It is assumed, by liberal lunatics, that those who oppose them are universally against government. That’s complete nonsense, of course, but that’s what happens when you live in a country run by a religious cult. The truth is the Old Right and now the Dissident Right always thought government was essential to civilization. What must be guarded against is the excess of government.
Men are not angels. That is where the discussion must begin and end when it comes to investing power. Give government too much power and the men in charge will inevitably abuse it. Give corporations too much power and they will eventually abuse it. It is at the heart of Distributism.
Anyway, here’s a good example of what government can do and should do.
Numerous store brand supplements aren’t what their labels claim to be, an ongoing investigation of popular herbal supplements subjected to DNA testing has found, New York state’s top law enforcement official said Tuesday.
GNC, Target, Walmart and Walgreen Co. sold supplements that either couldn’t be verified to contain the labeled substance or that contained ingredients not listed on the label, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office said.
The supplements, including echinacea, ginseng, St. John’s wort, garlic, ginkgo biloba and saw palmetto, were contaminated with substances including rice, beans, pine, citrus, asparagus, primrose, wheat, houseplant and wild carrot. In many cases, unlisted contaminants were the only plant material found in the product samples.
Overall, 21 percent of the test results from store brand herbal supplements contained DNA from the plants listed on the labels. The retailer with the poorest showing was Walmart, where 4 percent of the products tested showed DNA from the plants listed on the labels.
Supplement makers sell products to the public claiming they are safe and possess magical powers. The government should be randomly testing these things to make sure they are safe and that the claims on the bottles are honest. The public needs to know if they are eating sawdust or houseplants.
Now, I know where you’re going to go. The state does not stop at testing. They will inevitably reach out the greedy hand demanding a bribe. The same inspectors who are checking the safety of these pills will be unleashed on some politically incorrect company doing all sorts of damage in the name of the one true faith.
Well, that’s true. There’s nothing magical about any of this. Give people too much power and you get abuse. That’s not an argument against government. it is an argument against big government.
What if small government just isn’t possible? The history of US Gov’t is one long example of mission creep. Sure, we might start out with a humble agency ensuring that no one is selling dangerous pills, but we’ll inevitably end up with something like the behemoth modern FDA.
As the Moody Blues opined some years ago it is “A Question of Balance”. Ah there’s the rub.
I spend a lot of time thinking about governments, and despite the flaws, or system government is pretty good compared to the many alternatives
Enforcing criminal laws is never left up to free markets, leprechauns or any other magical nonsense rattling around in the heads of libertarians. Selling falsely labeled products is always the concern of the state.
Similarly, companies defrauding the public is a concern of the state. If you claim that taking your product will raise the dead, as it were, it better raise the dead. Otherwise you should go to jail.
Buyer beware is the best standard of regulation. If we have been separated from that state of mind it is because we have come to assume Uncle is on it. Bureaucrats are a despicable class of people, even lower than politicians. Now they are joined at the hip.
If the LIEBURALS just let the FREE MARKET do its divine duty and sort itself out, this wouldn’t be an issue. I think you’ve really been reaching the last couple of posts with all this government is good crap. Please refer to Karl Denninger or Lew Rockwell if you want to get off this liberal fascism streak you’ve been on lately. ywia