Re: Radon Field Day

[RuthWeiner@AOL.COM]

I think , Barbara, that you confuse living in a community with dictatorship.  For a long time, we had no non-smoking ordinances -- we didn't even have warnings on cigarette packs.  Now the restaurants in New Mexico if they have more than a certain number of tables, are required to have "no smoking" sections, and that is true in a lot of states.  I find that a reasonable compromise, especially since the health effects of second hand smoke are not negligible.  I would venture to say that most of such laws are in fact reasonable compromises between excessive government restriction and community health protection.  


Let me then cite a few more health and safety laws and regulations: meat packing inspection, egg inspection, the regulations governing hamburger internal temperatures (or do people have to take chances with E.coli?), milk pasteurization, the need to prove safety and effectiveness of drugs, drinking water standards (maybe we should take our chances with typhoid?  maybe we shouldn't have municipal water systems?)  medical and dental licensing (Oh sure, let's let the alcoholic anaesthesiologist, who killed a ten-year-old in New Mexico last year, continue to practice.  In fact, why license him in the first place?  He ought to be free to kill at will)


Sorry for the off-topic rant, but I am mighty unhappy about the people who know they reap the benefits of good legislation and then go on and rant about "government interference."  Citing extreme ridiculous cases doesn't make much of an argument in my opinion.


Let me add a personal note.  I am alive today because of the policies of the U. S. government.  I was educated in tax-supported public schools.   I have a Ph. D. because of government support of research.  I think the U. S. government is just fine, thank you.  I worked for about 30 years at state-supported land grant universities, in three different states, so I think state government is generally pretty good too.  And I have the right to participate in criticizing and making and changing laws and regulations, and I can manage to do that without slamming the whole government system.

    

Ruth Weiner, Ph. D.

ruthweiner@aol.com