New York – A New York health department spokeswoman says Dr. Richard Daines, the innovative commissioner who left a lucrative private sector career to fight for public health issues including a war against childhood obesity, has died.
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Claudia Hutton says Daines died unexpectedly Saturday at home. He was 60.
Daines stepped down two months ago.
Daines, a former Mormon missionary, led former Gov. David Paterson’s effort to create a so-called fat tax on soda that would fund programs to fight childhood obesity. His campaign included some of the first uses of YouTube by a state commissioner.
This month, Daines was to be a visiting scholar at the New York Academy of Medicine.
Taxed to death………literally.
BDE. His legacy should be a law banning all sweetened beverages
I’m not saying that we should suspect possible fowl play (I am sure the authorities are already investigating it quietly, anyway) but you can’t help wondering what if….
The Soft Drink Industry is extremely huge.
Just Coke and Pepsi alone, without counting all the other companies, Gross Sales combined is more than 73 BILLION Dollars yearly.
It doesn’t take rocket scientists to figure out that anyone who wants to place very heavy taxes on this 73 Billion and make them loose a lot of money, certainly has many “friends” who would love to see him dead.
Just watch the stock market today and you will see Pepsi and Coke stock jump up, not by coincidence.
No politics or bad remarks…just that it’s sad that a man of only 60 should pass away.
The title suggests that his death has to do with the soda tax…