Food and Drink

If we were to pick the one person most likely to push nanny statism absolutely as far as it can go, I'd probably nominate the mayor of New York:

So much in the news seems to be about events beyond our control -- the terrorists are coming! the national debt is crushing us! here comes the tornado -- duck quick! -- that it's nice once in a while to see a story about people who refuse to let adversity overwhelm them:

Man, they just can't make up their minds on coffee. It's bad for us, no, wait, it's good, uh-oh, here's a new study that's inconclusive. The latest news is really good for those of us who can't give the stuff up:

Coffee drinkers who worry about the jolt of java it takes to get them going in the morning might just as well relax and pour another cup.

I blame Michelle Obama:

Struggling in bankruptcy court, Hostess Brands is warning more than 18,500 employees nationwide that their jobs are in jeopardy if the company can’t emerge from Chapter 11 reorganization or find a buyer.

The company’s warning affects at least 856 employees in Indiana, most of them workers in Hostess commercial bakeries, retail stores or distributing the company’s iconic breads and treats including Twinkies.

It was bad enough that movie and TV producers have let themselves be shamed by the health nuts into keeping cigarettes out of their shows. Give 'em an inch, and they'll take -- well, half a foot, anyway:

The madness continues:

I suppose the critics are going to say Indiana is out of step, just like they did back during the daylight-saving-time debate:

Mayor Michael Bloomberg seems like the bigggest killjoy mayor in America. First he wanted to force restaurants to cut down on salt. Now, apparently, he's thinking about ending a cherished tradition:

Happy hour in the city could end if Department of Health policy party-poopers go ahead with a proposal to outlaw beer and booze specials at bars and restaurants, sources told The Post.

[. . .]

Well, bless my soul:

Since I'm in the grocery store two or three times a month, this isn't exactly a shock for me to read:

World food prices are likely to rise for a third successive month in March, and could gain further beyond that, with expensive oil and chronically low stocks of some key grains putting food inflation firmly back on the economic agenda.