Old Major Issues Before Us…

Today I heard that the American Pediatrics Association and the American Heart Association believe we  need legislation against “sugary drinks”

The call for action stems from the increase in obesity and diabetes in our world.

The suggestion of that bothers me a bit.

Awhile back, I remember my Dad saying, “We can’t legislate common sense or morality”.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr also stated, “We can’t legislate morality. You only achieve true morality through education and religion.”

But, Will Rogers cut to the chase when he said, “We  can’t legislate intelligence and common sense.

Yet, we keep attempting to do that almost daily.

Years ago before we had laws requiring us to wear seat belts while driving, I made a conscious decision to “buckle up”.

It made a whole lot of sense to me.

My limited knowledge of physics  helped me understand that in the event of a crash, a seat belt would enhance my odds of surviving since it would likely keep me from attempting to fly through the windshield.

When laws came out mandating seat belt usage, I was upset.

Not to the point that I wouldn’t wear mine.

I was just ticked that the government told me I had to.

Does that mean I’m a Libertarian?

Whatever!

I’ve never ridden on a motorcycle.

But if I did, I’d wear a helmet.

Even if there was no law requiring it.

Falling back on my limited grasp of the sciences, I reasoned that my head would probably be in better shape in a crash if I was wearing a helmet.

It’s all about that skull and flesh versus asphalt thing.

To me, it’s connected to the endangered species known as “common sense”.

But I’d be ticked with a helmet law.

Wouldn’t stop me with wearing one, but still…

I’m a free-market sort of guy.

Give me some sort of financial inducement to wear a seat belt, a motorcycle helmet or to stop drinking “sugary” drink and I’m there.

Give me a break on my insurance rates if I don’t take part in risky behavior.

My old high school buddy Vinnie called his motorcycle helmet his “brain bucket” and after his head bounced off the pavement in a crash, he was happy to be wearing it.

But the fact of the matter was,  I made the decision to use these safety items, not because it was legislated but it made sense to me to do it.

Is it society’s job to protect some from the “evolutionary practices” we sometimes choose?

We can argue that till the cows come home.

By the way, where did the cows go in the first place?

Speaking of cows, what about the pigs?

In my high school days, we were expected to read George Orwell’s novel,  “Animal Farm”.

I found it somewhat amusing in my youthful high school days that pigs were running the government.

It’s where we first heard of the 7 Commandments of animals.

Do you remember?

Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.

Whatever goes upon 4 legs or wings is a friend.

No animal shall wear clothes.

No animal shall sleep in a bed.

No animal shall drink alcohol.

No animal shall kill any other animal.

All animals are equal.

Old Major, the “big pig”, told the barnyard rally that humans were the cause of all that was wrong with the animal world.

But it was interesting to note that the pigs held most of the power.

That’s where the concept “All animals are created equal but some animals are more equal than others.”

George Orwell, you were really on to something there.

There’s talk in the state of Indiana regarding the need for “hate legislation”.

Crimes committed against certain members of society should bring greater punishment to the offender.

Now wait a minute.

Isn’t that a form of discrimination that we’re all supposed to be against?

A friend of mind suggested this concept is not new since we passed laws with stiffer penalties against terrorists as a way to curb those crimes.

So tell me, how’s that been working out?

Years ago, I was a big supporter of the death penalty as a deterrent to violent crimes.

Then one day I reasoned the death penalty deters reasonably-thinking folks like me from resorting to violence but does it actually deter the criminal it was intended for?

I would argue no.

Although the death penalty does offer guys like me a legal recourse to deal with violent criminals.

But is it a real deterrent?

Hey!

I watch Indianapolis TV news almost nightly and I haven’t witnessed much deterrence there.

My Dad used to joke that he couldn’t run and he couldn’t fight, so he had to be a lover.

But this is the same guy I witnessed standing in the middle of Crestwood Drive with Chuck and George  (two more physically-imposing neighbor men than my 5″10″ father) to hold a “discussion” with a hot-rodding teen that there might be a better place to drive fast instead of our neighborhood.

So, to borrow something from George Orwell’a “Animal Farm”,  “All soft drinks are created equal but some are more equal than others especially when you wear your seat belt.”