TU Tuesday- Editorials

Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, identifying any fallacious reasoning or exaggerated or distorted evidence.
http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion/green-up-%E2%80%A8urban-deserts/16365/#more-16365

I think that the writer of this piece has a good point of view. The writer states that obesity is a problem and his opinion it seemed was to put a tax on sugared goods such as soda. "...idea of a tax on soda and other sugar-sweetened drinks." But the author also shows the reality side. This is that the law on a tax on sugared goods will never go through. So now the solution is to get fresh produce into small supermarkets to try to replace the fattening goods. The author has very good facts showing that action need to be taken to supply small grocery stores with fresh produce. "...Since last March, Capital District Community Gardens has been supplying nine convenience stores and markets with fresh produce under a five-year, $175,000-a-year grant from the state Health Department that also helps underwrite fitness programs. Veggie Mobile Sprout, as this program is called, delivers produce twice a week at wholesale prices, enabling urban stores in Albany and Schenectady to sell fresh food at supermarket rates and offer something better than their typical fare of often fattening and less nutritious processed food. The program’s goal is to become self-sustaining." But this article also has flaws. In the beginning the author says that many people in Albany and Schenectady are living in food deserts. He says that this is a place where a grocery store is less than a mile away and that most of these people are poor. " More than 40,000 people in Albany and Schenectady live in what are known as food deserts — places where a grocery store is at least a mile away. Many are poor. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that about 3,700 of the more than 23,000 people in Albany who don’t live near a large grocer are poor." He says later in that paragraph that for a poor person, a trip to the supermarket is a trek. But I think all of this is confusing and irrelevant. Wouldn't it be good to live a mile away from a grocery store. Also why would it matter that out of these 40,000 people that they were poor. The big dysfunction is how does all of the above information connect to putting a tax on sugared drinks and sodas? There is another flaw that I found. I think that he has a good case pertaining to child obesity and wanting to put fresh food in local markets. The thing is that wouldn't kids and their parents who are overweight just buy the same food that they usually buy at the grocery store. " Here’s one direction: Since last March, Capital District Community Gardens has been supplying nine convenience stores and markets with fresh produce under a five-year, $175,000-a-year grant from the state Health Department that also helps underwrite fitness programs. Veggie Mobile Sprout (the organization)..." I think they (The "obese" consumers) would just past by the new foods and not think anything of it. So I think that this author neglected to include a solution that goes side by side with the fresh produce. I think that you need to educate the consumers on why you should buy the new food. You should show them the advantages of buying a fresh orange rather than a bag of lays chips. This editorial was very good, I just think that the author should have explained and added much more detailed explanations. Sorry, I didn't want to do this black and white thing, but my computer was being crazy so I had to. Sorry- Alec