Doctors have demanded a 20 per cent tax hike on sugar sweetened drinks in the upcoming budget to tackle the obesity epidemic.

ep·i·dem·ic
ˌepiˈdemik
noun
noun: epidemic; plural noun: epidemics
1. a widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time.

Obesity is not a disease, nor is it infectious.  I'm surprised that doctors don't know that, or are they just using scary words to bolster their cause and frighten the public?

The Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI) also called for a review of how sugary drinks are promoted and the effect their consumption has, particularly by children.

It's none of their fucking business.  And it didn't take 'em long to play the chiiildren card, did it?

Professor Donal O’Shea warned they provide no nutritional benefits but are linked with weight gain.

Oh dear.  Something that gives pleasure but has no health benefits?  We can't have that, can we?

“With one in four Irish schoolchildren classified as overweight or obese, we have an epidemic and the Government must take action,” said the hospital consultant.

Change your purely arbitrary classification of obese and Bob's your uncle.  No more obesity.  Simples.

“There is widespread agreement among health professionals, now backed by a convincing body of evidence, that sugar sweetened drinks, including sports drinks, and their pattern of consumption are significant factors in weight gain and obesity, especially among children.

No citations here – just the usual "we know better than the Plebs" stuff.  Personally I would have thought the fact that kids are driven everywhere, and when they're not going somewhere, they're stuck in front of the television or Playstation might have something to do with it?  I know! Let's ban televisions.

“Despite this, sugar sweetened drinks remain popular in Ireland, and are heavily promoted.

And why not?  They are popular because people like them.  They are perfectly legal and if the manufacturers want to advertise their products that's up to them.  Personally I don't go for these sweet drinks, so I just ignore the advertising.  Or do these doctors think that people are so fucking thick that they have to rush off to buy a can just because they've seen a picture of one?

“Sports personalities and organisations are often used by industry to market their sports drinks.

So?  Doctors keep lamming on about how important sports are.  They can't blame the drinks industry for hitching a ride?

“This is certainly something that I believe should be discouraged in the future.”

Ban advertising and involvement in sports?  Now where have I heard that before?

The RCPI policy group on obesity said research indicates that the obese children of today will become the obese adults of tomorrow, costing the state more than a billion euro in healthcare costs and loss of productivity due to illness.

Here we go with the old "these people are costing the state a fortune" trick.  It's bollox.  How does the state suffer from loss of productivity?  Manufacturing may do, but it costs the state nothing.  And the purpose of the Health Department is to provide healthcare, not prevent people from using it.

It said public health must be prioritised over commercial gains and backed the Irish Heart Foundation which also called on Minister for Finance Michael Noonan to consider a tax hike on October 15th.

Another strange echo from the past.  Who is the enemy now?  Big Drink?  Big Soda?  Big Fizzy?  We have to give the enemy a catchy name now, don't we?

Associate Professor Dr Catherine Hayes said studies show a price increase will encourage adults and parents to buy healthier drinks.

More of these fucking studies.  She's wrong.  It just means people will have to pay more.  And what's a healthier drink?  Dr Catherine should try drinking my tap water!  It's full of chemicals which are probably causing far more damage than a drop of sugar.

“There is now a consensus across a broad spectrum of health professionals that a tax on sugar sweetened drinks is needed as an important step in addressing the challenge of obesity in Ireland,” she added.

Here we go with the "we know better than the Plebs" bit again.  So banging a few pence on a can of Pepsi is going to cure all ills?  This smacks more of someone trying to justify her existence and fat salary.

“A Health Impact Assessment commissioned by the Department of Health in 2012 estimated that a 10 per cent tax on sugar sweetened drinks would reduce the number of obese adults in Ireland by 10,000.

Brilliant!  Another number picked at random to scare the peasants.  5,200 killed by smoking?  10,000 saved from obesity?  What's next?  My bet is 43,000 killed by salt.  Any takers?  Even a pea-brain could see that their statement is a load of bullshit.

“The introduction of the tax would go some way towards reducing direct and indirect costs of obesity, and would generate additional much-needed revenue for prevention.”

And here we have it.  The real reason for this whole business.

Let's rewrite that last paragraph.

"The introduction of the tax would do fuck all for obesity but it would raise lots of cash to keep us in cushy jobs and which we can spend on rubbish studies and nagging the Plebs."

It's always about money.