Posted on 03/14/2002 4:28:12 PM PST by Tumbleweed_Connection
The Justice Department's plan to restrict cigarette advertising, criminalize all cigarette vending machines and slap new health warnings on cigarette labels has prompted the Libertarian Party to come up with its own label -- "Nanny State health fascism."
"This plan treats adults like children, and violates the First Amendment," said Steve Dasbach, Libertarian Party executive director. "In the interest of forcing Americans to make healthier decisions about smoking, and in an effort to prove it is tough on big tobacco, the Bush administration is running roughshod over civil liberties and the free market."
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday the Justice Department will ask a federal judge to impose tough restrictions on the marketing, manufacture and sale of cigarettes as government lawyers show their hand for the first time in their three year legal assault on the tobacco industry that began during the Clinton administration.
The pretrial documents, according to the Journal, show that the government will ask the court to restrict all cigarette advertising to black and white, print-only formats; reserve half the space in any cigarette ad for graphic health warnings; end all cigarette trade promotions and giveaways; ban all cigarette vending machine sales and publicly disclose all ingredients, additives and toxic chemicals in cigarettes.
The Justice Department did not return numerous calls seeking further comment on Thursday.
"This war on tobacco rests on the assumption that American adults are too stupid to know that smoking is dangerous," said Dasbach.
"Puritanical politicians seem to think they are the parents of a nation of not too bright children," he said. "Of course cigarettes are dangerous and every adult American has known that for more than 30 years. But it should be up to individuals to weigh the risks of smoking. We don't need the federal government to nag us about our bad habits."
Could it be that this is an unreported terrorist victory?
At least I was born free.
Mourn the Republic
1776-2001.
"This plan treats adults like children, and violates the First Amendment,"
Amendment I
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
I am at a lost to see a First Amendment violation.
But I see a:
Amendment V
"...nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation," violation
and an,
Amendment IX
"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people," violation
and possibly an,
Amendment X
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people,"
violation.
Harry Browne's 2000 presidential campaign was a case in point. Browne was a lackluster campaigner whose high overhead campaign had no effective strategy or direction.
The party should have just run Don Gorman or L. Neil Smith and focused it's energies on local races.
Carla Howell's campaign against Ted Kennedy was an interesting footnote, though. Carla basically tied with the unknown Republican with 12% of the vote with $700,000 spent. The Republican got 13% with no budget.
If the LP wants to be a competitive political party, it needs to focus on local offices like County Commissioner races which are more winnable due to the lower amounts of money involved.
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