Bob Huff Embraces Nanny State

Steven Greenhut: Reading through the news, I came across the latest legislative nonsense — a bill that would ban the use of laser therapy by chiropractors. This kind of legislation — which takes the state away from more pressing matters such as pension reform and budget reform — is typical of what the Democratic Party does these days. The Democrats don’t believe that individuals are smart enough to make their own decisions, so they ban stuff they don’t like and subsidize stuff they do like. But then I saw that this measure was authored by Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff of Diamond Bar. “It sounds a lot like 21st century snake oil,” he told the Sacramento Bee.

Well, it sounds like snake oil to me also, but what do I know about it? The supposed difference between Democrats and Republicans is that the Dems want to nanny all of us, using the government’s power to force us to behave in ways that they prefer. Republicans are supposed to accept the idea that individuals can make their own choices. The state should only intervene in such matters when there is serious public danger.

We all know that Huff is a big fan of crony capitalism in that he was the point man trying to save those eminent-domain-abusing redevelopment agencies from the budget axe. Now we see that he loves the Nanny State also. What does it say when an advocate for big, intrusive government leads the GOP in the Senate? (Hint: It means we’re in deep doo doo.) Huff isn’t sure whether to proceed with the bill, according to the Bee, or whether to expand it to ban laser therapy from other practitioners of it. He should withdraw the bill and start looking for ways to actually reduce the power of government.

MAY 6, 2012