The Intrusiveness of Hopeychangism

If you want to understand the difference between conservatives and leftists you need look no further than the initiatives of two First Ladies, Laura Bush and Michelle Obama. Mrs. Bush, a former librarian, dedicated herself to literacy--call it the desire to give kids food for thought. Mrs. Obama, on the other hand, has dedicated herself to the issue of childhood obesity--call it, well, the desire to control kids' ingestion of just plain food. Jeff Jacoby comments:

...It isn’t to evil dictators with a lust for power that Americans have been slowly surrendering their autonomy. It is to well-intentioned authorities who believe sincerely that our freedoms must be circumscribed for our own good. At the White House on Tuesday, First Lady Michelle Obama announced what The New York Times called “a sweeping initiative . . . aimed at revamping the way American children eat and play - reshaping school lunches, playgrounds, and even medical checkups - with the goal of eliminating childhood obesity.’’

Nothing in the Constitution authorizes the federal government to take charge of “revamping the way American children eat and play.’’ It is only our passivity that makes such an encroachment possible. This used to be the land of the free. Is it still?

Life, liberty and the pursit of happiness? No way. Not if that "happiness" includes Big Macs and twinkies.