How far are people willing to go to feel safe, I wonder?
Stricter and stricter guidelines, restrictions, and regulations are being passed everyday that are slowly taking our personal freedom away under the context that such freedom is "unsafe" for us. Is this right?
My feeling is that most people don't realize this very real consequence of placing so much power in the hands of a central government. Other people probably don't care because, for the time being, it serves their own interests.
"I support the bans on smoking because it's not fair if I go for a walk and someone is smoking that I should have to smell it." Very true and very compelling, but ultimately leading to a revocation of freedom. You just don't care because it's not your freedom that is immediately being taken away. But how will you feel when they pass the laws banning the intake of herbal supplements, dietary supplements, or holistic medicines because they haven't been proven safe or effective? Or when you end up in jail because you were "jay-walking" for taking two steps outside of a crosswalk? Will you still feel free? How about when they ban fast food restaurants, or place restrictions that people can only eat out once per month?
What if they take over your finances because you've bounced a few too many checks? Or missed a couple too many payments on your car? Run out of gas to get to work?
Certain public policies are, without a doubt, needed, mainly because we as people are simply too stupid to think about it. I find it sad that there are laws for things like jay-walking, wearing seatbelts, and wearing helmets on bikes because people are just too stupid to do it on their own to keep themselves safe. But then again, shouldn't proper education alone alleviate these morons?
Or do we really need to look forward to the day that American Citizens live without freedom, but completely safe in their little climate-controlled, pollutant-free, padded rooms and bubbles?
"I support the bans on smoking because it's not fair if I go for a walk and someone is smoking that I should have to smell it." Very true and very compelling, but ultimately leading to a revocation of freedom. You just don't care because it's not your freedom that is immediately being taken away."
I disagree with this statement mainly because of the large amount of news coming out about the long term dangers of secondhand smoke (especially to the likes of pregnant mothers).
Smoking affects the people around you, whether you want it to or not. Putting any type of supplement or otherwise will not, and restricting such would be a real and serious intrusion into personal freedoms. Personally, I think dipping is tremendously worse that smoking, but somebody dipping right next to me doesn't affect me in any way, smoking does.
I agree about the slow intrusion of our freedoms in nearly every case, which is why I'm a Ron Paul supporter now. I just felt that the smoking example was a bad one.
"But then again, shouldn't proper education alone alleviate these morons?"
You would think that would be the case. But sometimes ignorance is terminal and no attempt at education, no matter how strong or far reaching, will overcome that.
"Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." Dr. Seuss
But how will you feel when they pass the laws banning the intake of herbal supplements, dietary supplements, or holistic medicines because they haven't been proven safe or effective?
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/06/22/ap3849439.html
They could just put everything under the same regulations. Arm the public with knowledge so that they can know what they are putting into their bodies. And really, dietary supplements that harm should be banned, because so many people will take them without a second thought. Vitamins and other forms of holistic medicine less so, since we need vitamins (even if the supplements aren't as effective as eating the vitamins with our food...).
~C
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