John Stossel's Illegal Everything

[YuriVII]

Disclaimer: Forgive me if you already watched this. I am posting this for those who have not or want to join the conversation. If you have watched it. Than congratulations I hope your feeling of superiority and egotism lasts the entire day. Tomorrow I will post something again you have already watched just to make you feel better and comment how you already watched it.



I am often a critic of Mr. Stossel and other times a supporter. Never the less I support him and enjoy most of his reports. Nowadays I am much more of a supporter...and that's saying alot because he is on Fox. His documentary...which is a bit aged pre-Obama I think but not sure (of coarse its gotten much worse since then and will continue to despite which party puppet sits in the oval office). Anyways...America and over-regulation (or in regulation in the wrong places). I think we should just get rid of pretty much 90 percent of ALL laws in USA. Because most of these restrictions hamper economic growth and personal liberty and only serve to oppress and not protect the public. The pursuit of happiness seems to have a whole lot of unreasonable limitations put on it.



Edited.

[Denny Crane!]

This is on my list to watch at work! Charismatic bastard so he is.

[John ''True Grit'' Wayne]

This aint illegal i think america is doing fine.

[YuriVII]

This aint illegal i think america is doing fine.

Great so marines can make out with eachother but God forbid those marines adopted children open a lemonade stand or try and start a lobster buisiness and get charged with 6 felonies because some prosecutor wants to make a name for themselves...or try to open up a taxi buisiness in Washington DC. All is well because they can shoot taliban and kiss eachother without feeling ashamed.

[Sphere]

The "wetlands" case is before the Supreme Court.

Judging from the oral arguments the Court is likely to rule against the EPA.

[PointOfViewGun]

This is aired on Fox News? Really?

[Col. Tartleton]

This is aired on Fox News? Really?

Why is that surprising? What do you think Fox supports? A fascist police state? Their only bias is towards popularism and Americans as a majority hate the government. Fox is only biased to the center right in proportions with the American majority. The other stations are center left and MSNBC is just left. Which isn't in line with the American people which is why they all have less viewers. And they have gross lesbian nerds instead of buxom milfs doing the reporting.

The things I'd do to Jenna Lee would be unwholesome and deviant.

[Modestus]

It is the laws that give you personal Liberty and also protect it, it has been a long struggle to get where we are today and the only thing that keeps feudalism at bay are laws. If you got rid of 90% of the laws that you have now you may have a more dynamic economy but it would not just stop there and your liberty would exist only at the whim of the powerful.

It seems from afar that America is selling itself bit by bit in the mistaken belief that economic efficiency is somehow the partner of personal liberty. Less laws means only one thing and that is less laws and that suits the powerful more then the weak.

And the irony of it all is that most of the problems for the people in the video are not caused by regulation they are caused by bad regulation and the powerful protecting their piece of the cake.

So if you believe that those who are pushing for deregulation are ordinary Joe's like those in the video you are mistaken there are others pushing for much much more. So yes perhaps you should be able to sell lemonade without a license (Buyer Beware) but does that mean you can sell heart tablets without a licence too?

Ya man drugs should be legalised that be would be cool man and we should de-regulate the banks to man.

[mrmouth]

You go to Europe and Australia and you realize there is just as much of this over there, if not more.

My real issue with most of this is it is always framed within the context of 'the children'. Think of the children...

[Matthias]

Many of the illogical regulations highlighted in the video are the product of a couple things. Either it's special interest groups or religious fundamentalism still residing in the country. Our election laws are so unregulated, that it is, ironically, easy for special interest groups to legally bribe lawmakers to put in crazy laws that benefit themselves and harm others. As for religion, well, kinda speaks for itself.

Still, on the whole the US is pretty unregulated as a society when it comes to economics. Partially due to the influence of special interest groups that are in positions of power and can therefore take advantage of others. For "moral" issues, which can obviously cross over to economics, you see a lot of semi-theocratic stuff going on.

Basically, the issue in the video is a bit of hyperbole, though it raises some important critiques, others are clearly just isolated cases and not really widespread issues.

Why is that surprising? What do you think Fox supports? A fascist police state?

No, but fascism and America's current right wing, to which Fox explicitly prostates itself, have a lot in common. Fox supports making a profit, which means lying and being an entertainment organization that appeals to the worst parts of human nature in order to get viewers that want their views affirmed.

Their only bias is towards popularism and Americans as a majority hate the government.

Their only bias is towards the almighty dollar. The US is 20% liberal, 40% moderate, 40% conservative. They saw a market not being exploited (something about journalistic integrity still meaning something) and went to exploit it. And boy have they ever. Their bias is clearly conservative, because they want to corner that market.

Fox is only biased to the center right in proportions with the American majority.

No, it is biased to extremely conservative, considering their target audience are exclusively conservatives. And considering American conservatives are relatively extreme compared to the rest of the world, so is Fox.

