Dear Rep. Richard Floyd,
Have you ever taken your children to McDonalds, stopped on a warm sunny day and bought yourself and the kids an ice cream? How about assigning the kids cleaning duty at home? You know, scrubbing the toilets, mopping the floor, etc.
I'm guessing if you are like other parents you have, and you know what, all of those things are more dangerous to your child's health than passive cigarette smoke. The fat in the foods you feed them and the chemicals in the cleaning products you keep around the house all are more harmful.
What I am pointing out to you is that there are many things we do in life as "free" Americans that may or may not necessarily be good for us. That doesn't mean a law is required to dictate whether or not we can or should do it.
My father told me something when I was young that left a profound effect on me. It is even more poinient in the political climate in which we live today. It is something I take very seriously.
"Every time a law is passed a freedom is lost."
That is a simple statement. It is also very true and very frightening when you stop and ponder what it actually means. There is a very disturbing trend in our country. Many of the people who serve in elected offices feel the need to make their mark by enacting new laws instead of just plain governing and dealing with crisis as it comes. It is often easy to follow others, jump on a band wagon and make yourself feel better because you really think you have done something "good for society". After all what harm is one little piece of legislation in the scheme of things?
The problem comes when everyone in office decides they know what is best for the people they serve instead of letting the people live their own lives. Then we get a myriad of laws that mean little in themselves but as a whole take away freedoms a little slice at a time until there are no freedoms left. "Every time a law is passed a freedom is lost,"
Personally, I don smoke cigarettes. I will, however, defend to the end the right of people to live their lives as they decide. No, people aren't going to always make the right decisions for themselves or their children. But in a "free" society they have the right to make the wrong decision. When elected officials take it upon themselves to make all the decisions for us we no longer will have a free society. We are inexorably marching ever closer to that day in this country.
Please do not go forward with this legislation to ban smoking in a car with a child. It does nothing but create more government intrusion into our lives. It creates criminals where there were none and further drives a wedge between people and their government for no good reason. As a conservative I would think that less government is the best government would be something you would live by.
"Evey time a law is passed a freedom is lost"
Respectively,
J.D. Cravens,
Bitsy Lane
Chattanooga
dcravens@highstream.net
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Mr. Cravens, do you, or your Old Daddy, honestly think that "Every time a law is passed a freedom is lost" is true?
I guess when a law is passed that controls the dumping of toxic waste, we are infringing upon the freedoms of Dow chemical? Or when a law is passed that limits the speed we drive our cars, we are infringing upon the freedom of the would-be Benny Parsons of the world? Or when a law is passed that protects our children from sexual predators, we are infringing upon the freedom of people who only want to express their "love" for a nine-year-old?
You should honestly thick twice before ever repeating the wisdoms of your Old Daddy again.
I would also like to know what possible scientific evidence you could cite in your claim that McDonalds's and cleaning a toilet bowl are more dangerous to a child's health than passive cigarette smoke?
Fact of the matter is, regardless of the safety or health issues caused by
fat in food or chemicals in toilet cleaners, second-hand cigarette smoke is forced upon us against our wills. Not only is it unhealthy, but it denies us the opportunity to enjoy a fine meal or to gather together for friendship without having our "space" invaded by offensive smoke.
What the smoker does in the privacy of his or her own home is none of my
business. In fact, I say "light up, smoke 'em while you got 'em," because
they are a dying breed, so to speak. I truly could care less. However, when
it comes to the potential health risk imposed on others by second-hand
smoke, I believe that our society has a responsibility to protect others.
Charlie Neff
Los Angeles
charlie.neff@verizon.net
* * *
To J.D. Cravens,
I agree with you that McDonald's food is an inappropriate form of nutrition for anyone, especially children. Also, as a mother, I would never force my child to inhale harmful fumes from household cleansers. Congratulations to you on noting the obvious perils of fatty foods and potent chemicals.
So, how is it that you do not see the extraordinary danger posed to children by the innumerable carcinogens contained in cigarette smoke? In case your vocabulary is as limited as your opinions on child safety, "carcinogens" are cancer-causing substances. Legislation to prevent children from exposure to passive smoke is necessary because not all adults are educated or concerned enough to protect their children themselves.
