If government is “justified” in forcing you to buy health insurance for your own good — the fabled and perhaps fatal conceit of Obamacare — is it also justified in forcing us to keep up with “good” TV shows?
That’s the nutty notion floated at the satirical site The Onion, which drily reports: “FCC to Fine Americans Who Don’t Keep Up with TV Shows.” Seems too many office hours are spent explaining what happened on some iconic television show a co-worker missed. So the FCC is fining anyone who falls behind.
Hyuk, hyuk, get it? The government would never actually mandate television watching! No, it just makes us pay for boring documentaries on PBS.
Nor would the government ever issue commandments about when you can smoke on private property or even in your own homes. Or . . . would it?
But the government would never declare what you can and can’t eat, or what foods you can and can’t dish out. Right? Unless, that is, you’re a kid in a government-overseen cafeteria or a chef in a New York City restaurant prohibited from serving dishes containing the allegedly alarming ingredient of trans fat.
Well, the government would never require you to dutifully read even so salutary an e-letter as Common Sense, eh? (I’m pretty sure about this one.)
Whether the policy-makers’ notion of “the good” comports with your own doesn’t matter, of course. They’re the government, and they’re here to help.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
4 replies on “Enslaved for Your Own Good”
The welfare of humanity is always the alibi of tyrants_Camus
“…allegedly alarming ingredient of trans fat.”
The State should have no right to dictate eating choices for competent adults, but the harm trans fats do is proven, not “alleged.” For an explanation of the chemistry, see “Fats and Oils” by Udo Erasmus.
All sorts of government interference in my life include: a drivers license, a building permit, where I can park my car, where and if I can open a business, auto insurance, hunting and fishing licenses, etc. etc.
It goes on and on.
You forgot San Francisco-where sex toys are freely sold but McDonald’s happy meals are supposed to be bad ( what ever happened to parents being responsible for their kids eating habits at restaurants?).And, in my view-one fo the weirdest (but probably applauded by many-as it is a citizens initiative)–not sure if voted on yet- parents cannot have their (boy) babies circumcised, even if for religious purposes;; boys have to wait until 18 to decide fro themselves. Sort of like can join the military at 17, but cannot buy a beer or cigarettes until 21-and, in FL-don’t know about elsewhere- Walgreen’s wants to card anyone who LOOKS TO BE UNDER 40 who buys beer, wine or cigarettes–ALL LEGAL PRODUCTS.