Nanny-State Anyone?
The
August/September edition of Reason, a
libertarian publication dedicated to Free
Minds and Free Markets, ranks the 35 “worst nanny-state cities in
Scrutiny
was based on a cities’ “exercising [for] personal freedom.” Under this broad
umbrella of freedom, Reason
researched eight categories: alcohol, tobacco, sex, guns, gambling, drugs,
movement, and a “catch-all” of food and “other.” According to the article, “the
higher a city’s score, the more restrictive it is.”
Scoring
for six of the categories were based on taxation,
local restrictions, and state and/or federal laws. The “sex” category, however,
concentrated on the per capita numbers of prostitutes who utilized Craigslist, the number of “strip clubs per capita,”
rankings from “gay publications” on “gay-friendliness,” and “adult
entertainment regulations” from the Association
of Club Executives. In addition, the “drug” category drew its’ “rankings
and data” from “the Marijuana Policy Project, the Drug Policy Alliance, and the
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.”
The
Libertarian thinkers behind Reason
chose to conduct the study because “a paternalist wave has been sweeping the
country.” Nanny-state legislation so pervades American cities, according to the
authors, that “it may be easier to smoke a joint today than it was 20 years
ago…but it’s getting much more difficult to enjoy a legal cigarette.”
So what
makes
of both worlds.” Restrictions have created “black and gray markets in
laws. The advice to locals—“don’t flout the laws
openly.”
The City
That Never Sleeps, on the other hand, is the “antithesis of a nanny.” It may
not be every American’s “paradise, but its libertinism isn’t exactly chasing
residents away.” The authors emphasize the fact that Clark County “is one of the fastest growing counties in the
country.”
***********************
It is
precisely the “exercising of personal freedom” that divides conservatives from
libertarians. For most conservatives,
“traditional family values” were both practiced and promoted. Whether
libertarians like it or not, most Americans view drug use and sexual activity
(gay and straight) as ethical issues.
Both our
Puritan fathers and Revolutionary fathers did not argue for “libertinism.”
Colonists of 17th and 18th centuries championed communal
and individual morality. One need only read Winthrop and Edwards alongside of
the Federalist Papers to realized that morality is a
strong argument in the minds of Americans.
Perhaps
the worse news for Libertarian Party
is the current and future outlook of morality in
If the
“state of moral values” continues to decline, or its’ future projections are
realized, then the nanny-state is not going anywhere. After all, the
Constitution gives Congress the right to make any laws necessary for “a more
perfect union” – even if they waste their time on “cell phone laws,” “traffic
cams,” and “mixed-gender hugging.”
Daniel Smith is an
Journalism Center, a training program run by Accuracy in
Media and Accuracy in Academia.
Daniel Smith
