I had the privilege of attending the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) Annual Dinner last night and got to hear about a few of their great initiatives. You might be interested to know about FightNanny.com, a website they launched to take on the "nanny state," a term used to describe the ever-expanding government intrusion in our daily lives.
According to FightNanny.com:
"The growth of the nanny state has been unprecedented in recent years. We have seen massive government takeovers in the banking field and the auto industry. But there are also myriad seemingly small regulations that together are having a big impact on our freedoms. For example, in D.C. and other parts of the country, consumers are being slapped with a nonsensical five-cent tax on plastic shopping bags. In Ohio, its technically against the law to buy more than two cases of wine per month, and numerous state laws restrict wineries from selling directly to consumers, restaurants, and retailers. Homeless shelters in New York City are barred from distributing donated food items containing trans fat because of government regulations. And in Minnesota, Connecticut, Chicago, and Suffolk County, New York, certain plastic baby bottles are against the law. Alone, each regulation may appear to be mostly an annoyance. But together, they constitute an ever-expanding nanny state that has real consequences on our lives that are often unfair and sometimes even dangerous."
One of the many cool features of the website is a video project entitled "The Nanny Zone," a takeoff of The Twilight Zone, my parents' favorite television show growing up. They have only completed one episode of The Nanny Zone, but I think it's intended to serve as an introduction to FightNanny.com and a clever way to draw you to the website's resources, which are very useful. Check it out if you want a Friday laugh! It's funny, purposely silly, and also kind of scary when you consider its real-world implications.