The other stations are center left

I don't know which "other stations" you refer to, but what makes you say this? Because Fox tells you so? The only other 24 hour news station besides MSNBC is CNN, which tries to reach out to moderates. But unfortunately for them, moderates are generally more apathetic and don't care, so they don't get many viewers. CNN still engages in lots of "entertainment" pieces itself, as does most corporate media in the US. It's about money, not content or truth.

and MSNBC is just left.

Left compared to what? MSNBC pushes conservative economic policies all day long, just like Democrats overall. Democrats are center-right, and MSNBC would be considered center-right by many in the world. It's owned by GM for Christ's sake. Just watch CNBC. They're all corporate whores, because they're all corporate media. MSNBC saw the 20% liberal market wasn't being exploited, so they went after it and exploited it, to great effect. Even then, they haven't gone as balls-deep as Fox has in their ideological fervor, because the left in America are moderate conservatives. The vast majority of liberals in the US are free market capitalists, so it's not like there is a large leap going on here. On social issues you'll see the difference, and on how much the economy should be regulated, but you'll find few all out socialists or communists.

Which isn't in line with the American people which is why they all have less viewers.

None of the corporate media are "in line with the American people". MSNBC has less viewers than Fox partially because Fox has almost double the coverage from cable companies and partially because there are twice as many conservatives as liberals. Fox surely isn't any more "in line" with the American people, whatever the hell that means.

And they have gross lesbian nerds instead of buxom milfs doing the reporting.

I find Rachel Maddow to be cute. If she was straight, I'd date her. Hell, I might try it even if she wasn't, maybe she'd have a change of heart. I rarely watch MSNBC or any of the corporate entertainment media, but when I want my entertainment opinion show, she's the best of the bunch on MSNBC. She doesn't yell at guests or divert from the issue or use questionable logic compared to all the other hosts. She is smart and civil and talks about interesting things. Why you find her gross, I don't know. I find plastic, dyed blonde bobbleheads to be revolting, not least because of the lack of brain matter they have. Fox seems like a good place for them.

The things I'd do to Jenna Lee would be unwholesome and deviant.

Unwholesome and deviant seems to be the big fetish of a lot of conservatives (not that you are). I guess it's all the prudishness boxed up inside them, or maybe it's the thrill of breaking so many taboos and rules they set for themselves. I imagine uber conservatives most enjoy violent porn. I enjoy wholesome and healthy sexuality, which is still quite sensual to be sure. A lot of conservatives just come across as misogynistic blowhards. The OP's last sentance of sexualizing women in violent ways reminds me of that twisted view of sex and women it promotes. It's the religious/cultural rule-setting combined with misogyny I imagine that causes it. Seems to be that sexual violence towards women as a sort of sexual fantasy of men springs forth from this combo of factors in a culture.

TWC is surely a male dominated place, as can be seen by the numerous signatures of scantily clad women. I find a lot of the obsession with the models and what they portray to be amateur, which is understandable given the age of some. But maybe people just grow out of it after a while, I don't know. I don't see the attraction in them as much anymore, that's for sure. It just looks silly and fake to me. I think I would find many of the women attractive on their own, but they way they are portrayed kinda ruins it. Same with Fox News anchors.

It's also why I find the Bunny Farm, which is portrayed in the video, to be a kind of wrong way to go about legalization of prostitution. I think it takes a step in the right direction, but other countries do it much better. The bunny farm just drips of misogyny and patriarchy in the way it portrays women. That sort of cultural view will take a long time for the US to overcome.

[molonthegreat]

This is aired on Fox News? Really?

Stossel and the Judge is pretty much the only good thing on Fox but Stossel is aired on the much smaller fox business and they cancelled the Judge.

It is ridiculous how many regulations there are in the US, however here in Sweden where I live it's probably even worse since socialists just love adding regulations and they just keep adding ridiculous laws for everything. It's really one of the biggest problems with having a parliament that makes law and that is that they just keep making it more and more difficult for the average joe by making laws about just about everything even though it's in many cases completely unnecessary and only makes the government bureaucracy larger.

It is the laws that give you personal Liberty and also protect it, it has been a long struggle to get where we are today and the only thing that keeps feudalism at bay are laws. If you got rid of 90% of the laws that you have now you may have a more dynamic economy but it would not just stop there and your liberty would exist only at the whim of the powerful.

It seems from afar that America is selling itself bit by bit in the mistaken belief that economic efficiency is somehow the partner of personal liberty. Less laws means only one thing and that is less laws and that suits the powerful more then the weak.

And the irony of it all is that most of the problems for the people in the video are not caused by regulation they are caused by bad regulation and the powerful protecting their piece of the cake.

So if you believe that those who are pushing for deregulation are ordinary Joe's like those in the video you are mistaken there are others pushing for much much more. So yes perhaps you should be able to sell lemonade without a license (Buyer Beware) but does that mean you can sell heart tablets without a licence too?

