The Fat Police are Comin' for Ya

So I'm reading a CNN-Online article about the new round of Nanny-State taxes being proposed by the governor of New York(aka the Nanny-State Mother Ship), David Patterson...I'm sure you've all heard about this by now. He's wanting to tax sodas containing sugar to help stop the "epidemic" of obesity, using the laughable "logic" that high taxes on cigarettes reduced the amount of smokers. Ask any cigarette smoker and they'll laugh hysterically at the idea that higher taxes would keep them from their smokes.

But I digress. While the notion of any nanny-state taxes, ordinance, or other gets me riled, what really got my goat was the reader comments from the "Healthier-Than-Thou" crowd condemning fatsos like me and blaming The Donut Nation for high health insurance premiums. They applaud the governor for his fatty-tax and offered up even more suggestions to punish the metabolism-impaired, like charging "obese" airline passengers double airfare because their disgusting love-handles might ooze over into adjoining seats on the plane. "Why should I pay high insurance rates because YOU are OBESE?!?"...they scream.

Well, never mind that they don't consider who defines "obese"...the same simple-minded mentality that's in favor of heavily taxing "The Rich"...don't get me started on that. Those that set the insurance rates are concerned with risk, nothing else. So yes, those of us in The Donut Nation do engage in risky behavior. Therefore, we should be taxed to discourage our risky behavior, right? Stop and think carefully about that one before you start enthusiastically nodding your head. I'll give you Fatty-Tax supporters a moment to digest the thought.

*Scarfs another donut*

Risky behavior. Yes, even you Healthier-Than-Thous engage in risky behavior that affects MY insurance premiums. When you're jogging downtown sucking in car farts, rock climbing, playing rugby, cycling on the busy streets of Fort Worth...putting yourself at RISK. Should we tax your ten-speeds or issue you traffic tickets to discourage where you ride? How about imposing taxes on your rugby league? Here's a citation for choosing to jog within 100 feet of car exhaust fumes.

Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? Well folks, those are the doors that get opened when you support "behavior taxes"...not so gratifying when your behavior is being targeted, now is it?

I See Dead People

I see dead people. They're everywhere. They don't know they're dead. They have poor dental hygiene...some of them wear wooden dentures, however they speak eloquently with almost foreign accents. The ideas they speak of seem foreign, yet hauntingly familiar.

They often appear to me on Sunday mornings, while perusing the Sunday morning paper. One of the more charming of these spirits appeared to me just this morning after reading this article.

He shook his head and told me, "Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both."

I see dead people. They're everywhere. They don't know that they, as well as their words, are dead.

A Beginner's Guide to Freedom

Thanks to The Whited Sepulchre for turning me on to Stephen Smith's blog, "A Beginner's Guide to Freedom". I had the pleasure of chatting with Stephen and watching him calmly destroy his Republocrat opponents in debates during the 2008 election year...he's a great guy.

His blog entries are smart, full of common sense, and written a helluva lot better than this untalented hack.

If we are lucky, Stephen will run for office again...we need guys like him in office.

Yes, I'm Still Here

Unfortunately, I can't think of a damn thing to write about. I am seriously thinking about running for Fort Worth City Council in 2009 though...we'll see how that goes.