Stupid Laws

Every once in a while, some government makes a law that is really stupid.  Of course, there are a lot of laws that some people think are really stupid, but others like.  Take, for example, the gun registration law.  Those are not the laws I am speaking about.

The really stupid laws are the ones that are anti-democratic or inconsistent with the social fabric of our society.

My favourites are the Taxpayer Protection Act, 1999 and the Balanced Budget Act, 1999.  In these laws, the Ontario government made it a requirement that any new tax or tax increase must be approved by a referendum and that the government has to have a balanced budget every year.

Sounds great?  Guess again.

First, the definitions of "balanced budget" and "new tax" are interesting and confusing.  Secondly, there are exceptions. Now it?s not so simple.  What you and I consider a balanced budget is not how it is defined by the law.

The government promoted these laws as great protections for the taxpayer.  Supposedly, the government is now prevented from taxing us without our permission.

The government is democratically elected by us.  We give them the authority to pass laws.  We also give them the authority to get rid of laws that are no longer useful.  It would be anti-democratic to prevent the government from doing its elected function of passing laws.

The government has the authority to get rid of the Taxpayer Protection Act - and it is even easier to get rid of a law than it is to pass it. 

So, if the economy changes and taxes need to be raised, do you think a government is going to be bound by an expensive and costly referendum process?  I doubt it.  It is a whole lot easier to pass a law getting rid of the Taxpayer Protection Act.

The Balanced Budget Act is a real promotional tool. Salaries of the senior members of government get cut if they don?t pass ?balanced budget?  However, if you can understand the definition of a ?balanced budget?, you are smarter than I.  If you factor in the exceptions where deficits are allowed, the law becomes a toothless tiger. 

Imposing laws that attempt to tie the hands of a government when the government has the authority to repeal those laws is stupid. It?s like putting a prisoner in jail and giving him the key to the cell.