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How can government ban trans fats? We let them
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Where did the state of California get the idea it has the authority to ban food ingredients such as trans fats, as recently happened in Sacramento?
The answer is simple: They got the idea from us.
More specifically, the state's abandonment of individual and business freedom in this case is a direct consequence of Americans' demand that the government "do something" about health care costs and health insurance coverage.
Health insurance works on the basis that at any given time, healthy participants are helping subsidize the care of those who need medical help. When a healthy participant is injured or sick, then he or she is able to use the money to pay for care.
So obviously, everybody involved in the system has a vested interest in keeping costs down. Health insurance companies encourage participants to live healthier lifestyles and may even penalize those who make poor choices by increasing their rates or even discontinuing their services. If they don't do so, healthy participants may become unhappy with their growing premiums and may look for coverage elsewhere, if possible.
But what happens when your health insurance provider is the government? A private insurer can't literally force you to do anything. The same can't be said for the government. The recognition of rights causes certain risks; if you acknowledge the freedom of people to do what they want with their bodies, then some people will do bad things to their bodies. So clearly a great way to reduce health risks - and therefore health costs - is to take rights away.
We have to remember that we now live in a country where the government believes it has the authority to determine our rights. If the "easiest" way to solve a problem is to take certain rights away, the government may well make that decision for us.
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