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Do We Live in a Nanny Society?
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I’ve always felt that political correctness would one day be our demise. When politicians refuse to acknowledge that the overwhelming majority of terrorists that try to kill Americans are Muslim, and 80-year-old Caucasian grandmothers are pushed to the side by airport screeners, political correctness seems a little absurd. When people illegally cross our borders and are then called “undocumented workers” who are catered to by Bank of America and our welfare system, Mayor Villaraigosa rejoices. Jumping on the side of illegal aliens is great for politicians, because Hispanics are becoming the most influential sect of voters. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m no more American than any Hispanic out there, as long as they have a social security number. Politicians don’t care about the people. They’ll do and say whatever it takes to get reelected.
So what the hell does that have to do with a nanny society? Well, passing laws to overprotect us, all in the name of “caring for the people,” is a very politically correct thing to do. For example, Gov. Schwarzenegger just made it a law that teen drivers can’t use a cell phone while driving, not even hands-free units (adults still can). We all know kids are going to continue chatting while driving, and I dare say that the LA police have more important things to do than stare into moving cars for cell phones. Isn’t this a parent’s issue to tackle and what about emergencies? Schwarzenegger must really care about our children!
And what’s with the drinking laws? Uncle Sam will arm an 18-year-old with an M-16, grenades and night vision goggles, throw him in Iraq for three tours and then extend those tours, but (if and) when he makes it back home, he can’t have a beer to celebrate. That’s very interesting…And very politically correct, I guess.
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I got a $200 ticket for not wearing my seatbelt. Sure, it was stupid of me, but why does a law need to require it. If I get maimed in an accident, isn't that my problem? Why do you care? Cigarettes cause more sickness and death than just about anything else on earth, yet they're so legal that it's hard to find places that don't sell them. Politicians seem to pick and choose how and why to "protect" us, but often don't make a lot of sense. They'll even try to make it illegal to spank your kids (actually, Sally Lieber is just a moron, not politically correct). Isn't our budget, border security, gas prices, real estate problems, smog, gridlock and bad AT&T cell service issues that our politicians should focus on?
If I were Emperor of California, and feel free to start a petition to make that happen, I'd make the following changes. 1. Drinking age is 18 for high school graduates, 21 for non-graduates. 2. You SHOULD wear your seatbelt, but it's not the law. 3. You must have a social security number to receive any kind of social services. 4. The maximum price for a house is $1 million. 5. Long-haired Chihuahuas that bark are banned. 6. Teens can talk on the phone while driving, but if they get in an accident, their parents are legally liable. 7. Gas prices are capped at $0.85 a gallon for regular, $0.95 for middle grade and $1.05 for premium. 8. All highways will have lanes designated for horseback riders, and all of the resulting horseshit will create more jobs that Americans won't do (says Bush, not me).
How did these jobs get done when it was mostly Americans?
Happy Friday, folks.
Photo by Thomas Hawk via Flickr
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