‘Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them.’ Florida says ‘OK’
Photo from the blog Popehat.com and John Stossel's Take
“The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws. Who wants a nation of law-abiding citizens? What’s there in that for anyone? But just pass the kind of laws that can neither be observed nor enforced nor objectively interpreted and you create a nation of law-breakers — and then you cash in on guilt. Now that’s the system.” – Floyd Ferris, “Atlas Shrugged”
John Stossel finds Republican-run Florida has no sense of irony.
The Florida Department of Revenue has a law on the books requiring the owners of vending machines to post a notice that said law exists, or face a $250 fine.
That’s the only thing the law requires, a notice that the owner is required by law to put up a notice he’s required to post this notice. Even if he is in compliance with all other laws and regulations, failing to post the “this notice required by law” notice required by law means a $250 fine.
Citizens who report vending machine owners who fail to post the “this notice is required” notice can get cash rewards from the government.
So why enact a completely meaningless regulation?
Spokeswoman Renee Watters tells Stossel: “A vending machine operator that does not place the notice on the machine presumably is not in compliance with the other requirements such as registration and payment of the tax.”
In other words, Florida lawmakers made up a completely meaningless law just to catch peaceful citizens breaking it so they can shake them down for cash.
Want to stop this legal abuse by Republicans and Democrats?
Vote Libertarian.
