Don't Sweat the Small Stuff 19

Yaron Brook at Rice
President and executive director of the Ayn Rand Institute will speak at Rice University on March 31. His talk is titled “The Financial Crisis: The Free Market as the Only Practical and Moral Solution”.


Article in The Objective Standard
My article, "Houston, We Have a (Zoning) Problem", is now available online at The Objective Standard.


Chains Will Leave a Tan Mark
The Texas legislature is taking up a bill that will make it harder for teens to enter a tanning salon (HT: Gus Van Horn) Citing increased risks for cancer, a Republican legislator wants to require anyone under 18 to have a note from a doctor before using a tanning bed. Reading about proposals such as this gives me a headache, but I don't see any legislators rushing to ban their inanity.

Sharon Raimer, a dermatologist and president of the Texas Dermatological Society, said:

Epidemiological studies have now shown that even one exposure to tanning beds before the age of 35 can increase your risk for melanoma.

Drinking too much water can lead to death, so I suppose meddling politicians will want to regulate our water consumption next. The fact is, every activity in life poses some form of risk. The premise underlying laws such as this logically leads to regulating every human activity. And that is precisely where we are headed. We are on the road to slavery and our chains are going to ruin an otherwise beautiful tan.


When Not Telling the Truth is Not a Lie
On Tuesday Senator Chris Dodd denied any involvement in the AIG bailout bonus scandal. On Wednesday he admitted that he was responsible for the loophole in the stimulus bill, saying that his previous denial had been "misconstrued". Apparently, actually believing what Senator Dodd says is to "misconstrue" his statements.


A Colossal Waste of Time
Earlier this week I commented on the arrest of a Houston couple on prostitution charges, noting that efforts to interfere in voluntary interactions between consenting adults is immoral and a waste of time. As more details emerge regarding this case, the waste of time and other resources is even more evident.

The Chronicle reports that police spent more than a year investigating this case. And in another case, the police spent five years collecting evidence before pressing charges. In both instances, officers posed as prostitutes and "johns". And in both cases, prosecutors are pursuing money laundering charges in an attempt to get stiffer prison sentences.

Regardless of one's personal opinions regarding prostitution, it is a voluntary act between consenting adults. (And when it isn't--such as a woman being forced into prostitution--there are already appropriate laws on the books.) Any law that prohibits voluntary interactions between adults is immoral--it prevents those individuals from acting according to their own judgment in the pursuit of their own values. Prostitution does not violate anyone's rights, and should therefore be legal.