimination card.

 

I used to work in a grocery store btw and I saw what many (most?) people bought with food stamps. It's not like this is just denying them a coke to be used as a guilty pleasure. It's more like denying loads of people who just buy pure shit and feed it to their kids on the tax payer dollar. It is a serious problem.

 

You do realize why they buy that crap, right? It's cheap and it keeps them feeling full longer. If they actually bought the really healthy stuff they wouldn't have enough benefits at the end of the card to be able to feed their family and it would require them to return to the store more than once a month (eating up on gas) because the food either spoiled or didn't last the full month.

[freeasabird]

Last year, the Obama administration rejected the mayor's request to bar city food-stamp recipients from using their benefits to buy soda and other sugary drinks.

 

Seems smart of Bloomberg and pretty stupid of the O admin if you ask me. No doubt lobby pressures were involved in the admin's decision here.

Replace "food stamp recipients" with pretty much anything else. "Black." "White." "Male." "Female." It's a fail.

 

They're not lower class citizens because they need assistance.

 

mwc

 

You're kidding me right?

 

Food stamps are for sustenance. Sugar doesn't have any serious nutritional value. Why should tax payers be paying for something that doesn't add nutritional value in a program designed for that very purpose? Why do you think they get stamps instead of dollars? To ensure they buy food and not gamble, make car payments and buy cigarettes.

 

So, no I'd say you are equivocating when you use the discrimination card.

 

I used to work in a grocery store btw and I saw what many (most?) people bought with food stamps. It's not like this is just denying them a coke to be used as a guilty pleasure. It's more like denying loads of people who just buy pure shit and feed it to their kids on the tax payer dollar. It is a serious problem.

 

You do realize why they buy that crap, right? It's cheap and it keeps them feeling full longer. If they actually bought the really healthy stuff they wouldn't have enough benefits at the end of the card to be able to feed their family and it would require them to return to the store more than once a month (eating up on gas) because the food either spoiled or didn't last the full month.

 

I don't buy it. I can eat for a week off $8 worth of frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts and $3 of frozen vegetables. I'm a runner who eats healthy, cares about nutrition, and can actually do it on a budget. It requires some forethought and actual cooking rather than just using the microwave, but it's cheaper than any other 'crap' you can buy.

[Ouroboros]

... It requires some forethought and actual cooking rather than just using the microwave, ...

That's why American's are obese. They don't want to think about what to make or actual cook food. Just by starting to cook your own food, you'll begin a much healthier diet. Over time, you can start picking out the healthier ingredients as well. We don't like to go out anymore because our home cooked food is far superior than most restaurants (at least we think so). But it takes time, focus, and devotion (and some thought).

[Akheia]

I don't think people really learn how to cook or handle home economics much these days. A while ago I ran across an FDA cookbook--it was supposed to have all these recipes for poor people to cook on a budget. It was pretty pedestrian stuff, homemade casseroles and spaghetti. Then I found some government review of the cookbook that criticized it for having recipes that were too complicated for its target audience. It specifically mentioned that most of its readers didn't know how to clean or prep raw onions and advised the cookbook writers to see if they couldn't dumb it down just a little more.

 

Another story some years ago mentioned that a sizeable proportion of lower-income parents were convinced that Kool-aid was "fruit juice." They weren't just calling it that; they apparently really thought it was.

 

Every time you think "there's just no damned way consumers can get more ignorant and uninformed" another entry rolls in. But if you think about it, the food industry doesn't exactly benefit from consumers abandoning their premade shit and heading for the produce aisle instead. Watch the profit margins increase as a food gets more and more processed. Consumer ignorance pays.

 

One of my favorite gigs ever was being a home chef to a guy who had an astronomical grocery budget. God, I loved that. BTW, he lost about 60 pounds during the six months I lived in his house just by cutting out most of his restaurant trips. I wasn't paying any special attention to weight loss--you don't want to know how much butter and cream I went through in a week. There was dessert every night, too. But as unhealthy as my cooking likely was, it was still healthier than going to Carabba's every single night.

[OpheliaGinger]

Last year, the Obama administration rejected the mayor's request to bar city food-stamp recipients from using their benefits to buy soda and other sugary drinks.

 

Seems smart of Bloomberg and pretty stupid of the O admin if you ask me. No doubt lobby pressures were involved in the admin's decision here.

Replace "food stamp recipients" with pretty much anything else. "Black." "White." "Male." "Female." It's a fail.

 

They're not lower class citizens because they need assistance.

 

mwc

 

You're kidding me right?

