Balko's 'What You Eat Is Your Business'

It’s Our Right, Not Yours The government controls what is supposed to be individual rights without American citizens being fully aware. As a liberalist, Balko strongly believes individual freedoms should be the center focus of the government. He disagrees that the government is doing a successful job of sustaining and encouraging a healthier America. His concerns about these issues point toward the idea of fairness because tiny things like what a person choses to eat affect the wallets of others’. Balko’s argument, in “What You Eat Is Your Business”, is that the government should let individuals make decisions for their own health, instead of interfering and making others pay the consequences for their poor habits. He uses various examples of how the government attempts to encourage healthy eating habits, and….. to support his claim. …show more content…
A “fat tax” and banning snacks and soda in school are a couple of the examples he gives to show the government’s attempts to control what people eat. (Balko 897) Eating should not have anything to do with politics. Although, taking soda out of the school systems would make children consume less calories and caffeine. And yes, having a fat tax could stop people from buying unhealthy food. Balko doesn’t agree that there approaches are helpful. He disagrees with their approach by saying, “This is the wrong way to fight obesity.” (897) In order to encourage a healthier lifestyle, Balko gives a different idea. He states, “…reward healthy lifestyles and penalize poor ones. (898)” By doing this, it makes obesity the consumer’s issue. They pay for their consequences of poor health, through their insurance