A few years ago, the EPA decided that lead-based paint was a
terrible hazard (never scientifically proven).
Therefore, disturbing paint, (e.g. replacing windows) inside a house built
before 1978 required the contractor to follow a number of bizarre rules. One had to attend class, become certified, and
apply for a license to work such a job.
Records of had to be kept and faxed to the EPA monthly. Several agencies, including the EPA and OSHA snooped
about trying to catch offenders. The
fine for infracting the rules was $37,000 per day per incident. That’s not all, but enough to reveal how
insanely obsessed with protecting citizens the government has become.
Consider all the regulations imposing penalties for
infractions. We’re fined $25 dollars for
not wearing a seatbelt. Spill coffee on
our leg and a host of regulations are initiated to insure we are not burned the
next time (Never mind that everyone hates tepid coffee). Maalox was forced out of business because the
FDA decided that the bottle was too thin and might be punctured. Silicon caulk is now so regulated by the
government that it is nearly worthless.
When anyone does something stupid, the Government shoots out
another round of regulations, fees and fines.
Someone sniffs spray paint, and the government regulates paint,
rendering it more like stick-and-peel than paint. Some kids eats a toy, and the toy is
banned. The list of regulations, all
because of “concern” for our safety, is ginormous.
However, the government doesn’t mind if people riot in the
streets, looting, burning, threatening police officers, injuring themselves and
each other, overturning cars, etcetera.
It seems that a horde of regulations would’ve been passed by now. If I may make a few suggestions, here are a
few that might be helpful.
A rioters should be required to register, attend a riot
training class, be licensed, wear helmets and reflector strips on their
clothing and shoes, and an orange vest so that they could be identified as certified
rioters. Violators would incur a $5000
OSHA fine per day per incident.
They should be required to refrain from throwing things from
sundown to dawn. Further, all hurled
projectiles should be constructed out of a riot-certified, nerf-like substance,
and edible, or incur a $5000 FDA fine. They should require all riot-starters to purchase
a permit before beginning a riot. If no
riot-starter(s) can be identified, there can be no riot. Riots may only last 3 days. The only network permitted to video the
action would be c-span. Riots can be
televised only between the hours of 2 and 4 am (FCC fines apply).
All rioters should have to clean up a 20x20 foot area after
rioting ($5000 EPA fine for noncompliance).
Every potential rioter ought to pass a test to ascertain if he or she understands
what they are rioting about. Any issue not
germane to the riot-starter’s stated purpose should disqualify them from being
permitted to riot. I think that the
government should go so far as to require rioters to have an IQ of at least 80
(USDE administered and regulated).
Every
rioter should have to sign this disclaimer:
“I agree that arrest or fine(s) for infracting a riot regulation does
not constitute racial bias.” Finally,
the “Star Spangled Banner” should be sung before a riot begins
Of course, other regulations could be added on, such as,
health testing, psychological evaluation (DHHS), age limits, no dancing on tops
of cars, no baggy, low-hanging paints, only licensed riot beverages, and no
split-finger or single-finger salutes (someone’s eye might get poked, possibly
the “saluter’s”).
The point is, if the government is so concerned with public
safety, where are the regulations to control rioting? Rioting is infinitely more dangerous than the
possibility of eating the wheels off a toy truck. If the government can destroy small
businesses and corporations with regulations, why can’t they stop rioting in
the same fashion? Are there not enough
government agencies to regulate rioting to oblivion? Or are regulations more about control than
concern for our safety?
Oh well, what do
I know? I grew up in lead-based paint
houses, chewing on the window sills, and sniffing the stuff for the entirety of
my childhood.
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