A New York state Supreme Court judge isn’t swallowing Nanny Bloomberg’s soda ban:
The city is "enjoined and permanently restrained from implementing or enforcing the new regulations," wrote New York Supreme Court Judge Milton Tingling, blocking the rules one day before they would have taken effect. The city's chief counsel, Michael Cardozo, pledged to quickly appeal the ruling.
In halting the drink rules, Judge Tingling noted that the incoming sugary drink regulations were "fraught with arbitrary and capricious consequences" that would be difficult to enforce with consistency "even within a particular city block, much less the city as a whole."
This is obviously good news for those of us who believe that our sodas are none of the government’s business. The mayor has responded by saying that the city is “not banking anything; it’s called portion control.” Thanks, Nanny, but that’s none of your beeswax, either.
Starbucks is also not jumping to head the mayor’s soda ban. And the mayor is not pleased:
“Starbucks knows how to market things, knows how to package things,” Bloomberg said. “They can change instantly when it’s in their interest to do so.”
Glad the mayor is an expert on the coffee business.
Many Starbucks drinks are milk-based, and drinks that are more than half milk are exempt from the soda ban.
Capturing the absurdity of the situation, Dunkin Donuts, on the other hand, is making changes to accommodate the ban:
Starbucks rival Dunkin Donuts, on the other hand, will be enforcing the mandate, telling customers that come Tuesday, customers will have to add their own sugar or flavors to large and extra-large hot beverages and medium and large iced beverages. The company also announced that sweet beverages like hot chocolate will only be available in small and medium sizes.