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Soda Ban Bafflement: Jon Stewart Tries To Figure Out What He's Allowed to Put in His Mouth
By
John Del Signore
Published Jun 8, 2012
Modified Jun 8, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jun 8, 2012
Modified Jun 8, 2012
Share
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Last night the Daily Show pondered two proposals that would significantly change New Yorkers' lifestyles: Mayor Bloomberg's plan to ban the sale of most sugary drinks over 16 ounces in NYC, and Governor Cuomo's proposal to make the possession of 25 grams of marijuana in open view a violation, not a crime. In an attempt to wrap his head around the absurdity, Jon Stewart dumped a bag of weed into a plastic cup and set it next to a giant cup of soda—the pot would incur a $100 fine, while the giant soda could cost a business $200. "This soda is TWICE as illegal as this much weed," Stewart marveled. "And here's the sad thing: They go together so well!":
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Meanwhile, down in DC, some soda-industry lobbyists tried to attend an anti-soda conference where NYC Health Commissioner Thomas Farley was speaking. Beverage industry big-shots were said to be angered that they were excluded, and soda lobbyist Rick Berman—the man behind the Nanny Bloomberg ads—was prevented from entering. “Berman himself, as well as some of his goons, tried to register; we turned them away,” said an official at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which organized the event.
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Jon Stewart
soda ban
the daily show
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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