Taxes on sugary drinks have been tried and failed in a few cities, partly because the soda industry has mounted big ad campaigns against them. Now a tax has passed in Philadelphia, partly because Michael Bloomberg funded a pro-tax ad campaign. I watched this unfold in Philadelphia in real time and never heard about the Bloomberg thing until I read it in the national media just now. I guess it’s a victory over special interests, of sorts. I generally support the idea of taxing things that hurt people and using he revenue to help people. That should be what taxation is all about. It should replace less productive taxes on good things like work, saving and investment. That’s not the case in Philadelphia. They just keep raising and raising and raising, and it can’t go on forever.