The Next Rotation - The Universe of Fenris Fox
27 September 2006
 
Non-artistic semi-political rant: "The Big Apple Brother"

I really wasn't looking to bring actual political views to this blog, but one issue really riled me up - and also nearly made me laugh my arse off! =xoD [tee hee]. It's not one of those key issues that dominates cable news for hours on end - actually, it had maybe a two-minute blurb on FNC. [domain link; no association with yours truly. =;o) ]; I first read about it through Fark.com [domain link]

It never ceases to amaze me, that various governments - whether they be local, state, or Federal - keep enacting legislation to ban or heavily tax various substances. Now, I'm not going to get into the whole marijuana issue, because that's a whole 'nother can of worms. I'm referring to more traditional "sin" items, like alcohol, cigarettes, and now... trans-fat! That's right - New York City legislators - already shining in their ignorant bliss from their out-of-this-world cigarette tax - are now mulling the idea of imposing a ban on trans-fat in restaurant food.

I can't believe that things like this keep getting tried. Anyone who's taken a high-school history class should have learned about the consequences - and complete failure - of Prohibition. When you ban or heavily tax a popular substance, such that its legal usage is impractical or impossible, it breeds crime. It's very simple - where there's a vacuum in demand, somebody will step in to fill it with a supply. This has already happened with NYC's cigarette tax.

I feel there's a bigger issue here, though - the idea that Big Brother is trying to protect us from ourselves. It's a futile gesture - I mean, what's next? Banning salt? Banning coffee? What about all the pollution in the air? It could cause cancer. Are all cars going to be banned? One study I read about mentioned that just the act of cooking food, generates carcinogens in it. Are fire, stoves, grills, electric cookers, and broilers going to banned? The implausiblity [dare I say, impossibility? =;oD ] of this kind of "mass adult babysitting" is so laughable, that the FurryMUCK P.D. had to put me down with a fire hose! =xoD

I find it an interesting coincidence, that:
  1. I am a poet, and;
  2. "Big Apple" - NYC's nickname - and "Big Brother," are somewhat similar, and finally;
  3. NYC are the ones to put two asinine substance-control laws into effect, that are way more.. hmm, I don't know what label to put on it - it could be seen as liberal or conservative, depending on your point-of-view or logical processes... strange than the rest of the nation [AFAIK. I'm not a lawyer, and the country is so huge, that something even more loco might be on the books somewhere].
Taking advantage of this 3-way alignment, I hereby re-dub NYC - or at least its legislators - "The Big Brother."
 
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Assorted writings & artwork of a furry. Sometimes presented from the point-of-view of the author's "fursona" (personal furry): Fenris "Fenny" Fox, the futuristic kitsune.

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