Over the past week, the media have reported plans to raise taxes on consumer products from two sectors that seem different at first glance but are similar in essence. The first is sweetened soft drinks. According to a draft of the Economic Arrangements Bill that accompanies the annual budget, a graduated tax will be imposed on these drinks based on how much damage they do to people’s health. For instance, drinks with a very high amount of sugar will be taxed at a rate of 1.3 shekels ($0.40) per liter, while those with less sugar will be taxed at 70 agorot (21 cents) per liter. The second tax c