From the category archives:

Nanny State

I’m pleased to see the Brits don’t have a monopoly on Nanny State stupidity

by Rod Edwards on May 13, 2010

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. – A fourteen-year-old autistic boy is facing terrorist charges after a sketch he made in school.

via Autistic Boy Charged With Making Terrorist Threats Over Stick-Figure Sketch.

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Paul Chambers: My tweet was silly, but the police reaction was absurd

by Rod Edwards on May 12, 2010

Don’t speak your mind: the British are listening. And they will arrest you, charge you, and make a mockery of “justice” in the name of “security.”

The reason for the arrest was a tweet I had posted on the social network Twitter, which was deemed to constitute a bomb threat against Robin Hood airport in Doncaster: “Crap! Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your shit together otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!” You may say, and I certainly realise now, it was ill-advised. But it was clearly frustration, caused by heavy snowfall grounding flights and potentially scuppering my own flight a week later. Like having a bad day at work and stating that you could murder your boss, I didn't even think about whether it would be taken seriously.

via My tweet was silly, but the police reaction was absurd | Paul Chambers | Comment is free | The Guardian.

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The Nanny State vs. the Childhood Obesity Epidemic

May 11, 2010

Despite the Nanny State label, this is probably a good thing. That being said, our descent into idiocracy is only hastened when government abdicate parents of their responsibilities. Mom & Dad are too slovenly to feed the kids anything other than Doritos and McDonalds? Clearly the problem is… Doritos and McDonalds. “For the first time, [...]

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Scary Fundamentalist pegs the Burka Debate

July 10, 2009

Wow – an excellent, well-reasoned post on Burkas, human rights, religious freedom, and politician’s duties on matters of this nature: Edit: I shared Scary’s post on Reddit, which is always seems to stir up good debate. There are many arguments in support of banning the burka that, at first blush, are convincing. The burka is [...]

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Flagging Pedestrians [Nanny State]

June 22, 2009

Here’s a particularly interesting take on the age old suggestion that one hold their arm out in front of themselves when crossing the street. In Lemoyne, Pennsylvania, that arm is now grasping a traffic-cone orange flag to increase pedestrian visibility. I would be fine with this as an option for pedestrians (especially kids), were it [...]

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Smart Move or Nanny State? Britain’s Anti-Stab Knife

June 16, 2009

Kitchen knives are apparently the most commonly used murder weapon in Britain, absent firearms. Fortunately, there’s now an alternative. Up next: blunting the “pocket terror” of stabby pens and pencils, and forest patrols to elimate pointy sticks. I’m on the “nanny state” side here: if someone wants to do grievous harm, they’ll find a way, [...]

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