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Really horrible ruling out of WI: No Right to Produce or Eat Food

Daylene Alford September 27, 2011 September 27, 2011

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http://nonais.org/2011/09/27/wi-no-right-to-produce-or-eat-food/

Third Peppermint Tue, 09/27/2011 - 14:05

WHAT!? How can they say that? That is one of the scariest and most absurd things I've read in a long time.

NZ Appaloosas Wed, 09/28/2011 - 23:47

Given the issue of cows carrying TB, it being transmitted thru' the milk, etc., I can understand where the judge is coming from regarding unpasteurized milk. I do not believe that the judge intended to take it to the extreme of "you can't have your own veggie plot at home".

That said, the plaintiffs DO have right of appeal, and can take the judge's decision further up the "chain of command", if they so choose.

Diane

Third Peppermint Thu, 09/29/2011 - 07:00

I was wondering if they'd appeal. I guess that all boils down to how much money they have. If they're not selling the milk to unsuspecting people I'm not really sure why there needs to be a law regarding it. The ruling itself DID say that the plaintiff didn't have a "right" to produce and consume the foods of their choice. If that isn't what he meant he should have worded it better, because this way the USDA can walk over and remove your chickens because you don't have an inspector at your house. Or your vegetable garden. Because hey, it's not like you have a fundamental RIGHT to those things. It's a privilege granted by the government that they can take away as they see fit.

Daylene Alford Thu, 09/29/2011 - 07:16

Exactly! I really have a problem with the government telling us what is "good" and "safe" for us. I mean if I don't want to wear a seat belt I should be able to go without one without out fear of government punishment ie a ticket. Now if my insurance company wants to tell me if I'm in an accident and not wearing a seat belt they won't pay, that is their choice because I'm paying them for coverage but I don't think the government should be able to tell me I HAVE to wear one.

I know it's not a cut and dried as that, and there are many things that have to be considered, like kids and medicare, but things like this really bug me on a fundamental level.

EDIT: I just wanted to add I'm using this as an example. I always wear a seat belt. It just bugs me they tell me I HAVE to wear one.

Maigray Thu, 09/29/2011 - 09:51

It's funny you should bring up that particular example. I had a debate with my mother about it because I also feel it straddles the line between being too intrusive. But she regarded it as a "reasonable" precaution because driving was a privilege granted by the state and seatbelts essentially save taxpayers lots of money. I brought up the point that driving, while a privilege, is also an economic necessity for the function of the state; and while the economic benefit to taxpayers is probably a good reason, it smacks (to me) of exploiting a moralistic excuse (we're saving lives!) to simply squeeze more revenue from your citizens. I also pointed out that it was unenforceable, which I equated with a "bad" law. But she did not agree.

Katie Thu, 09/29/2011 - 18:17

Illegal here in Australia too. However, our hospital systems are much more tax payer funded, so it is very much saving the tax payer money.

critterkeeper Tue, 10/04/2011 - 19:35

I have made a point of reading up on every change made to our "laws" and creation of any new ones...it is frightening just how many "rights" we no longer have that we had just 5 yrs ago. Just because a few people do something stupid and die (or heaven forbid injury/kill someone else) doesn't mean everything has to be illegal! :hammer

I get some of the laws like DUI appying to ALL modes of transportation: i.e. cars, motorcycles, lawnmowers, boats, HORSES, and even bicycles... BUT, to tell me I can't enjoy a cold beer on my own porch while BBQing some ribs is just plain WRONG! :toast

Take riding 4-wheelers...here, no one under 18 can ride without a helmet. no one under 16 can ride without a parent present, age 4-10 must ride WITH a parent, and no one under age 4 can ride PERIOD (not even riding with a parent/sibling)! :BH

Oh and kids can't ride on riding lawnmowers either...and no one under 16 in the back of a pickup (even if just riding down to the lake)...it is getting ridiculous! ~x(

Third Peppermint Wed, 10/05/2011 - 10:03

[quote=critterkeeper]Take riding 4-wheelers...here, no one under 18 can ride without a helmet. no one under 16 can ride without a parent present, age 4-10 must ride WITH a parent, and no one under age 4 can ride PERIOD (not even riding with a parent/sibling)! :BH [/quote]

Michael Schumacher started karting at age four. He's one of the greatest F1 racing drivers ever so it's a good thing it isn't illegal to do at such a young age!

