Sarah Palin tweeted this yesterday.
Sarah Palin @SarahPalinUSA
Victory in NYC for liberty-loving soda drinkers. To politicians with too much time on their hands we say: Govt, stay out of my refrigerator!
12:47 AM – 12 Mar 13
New York, NY – New York City’s ban on large sugary drinks from restaurants, movie theaters and other establishments was invalidated on Monday by a state judge as “arbitrary and capricious,” a day before it was to take effect.
The 11-hour decision was a blow to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose top lawyer quickly vowed to appeal.
In his ruling, state Supreme Court Justice Milton Tingling in Manhattan zeroed in on the loopholes, noting it would only have applied to businesses that are under the purview of the health department, like restaurants.
“It is arbitrary and capricious because it applies to some but not all food establishments in the city, it excludes other beverages that have significantly higher concentrations of sugar sweeteners and/or calories on suspect grounds, and the loopholes inherent in the rule … serve to gut the purpose of the rule,” he wrote.
Fast food restaurants and cafes had been scrambling on Monday to comply with the looming deadline. Many were confused over whether the rules applied to popular sweetened coffee drinks, underlining the ban’s uneven applications.
McDonald’s Corp said customers ordering a large coffee would be handed as many packets of sugar as they like on the side, to be poured into the drink at the customer’s leisure.
By contrast, Dunkin’ Donuts, which had been handing out leaflets to explain the law’s impact on its menu, decided its servers would hand over large drinks unsweetened and simply direct customers to a self-serve stand where sugar and flavored syrups are kept.
Large drink containers would still be available at convenience stores and grocery stores — in other words, places that are not regulated by the city’s health department. Places that receive regular health inspections from the city, including street vendors, bowling alleys and restaurants, will all have to abide by the ban. The convenience store 7-Eleven will not, so the Big Gulp was not part of the ban.
This calls for a Limerick:
The food police lost in the town of N.Y.
And Bloomberg is cooked, into him stick a fork.
Sarah Palin is right;
This was well worth a fight.
But ban from the lawmakers all wasteful pork.
Len Bilén's blog, a blog about faith, politics and the environment. 