New York Mayor Bloomberg’s proposed ban on soda 16 oz. or more has lots of folks talking. Rather than banning large drinks, some have used taxation as a way to limit consumption.  “A per-ounce tax on sweetened beverages would equally deter all different means of consumption,” writes Slate’s Matt Yglesias, adding that it would have the added benefit of raising revenue to pursue other welfare enhancing programs. Yale University’s Jason Fletcher, who has spent a lot of time studying soda taxes and their impact on consumption, found that each 1 percent increase in the soda tax rate correlated with a 0.003 point drop in Body Mass Index. “The .003 points is less than one thousandth of what a borderline obese person would need to lose to become borderline normal weight.” Fletcher describes this as a “modest” change in BMI.  It all bubbles up to redirecting the Mayor to consider other ways to raise money and focus on better for you education as a means of getting consumers to eat right.