Operation Buzzkill

Ah ya gotta love draconian style government don't you. A reader of this blog pointed me in the direction of an article by Warren Holstein (holy cow what fun that guy's public school friends must have had with his name, and that's no bull) about Operation Buzzkill. The name Operation Buzzkill is obviously an invention of Mr. Holstein, a clever and amusing one mind you, but the issue is serious.

Sure using drugs is illegal, and sure some people abuse the welfare system, that being said random testing of welfare recipients just seems so wrong. Whatever happened to the presumption of innocence? Its bad enough that companies can get away with drug testing, but the government testing welfare recipients.

What people do on their own time is really their own business, as long as they aren't hurting anyone else. Sure if they are on welfare ignoring their children in order to shoot up heroin there is something wrong, but this isn't an issue for the welfare system to deal with but rather child services. Should people on welfare be out there trying to find a job rather then smoking a doobie, yes, but just because someone tests positive for marijuana doesn't mean they haven't looked for a job. A joint in the evening isn't going to affect your ability to hunt for a job during the day.

It all comes down to personal responsibility. The government doesn't want us to take responsibility for our own situations anymore, but rather the government wants to sholder the burden. That my friends is a totalitarian ideal. If the government was responsible for every aspect of everyones lives then you can be damned sure they will enact stricter and stricter laws and enforce them harshly. If that's the type of government you want then go ahead and support initiatives like this, just don't come crying to me when the government arrests you and puts you in a Gitmo like jail for jaywalking.