Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Missing The Point

Palin and other Alaskan politicians add Alaska to a long list of states that have declared their sovereignty under the 10th amendment of the Constitution. The problem starts here:

According to the report, the joint resolution does not carry with it the force of law, but supporters say it is a significant move toward getting their message out to other lawmakers, the media and grassroots movements.

It's just talk. From politicians who have already demonstrated a willingness to fail us. Will any of these 36 states actually declare something the Federal government does illegal? What about the illegitimate things the states do?

My state has one of those stupid tax laws for whatever we buy over the internet, despite it being blindingly obvious that taxes on transactions should only occur where the sellers are. The state wants to insulate itself from competitive pressure; the true answer to things possibly being cheaper to buy online is lower taxes and regulatory costs! Commit to stop doing stupid stuff, like choking off economic activity, and then put up some of our state resources (and your career) on the line to actually resist the junk the Federal government does.

I'll find these sorts of declarations a bit more interesting when I find state officials actually thwarting the Federal government's plans. Until then, I shall assume this is just hot air and a bit disgusting.

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