Your way of thinking would leave it up to parents to decide if their children actually needed to ride in car seats or if they should just ride unrestrained in the back (or front) seats of the car. While we are at it, why not allow parents to choose whether their children should attend school or go to work? After all, children are really just second class citizens without rights except those afforded by the responsible adults who choose to bring them into this world, correct?
I mean, we all agree that anyone who can conceive and deliver a child is more than adequate at making decisions regarding that child's upbringing. Certainly, there are not any parents in this country who are less than qualified to be responsible for an innocent human being. Please. I agree that it is certainly a sad state of affairs when our lawmakers have to pass legislation to insure that parents will not blow cancer-causing smoke into the small faces of helpless children but it is surely the case in our country.
Perhaps the problem is not with the government infringing upon parents but is really with the misconception that having a child is the "right" of anyone who chooses to reproduce. Being a parent is a privilege at best and an exercise in egotism and selfishness at worst. We live on an overpopulated planet with quickly dwindling resources in a time of highly unstable global, political relations. I will be the first to admit that my decision to have a child was extraordinarily selfish. My daughter certainly did not ask to be brought into this world under these current circumstances. Now that she is here, it is my responsibility to provide her with a safe home, unconditional love, and access to a great education among many other opportunities that I owe to her. I think that the very least I can do is to not expose her to harmful chemicals as she tries to navigate the challenging world into which I chose to bring her.
Jessica Adams
Signal Mountain
jessieadams@bellsouth.net
* * *
Perhaps Mrs. Adams would like to accept both financial and legal responsibility for all of those children whose parents she would like to dictate how, when, where, and why they should be raised.
To be sure, society has a responsibility to ensure the safety of our most innocent. However, there is a limit to the extents to which we may go to do so.
There is consensus in the United States that second hand smoke may cause medical problems for those exposed to it. Consensus is not science. Consensus is an opinion. Politics depends upon consensus. An opinion is not science. Science depends upon hard facts. In this case there are none and to claim otherwise is dishonesty in one of its most ugly forms, the restriction of the rights of one person for the beliefs of another and with no provable benefit.
There is no hard science supporting this opinion, this consensus. In fact, there are both European and World Health Organization studies that directly conflict with the results of this opinion. They find that there is no substantial relationship between exposure to second hand cigarette smoke and the medical problems for which it's blamed. This study was, in fact, never conducted anywhere but on paper. It's nothing more than a group who reviewed other study results, results of a very limited and statistically questionable population sample, to support their claims. They also had to lower their level of acceptable statistical probability several times in order to support their claims...a procedure that would in some instances land the "researchers" in jail for fraud.
We'll allow a child to have one of his parents ripped out of his life, and probably his heart, for no better reason than his parents cannot get along and we'll stand around and pontificate about the best interest of the child. That's okay? But smoking in a vehicle is worse? I'll admit to having been born at night. I guarantee it wasn't last night.
Some of our parents told us as children, "mind your own plate." This is probably good advice for most of us...to mind what's on our own plates before worrying what's on that of our neighbors.
Each of us has a right to our opinions and beliefs. We do not have a right to impose those opinions and beliefs on others.
I also hope that Rep. Floyd remembers that many of his constituents, those who voted to put him in office, some of whom worked very hard to send him to Nashville, are smokers. Many would probably be very resentful of being told what they're allowed to do in their vehicles. When you begin telling us what may be done in vehicles that we buy and pay for with money earned by our own labor, what's the next step...our homes? We already have too many laws on the books. Let's not start off with more that have no real consequence on the real issues facing this State and this Nation...the influx of illegal immigrants, for example.
As my Old Daddy was known to say, you mind your business and I'll mind mine.
Royce E. Burrage, Jr.
RBurrage@bellsouth.net
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I would urge all of you who are opposed to this ill-advised piece of legislation to write or call your state representative and voice your opposition. This is the right of every citizen when faced with a potential law that invades privacy as this one does.
The next thing you know they'll want to come into your home to be sure you aren't smoking in front of your children.
Every time the government passes a law of this nature, our freedoms are diminished.
Jane Brophy
Hixson
hootiesmomtoo@yahoo.com