The Perils of Hyperactive Government

Some day I hope to own a guitar just like Woody Guthrie's only mine will be emblazoned with the slogan "This Machine Kills Public Health Workers". Nervous nelly anxieties over public health and safety issues have in the past few years have harmed "The American Way" beyond the wildest dreams of Tailgunner Joe's communist spies or our current President's cave-dwelling boogeymen.

Personal friends of mine have been plunged into poverty by the Boston and Massachusetts smoking bans, which emptied the drinking establishments they worked at in the name of "protecting the workers from second hand smoke". The sad irony of this is that they were all smokers themselves, and beyond that adults who accepted the occupational hazards of working in a bar.

You'd think the NYC public health community would have been content with their own smoking ban but with the support of Republican Mayor Michael Bloomberg they opened up a bold new front:an assault on trans fats. Restauranteurs and chefs are no longer allowed to cook with trans fats in the five boroughs of New York City.

The food police of Chicago have a radical, animal rights activist informed motivation for their city-wide ban on Foie Gras. It's just ducky as far as they are concerned.

Over in California there is less sympathy for animals as a breed ban on pitbull terriers is being considered. That's right, adults who own property and pay hefty taxes may soon have to choose between their pets and living in California.

The legislation being proposed is a knee-jerk reaction to some admittedly gruesome pit bull attacks. The problem of course isn't the dogs themselves, but the lowlifes who are drawn to the breed as a sort of inner-city status symbol. They tend to abuse the animals to 'toughen them up' and even stage dogfights in makeshift basement arenas.

This is a common problem with liberalism; a tendency to favor taking tools, such as dogs or guns, away from criminals by taking them away from the general public. I'm more interested in removing violent offenders from society and allowing honest citizens to make their own decisions about firearms or which breed of dog they wish to own.