Ideas Roll West II

The Pussification Of America (oops I mean The United States)

It took shape in 1913 when representatives empowered the Federal Government to collect income taxes forever. New life was breathed into it in 1935 by the Social Security Act. Floods of tried ideas rolled in from the east and nurtured it from inception to autonomy. Today, like Frankenstein, American Socialism is bigger than the hand that feeds it. If not stopped or slowed to a trickle, we will soon be no better off than France. Just kidding but seriously ...I intend to link progressive ideas with heavy taxation and big government. This paper will also claim that a softening or pussying (if you will) of America is underway.
One by-product of ideas continually rolling west is the dilution of the bold and defiant spirit that once defined us. We still value individual rights and responsibilities but to a lesser degree. Today we accept Governments larger role in our lives. It may seem a trivial example but when I was a kid there were no seat belt or helmet laws. Such laws would have been laughable. Today, an apathetic populace accepts legislation that protects individuals from themselves. Americans now accept the premise that government knows what's best for them.
Adopting precedent, big or small, that allows government to assume paternal control is likely an unwise move. Paternalistic laws, though largely the products of good intentions, lead us down a narrowing path of government encroachment. Little by little the government will expand its capacity to parent the governed. It may start with a seat belt law here and a tobacco or junk food tax there. Soon there will be little discussion over whether the government has parental authority over us but rather to what extent. Line drawing along a slippery slope is troublesome and should be avoided whenever possible. Along a slippery slope, judges are likely to do more line drawing than working guys like you and me.
Many Scholars are skeptical of slippery slope arguments. They maintain that slippery slope is a scare tactic not rooted in fact but rather paranoid speculations by reactionaries like myself. They may be right in most cases but history provides examples supporing my claims.
Consider that before 1935 there were no federal drug laws. Today (in some states) Visine in your pocket may suffice for probable cause to search your house. Also, consider the following excerpt from Wikipedia regarding asset forfeiture legislation:

...In 1984, Congress catapulted asset forfeiture into the political landscape, with the passage of the Omnibus Crime Bill, which drastically changed the federal forfeiture laws. The bill vastly expanded the forfeiture laws applicable to drug offenses. It mimicked the Customs laws by making the process "in rem", which means against the property itself instead of against its owner. It used the "in rem" label as an exception to basic constitutional principles as it took away any semblence of due process for the hapless forfeiture victim.

www.answers.com/topic/asset-forfeiture



With little effort I was able to site two examples of slippery slope in action. Let's not even get started with the recent imminent domain phenomenon. Judges, like politicians, are predisposed side with the government. Think about whose buttering their muffin. In other words, who’s issuing their paychecks?


Well it's getting late and I got some chores to do…


Kitty cat photo: /www.toppetinfo.com