That being said I hate 4 wheelers. :P The people that had them where I grew up were all pretty huge jerks and liked to tear up our mountain biking/horseback riding trails to the point where they were barely useable even though there were signs clearly posted. Also, they're loud and ruin nice strolls through the woods. Keep them in your own yard or in designated areas, please! I wouldn't make them illegal, though, no matter how much I hate them.

The pickup truck thing is pretty dumb, but the helmet thing isn't quite so much.. I have mixed feelings on whether or not helmets should be mandatory. I always wear one when horseback riding, but I don't think I've ever worn one when bike riding. That MIGHT be because I knew someone that had a draft horse step on his head when he wasn't wearing a helmet and got knocked over.

TheRedHayflinger Fri, 10/07/2011 - 14:10

I can see the no kids on lawnmower thing...I can think of several instances offhand just in our tiny little village the past 10 years of kids on riding mowers with parents where the kids fell off and got under the blades...several are missing fingers and toes, no deaths thank goodness though! We were never allowed to ride on the mower with our parents--but we were allowed to start mowing with the riding mowers when we were about 8..lol. Heck I was driving a combine when I was 7 with the help of my Papaw!

NZ Appaloosas Sat, 10/15/2011 - 16:03

[quote=Maigray]I brought up the point that driving, while a privilege, is also an economic necessity for the function of the state; and while the economic benefit to taxpayers is probably a good reason, it smacks (to me) of exploiting a moralistic excuse (we're saving lives!) to simply squeeze more revenue from your citizens. I also pointed out that it was unenforceable, which I equated with a "bad" law. [/quote]

It's only unenforceable because the pols/police/judges don't enforce it. It is illegal here, and let me tell you it IS enforceable...got lucky one of the last times I was bringing hubby home from hospital for his kidney stone problem in that the cop was one I sort of know and he wasn't a d*ckhead. Otherwise it would have been a $150 fine for me for driving with someone who not wearing a seatbelt.

Diane

Maigray Sun, 10/16/2011 - 19:09

No seriously - it's difficult to enforce! The laws vary from state to state. In some states, a police officer CANNOT pull you over for not wearing your seatbelt. He can pull you over for some other violation and then ticket you if you are not wearing one. But what do most people do when they are pulled over? They unsnap their seat belt and reach over to the glove compartment for their registration. Okay, that is what I do...But I assume a lot of people do the same. Not all states will ticket for unbelted passengers, or ticket only for the front seat and not the rear, or only for passengers under 18 years old. I've never been in a situation with an unbelted teenager next to me, but I assume the officer will need some ID if >18 can't be easily seen. Fines range all over the place. I'm not sure every state even has a seatbelt law, although I think all have belt laws for minors.

Daylene Alford Sun, 10/16/2011 - 20:00

[quote]They unsnap their seat belt and reach over to the glove compartment for their registration. Okay, that is what I do...But I assume a lot of people do the same.[/quote]

Something similar happened to my Dad. He got pulled over for speeding and admitted he was going faster than he should have been...He always carries his billfold in his front pocket so when he was pulled over he unbuckled to get his wallet. The highway patrolman wrote him a ticket for not wearing a seat belt.

NZ Appaloosas Mon, 10/17/2011 - 19:59

[quote=Maigray]No seriously - it's difficult to enforce! The laws vary from state to state. In some states, a police officer CANNOT pull you over for not wearing your seatbelt. He can pull you over for some other violation and then ticket you if you are not wearing one. But what do most people do when they are pulled over? They unsnap their seat belt and reach over to the glove compartment for their registration. Okay, that is what I do...But I assume a lot of people do the same. Not all states will ticket for unbelted passengers, or ticket only for the front seat and not the rear, or only for passengers under 18 years old. I've never been in a situation with an unbelted teenager next to me, but I assume the officer will need some ID if >18 can't be easily seen. Fines range all over the place. I'm not sure every state even has a seatbelt law, although I think all have belt laws for minors.[/quote]

But that's only because the various states haven't gotten together and agree on how to enforce it. The law itself isn't 'unenforceable', it is the way the states go about not enforcing it that makes it difficult (remember, my career in the legal field started in the USA about 30 years ago :-D) I remember well when Massachusetts repealed its original seatbelt law, and all the NYS troopers lined up just on the NY side of the tollbooths on Route 90, waiting to snag the unwary driver coming thru' the booths, the day after the repealing...AND none of the NY tollbooth operators were saying a word...

Diane