Big Government Chaffetz

I saw this yesterday, and I thought "Hmm..... either I was wrong thinking of Jason Chaffetz as a small-government type, or he's a typical Utah Republican: Talks the talk, skips the walk."

But, I didn't have time to look it up. So, I defer to Curtis:

On Chaffetz’s campaign site, one of his big four issues is limited government – stating that “This principal works! I agree with President Regan: “Government which governs least governs best.” He goes on to expand on this point by stating that he is a strong supporter of federalism with the emphasis being placed on the states and that he will “seek to restrict the role of the federal government.”

Ah, but Chaffetz is also the ranking Republican on the Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Post Office, and the District of Columbia and, therefore, is able to rule on all ordinances D.C. comes up with. You see, because Washington D.C. is not technically a state, rather a federal district, the Constitution grants Congress the right to pass all laws regarding the governance of the city. Everything from parking ordinances to the recognition of gay marriage is, technically, left in the hands of Congress.

But I ask Representative Chaffetz, how can you be a supporter of small government and feel that it is ok to intervene in the affairs of Washington D.C.? I understand that D.C. poses unique questions and can be treated differently than Utah – but does that mean that you should? Are the 590,000 of the District less entitled to local government than the 745,000 in yours – if not, do you consider District residents Americans? If so, why do you feel the need to interfere only in their lives but not the lives of residents who live in regular states?

Of course, Jason Chaffetz loves government so much, he is the only Representative to be represented by someone else.

-Bob

My Name For The ReAL Salt Lake Stadium, if I had $30 Million

I read in today's Salt Lake Tibune that RSL is looking for someone to stick their name on the stadium for about $30 Million.

I have a perfect name picked out. It describes the funding of the stadium, and plays to the LDS population that they are obviously looking for.

The name?

Gadianton Stadium.

I even have a second choice picked out in case they don't like choice #1.

Republican Big Government Field.

Government Porn

There was a meeting up on Capitol Hill on Wednesday about more regulation of the internet.

More regulation by the big-government-favoring Utah Legislature.

They propose making ISPs who block kids from accessing porn be able to get a certificate of wholsomeness.

The problem isn't with ISPs. If an ISP is knowingly allowing kids to access porn, they are breaking the law as it is.

However, the problems aren't what the "experts" they had at the meeting said:

Ralph Yarro, a parent volunteering his time to stem what he calls a crisis of inappropriate material flowing over an unregulated Internet, understands the confusion lawmakers face, saying there is a huge "generation gap" between what teens and pre-teens can do on the Internet and what their parents understand.

Cheryl Preston, a law professor at Brigham Young University who has been studying various legal methods to keeping Internet porn out of the reach of minors, said when she discusses the problem she often hears the argument: "What are these kids' mothers doing" and why are they not watching what their children are doing on the computer?

But many parents aren't tech savvy, she said. "The mothers are just glad to see their kids doing their homework on the home computer."

Beyond that, however, is that many teens know how to get around filters in the home computer — or know where they can get open-access wireless Internet "where they can watch porn all day long," said Yarro, who heads a group called CP80, which advocates congressional action to set up family-friendly Internet groupings that would filter out porn Internet addresses.

The problem is that parent's aren't keeping an eye on their kids. They are letting them have computers in their rooms. I hate to tell Mr Yarro this, but in order to get to open-access wireless internet, they need someone to provide them with a computer to get the internet. They can't just stand there and have the images magically appear. Who is providing them with the computer?

Oh, and annother problem that we have in our big government doing this:

The discussion in the Public Utilities and Technology Interim Study Committee was often technical, with committee members having to be brought up to speed on various terms and applications.

"My brain is on the edge of frying, trying to understand" the technology involved, said committee co-chairman Sen. Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City.

-Bob

(All quotes from Deseret News, 4/19/07)