Vogel: Mayor Mike's fat inconsistencies wear thin

Nathan's hot dog eating contest on Thursday presented yet another display of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's mixed message on healthy eating as well as his double standard on, well, everything.

A pun-crazed Bloomberg spoke at the weigh-in, saying he couldn't wait until "dog day afternoon" to congratulate the "wiener of the contest." But the laugh was on him when perennial champ Joey Chestnut announced his backing of one of Bloomberg's least favorite mayoral candidates: Anthony Weiner.

"He obviously has an affinity for Weiners," beamed the ubiquitous candidate.

Yep, even Weiner's now making Weiner jokes.

But I digress. Bloomberg's promotion of this tribute to gluttony is only the latest example of our mayor's "do as I say, not as I do" credo.

Earlier this year, right after a judge blocked the supersized-soda ban, the mayor vowed to force it through -- and then went on David Letterman and talked about his love of Cheez-Its.

"Cheez-Its are OK," chuckled the mayor. "That's my addiction."

A serving of the crackers has almost one-third the daily recommended sodium intake, incidentally, and his administration has called salt "the greatest public health threat facing" the city.

And that was far from the first time Bloomberg revealed his belief that what he thinks is best for everyone else doesn't apply to him. Recall his circumvention of the term-limit law. To paraphrase the late Leona Helmsley, Mayor Mike seems to think the rules apply only to "the little people" (that means us).

Why do I visualize him drinking a 64-ouncer behind Gracie Mansion's closed doors and cackling fiendishly?

Mississippi recently passed an "anti-Bloomberg" law that, among other things, makes it illegal to post calorie counts in restaurants. The local media had a field day mocking Bloomberg's soda ban, with one yokel commenting, "Li'l Mikey doesn't want any drinks that are taller than him." Good one, Clem! Meanwhile Mississippi has the highest obesity rate and lowest life expectancy in the nation.

So, yes, I respect what the mayor is trying to do. But his "do as I say, not as I do" attitude ticks me off.

And if I see Bloomberg with a hot dog in one hand and a bag of Cheez-Its in the other, I'm calling a cop.

Playwright Mike Vogel blogs at newyorkgritty.net.