Ya man drugs should be legalised that be would be cool man and we should de-regulate the banks to man.

So if you stopped making up regulating everything and got rid of a lot of the existing ones the President would suddenly make the Governors swear fealty to him?

Do you even know what feudalism is?

[Modestus]

So if you stopped making up regulating everything and got rid of a lot of the existing ones the President would suddenly make the Governors swear fealty to him?

Do you even know what feudalism is?

I was referring to Law and that it is the law that allows you your Liberty, remove the law or weaken it enough and you will likely end up in a State where the controls and the constraints on the powerful are broken, and the people while believing they are gaining Liberty instead become serfs because they destroyed what protected them.

[YuriVII]

It is the laws that give you personal Liberty and also protect it, it has been a long struggle to get where we are today and the only thing that keeps feudalism at bay are laws. If you got rid of 90% of the laws that you have now you may have a more dynamic economy but it would not just stop there and your liberty would exist only at the whim of the powerful.

Our personal liberties do exist at the whim of the powerful. More now than ever.

It seems from afar that America is selling itself bit by bit in the mistaken belief that economic efficiency is somehow the partner of personal liberty. Less laws means only one thing and that is less laws and that suits the powerful more then the weak.

Yeah I dont buy into that either. But in this case the over regulation is doing. Actually I should be clear, its wrong regulation. Certain things are regulated that should not and other are not regulated that should.

And the irony of it all is that most of the problems for the people in the video are not caused by regulation they are caused by bad regulation and the powerful protecting their piece of the cake.

And they are able to do that with near impunity. EPA is going to loose a case but they already destroyed the lives of those wetland people just by throwing the full force of the state at them.

So if you believe that those who are pushing for deregulation are ordinary Joe's like those in the video you are mistaken there are others pushing for much much more. So yes perhaps you should be able to sell lemonade without a license (Buyer Beware) but does that mean you can sell heart tablets without a licence too?

Actually seems pretty 50-50 to me and has been for quite some time. You know ebbing between Republicrats and Democritans.

Ya man drugs should be legalised that be would be cool man and we should de-regulate the banks to man.

Wow great way to put words in peoples mouths. Because one is against the drug war they are for deregulation of banks huh? I guess you dont have a problem that USA has more people incarcerated than China. Nevermind Portugals deregulation has shown that addiction has actually drop. Never mind you haven't learned anything since the 1920s.

Christ, you are completely wrong most of these ridiculous laws are lobbied by the rich and powerful since they want to shut out competition, furthermore all these regulations only gives the politicians,government officials,police officers etcmore power so the opposite is true. Less regulations would only lead to more freedom for the average Joe rather than serfdom.

this

Washington DC taxi cab part demonstrates this quite well.

[PointOfViewGun]

Why is that surprising? What do you think Fox supports? A fascist police state? Their only bias is towards popularism and Americans as a majority hate the government. Fox is only biased to the center right in proportions with the American majority. The other stations are center left and MSNBC is just left. Which isn't in line with the American people which is why they all have less viewers. And they have gross lesbian nerds instead of buxom milfs doing the reporting.

The things I'd do to Jenna Lee would be unwholesome and deviant.

It's quite strange to have such a show on a channel that would have no problem with a lot of civil liberties being illegal.

[Col. Tartleton]

It's quite strange to have such a show on a channel that would have no problem with a lot of civil liberties being illegal.

Which civil liberties? Fox Business is the most libertarian station on TV.



"Bomb Iran. Just do it..."



"If you commit to it I'll undo another button."

The things I'd do to Jenna Lee would be unwholesome and deviant.

[PointOfViewGun]

Which civil liberties? Fox Business is the most libertarian station on TV.

Your sexual attraction to Fox News hosts does not constitute an argument.

[Inconsistent]

I love John Stossel, and this is a damn good video.

[Nikitn]

I watched the first few minutes, but I quit after the ridiculous lemonade-stuff.

Obviously kids can't sell "lemonade" without the proper permits and guarantees that it really is lemonade. Why should they be an official exception to laws made with good reason (2 protect the consumer)? Too much regulation isn't good obviously, but if the regulations are of the same nature as the ones in the lemonade-sale example then there's no trouble what-so-ever.

[Sphere]

The ToS says any thread on John Stossel has to contain this video.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[CarbEast]

I just love American journalism: never let truth get in the way of a good story. It's so nice to know that how Portugal legalized drugs and everything became so much better. The only thing they forgot to mention is that this never actually happened. Portugal has some of the strictest drug laws in EU. The only thing that is legalized is drug use. Yet this show makes a great job of creating impression that people in Portugal buy their crack along with apple juice. I suppose they think they are safe since their viewers can't tell Portugal from Antarctic on the world map, and they are probably right about that for the most part.