 

Food stamps are for sustenance. Sugar doesn't have any serious nutritional value. Why should tax payers be paying for something that doesn't add nutritional value in a program designed for that very purpose? Why do you think they get stamps instead of dollars? To ensure they buy food and not gamble, make car payments and buy cigarettes.

 

So, no I'd say you are equivocating when you use the discrimination card.

 

I used to work in a grocery store btw and I saw what many (most?) people bought with food stamps. It's not like this is just denying them a coke to be used as a guilty pleasure. It's more like denying loads of people who just buy pure shit and feed it to their kids on the tax payer dollar. It is a serious problem.

 

You do realize why they buy that crap, right? It's cheap and it keeps them feeling full longer. If they actually bought the really healthy stuff they wouldn't have enough benefits at the end of the card to be able to feed their family and it would require them to return to the store more than once a month (eating up on gas) because the food either spoiled or didn't last the full month.

 

I don't buy it. I can eat for a week off $8 worth of frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts and $3 of frozen vegetables. I'm a runner who eats healthy, cares about nutrition, and can actually do it on a budget. It requires some forethought and actual cooking rather than just using the microwave, but it's cheaper than any other 'crap' you can buy.

 

1. Do you have a family? and

2. Do you have a job that pays minimum wage with very little room to raise because you don't have a high school diploma?

[freeasabird]

Last year, the Obama administration rejected the mayor's request to bar city food-stamp recipients from using their benefits to buy soda and other sugary drinks.

 

Seems smart of Bloomberg and pretty stupid of the O admin if you ask me. No doubt lobby pressures were involved in the admin's decision here.

Replace "food stamp recipients" with pretty much anything else. "Black." "White." "Male." "Female." It's a fail.

 

They're not lower class citizens because they need assistance.

 

mwc

 

You're kidding me right?

 

Food stamps are for sustenance. Sugar doesn't have any serious nutritional value. Why should tax payers be paying for something that doesn't add nutritional value in a program designed for that very purpose? Why do you think they get stamps instead of dollars? To ensure they buy food and not gamble, make car payments and buy cigarettes.

 

So, no I'd say you are equivocating when you use the discrimination card.

 

I used to work in a grocery store btw and I saw what many (most?) people bought with food stamps. It's not like this is just denying them a coke to be used as a guilty pleasure. It's more like denying loads of people who just buy pure shit and feed it to their kids on the tax payer dollar. It is a serious problem.

 

You do realize why they buy that crap, right? It's cheap and it keeps them feeling full longer. If they actually bought the really healthy stuff they wouldn't have enough benefits at the end of the card to be able to feed their family and it would require them to return to the store more than once a month (eating up on gas) because the food either spoiled or didn't last the full month.

 

I don't buy it. I can eat for a week off $8 worth of frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts and $3 of frozen vegetables. I'm a runner who eats healthy, cares about nutrition, and can actually do it on a budget. It requires some forethought and actual cooking rather than just using the microwave, but it's cheaper than any other 'crap' you can buy.

 

1. Do you have a family? and

2. Do you have a job that pays minimum wage with very little room to raise because you don't have a high school diploma?

 

1. Yes, but I didn't intent to give the impression that would feed a whole family. That was for one adult.

 

2. Irrelevant. How much I make has no bearing on the affordability of the products I mentioned. They either are or are not affordable, especially relative to its junk food competition. I'm all ears to hear what junk food of a meal is more affordable.

[Ouroboros]

I don't think people really learn how to cook or handle home economics much these days. A while ago I ran across an FDA cookbook--it was supposed to have all these recipes for poor people to cook on a budget. It was pretty pedestrian stuff, homemade casseroles and spaghetti. Then I found some government review of the cookbook that criticized it for having recipes that were too complicated for its target audience. It specifically mentioned that most of its readers didn't know how to clean or prep raw onions and advised the cookbook writers to see if they couldn't dumb it down just a little more.

Casserole and spaghetti too complicated? That's too sad. But that was me just a year ago. I didn't do any cooking before but took an introduction course. Then I helped my wife. Then I started to make my own stuff. My kids brag about me and my wife to their friends (and even take stuff with them to share, like my cheese-dip).

 

Every time you think "there's just no damned way consumers can get more ignorant and uninformed" another entry rolls in. But if you think about it, the food industry doesn't exactly benefit from consumers abandoning their premade shit and heading for the produce aisle instead. Watch the profit margins increase as a food gets more and more processed. Consumer ignorance pays.

Very true.

