Like Food for a Starving Authoritarian
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It's quite simple really: If you believe...
...that 50 local hack politicians have the authority to ban a food ingredient that is in no way suspected to be adulterated or contaminated, poses no immediate health risk to anyone, poses no direct, physical externalities to innocent bystanders and, to the extent it supposedly creates "financial externalities," does so only minutely, on average, in the distant future and because the state created those financial externalities itself in the first place...
...then you must, by implication, believe that there can be no checks on the power on government. Ever.
Even more so than the bigot amendments. Even more so than the flag desecration amendment. Even more so than Social Security. Even more so than the War on Drugs. Even more so than the Internet gambling ban. Indeed, even so more than that ultra-favorite litmus test of libertarians -- the motorcycle helmet law.
Even more so than all these, Chicago's proposed ban on trans fat in restaurants is a declaration that the power of government is unlimited, that "tyranny of the majority" is an oxymoron and that legislators can declare themselves not only smarter than you, but also so much so that you can and should be declared, literally, a ward of the state.
Is this the kind of faith you have in local politicians? Is this the level of confidence, or lack thereof, that you have in yourself and your ability to run your life as you see fit? Is this the kind of society you want to live in?
If so, then be my guest -- but leave me the hell out of it.
...that 50 local hack politicians have the authority to ban a food ingredient that is in no way suspected to be adulterated or contaminated, poses no immediate health risk to anyone, poses no direct, physical externalities to innocent bystanders and, to the extent it supposedly creates "financial externalities," does so only minutely, on average, in the distant future and because the state created those financial externalities itself in the first place...
...then you must, by implication, believe that there can be no checks on the power on government. Ever.
Even more so than the bigot amendments. Even more so than the flag desecration amendment. Even more so than Social Security. Even more so than the War on Drugs. Even more so than the Internet gambling ban. Indeed, even so more than that ultra-favorite litmus test of libertarians -- the motorcycle helmet law.
Even more so than all these, Chicago's proposed ban on trans fat in restaurants is a declaration that the power of government is unlimited, that "tyranny of the majority" is an oxymoron and that legislators can declare themselves not only smarter than you, but also so much so that you can and should be declared, literally, a ward of the state.
Is this the kind of faith you have in local politicians? Is this the level of confidence, or lack thereof, that you have in yourself and your ability to run your life as you see fit? Is this the kind of society you want to live in?
If so, then be my guest -- but leave me the hell out of it.
Related Posts (on one page):
- New York Times Curses and Damns the Free Market in the Same Editorial
- From the Archives: When Will "Trans Farce" Be Banned?
- Is KFC Bowing to Market Pressures?
- Restaurants Cook Up a Contradiction
- Bloomberg: Eating Trans Fat = Speeding
- When Will "Trans-Farce" Be Banned?
- Like Food for a Starving Authoritarian
- Paternalism May Be Hazardous to Your Health
Posted by Kip on
18 July 2006
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