 

One of my favorite gigs ever was being a home chef to a guy who had an astronomical grocery budget. God, I loved that. BTW, he lost about 60 pounds during the six months I lived in his house just by cutting out most of his restaurant trips. I wasn't paying any special attention to weight loss--you don't want to know how much butter and cream I went through in a week. There was dessert every night, too. But as unhealthy as my cooking likely was, it was still healthier than going to Carabba's every single night.

Exactly. Even unhealthy home cooked food is most likely better than most eating out (of course there are restaurants that use fresh ingredients and cook it well, but generally... not many do).

[Akheia]

And if it looks healthy in the restaurant, it probably isn't. Did you know that most pasta is finished with a nice dollop of butter? Even if it's an Italian restaurant, you can pretty much count on it. (http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/how-to-make-perfect-pasta) And you can hardly count on the restaurant's calorie counts (IF your restaurant provides those) to be accurate--many underestimate. (http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jul/20/health/la-he-menu-calories-20110720)

 

So we've got a poorly-educated populace facing a minefield of manipulative advertising, lack of time, and lack of culinary skill. They've got a fistful of dollars and can see pretty clearly that unhealthy food costs way less per calorie and doesn't require them to put any time or skill into preparing it. We've spent a couple of generations teaching parents that cooking from scratch is jussssst tooooooo harrrrrrrd, and they've taken that lesson to heart. We've created a culture unique in its inability to plan ahead or master impulses. Then we removed all brakes that might hold food manufacturers away from preying upon this howling mob of savages. I'm not sure I could ever design an impending health catastrophe better than we've managed here.

 

If bans aren't a good idea, then what in hell can we do in the short term? One can hardly blame a little flailing.

[mcdaddy]

Ak, it's just you an me in a sea of liberated fatties.

 

[florduh]

Amazingly, for all we appear to be doing wrong, life expectancy for Americans continues to hit new highs. Alarmists - read that again.

 

http://www.nytimes.c...E_BRF.html?_r=1

 

We've created a culture unique in its inability to plan ahead or master impulses.

More victim mentality? I am lazy and stupid because society is evil and doesn't lead me by the hand?

 

How about expecting individuals to take responsibility for their own actions? I know, it's a radical notion...

[Guest Valk0010]

And if it looks healthy in the restaurant, it probably isn't. Did you know that most pasta is finished with a nice dollop of butter? Even if it's an Italian restaurant, you can pretty much count on it. (http://www.bonappeti...e-perfect-pasta) And you can hardly count on the restaurant's calorie counts (IF your restaurant provides those) to be accurate--many underestimate. (http://articles.lati...lories-20110720)

 

So we've got a poorly-educated populace facing a minefield of manipulative advertising, lack of time, and lack of culinary skill. They've got a fistful of dollars and can see pretty clearly that unhealthy food costs way less per calorie and doesn't require them to put any time or skill into preparing it. We've spent a couple of generations teaching parents that cooking from scratch is jussssst tooooooo harrrrrrrd, and they've taken that lesson to heart. We've created a culture unique in its inability to plan ahead or master impulses. Then we removed all brakes that might hold food manufacturers away from preying upon this howling mob of savages. I'm not sure I could ever design an impending health catastrophe better than we've managed here.

 

If bans aren't a good idea, then what in hell can we do in the short term? One can hardly blame a little flailing.

Maybe addressing some economic questions. For various reasons that I resent, and I am not proud off. I am on food stamps(the only reason btw, I didn't give up internet first, is that its tied to my rent, so to not use it would mean it would just got to waste, so no libertarian do gooders have a right to bitch at me). I don't have cable, I don't drink or smoke. So I am not wasteful by any means. Though, I am pretty sure, I would eat alot better if the good food to eat was cheaper. Right now I don't have any vegitables that aren't in a can full of sugar water, because veggies are really really expensive. I can't even buy bananas or tangerines or mangos (my three favorite fruits) because I have to live on 50 a week for food. One mango can be 80 cents This is at a part of the world where milk is around 2.99. Cheese is something akin to 4 dollars. Lettuce is around 4 dollars as well. A bag of baby carrots is or celery are usually around 3.50. You can't really get healthy meals with those kinds of prices. This in a world, were a frozen pizza is 7 dollars. Pizza rolls which are around 4 dollars would feed me most of the day. Noodles are usually at around 1.25 and that is a meal in itself. Get my drift. Its why people get take out at buffets, because that orange chicken you get at the buffet is cheaper then the kind you would get and make yourself at a restraunt.

 

Victims of ignorance and economics.