The staff writers at Ravenwood's Universe are happy to report that drug abuse in this country is non-existent, drinking and driving has completely stopped, and there is no gun violence in Washington DC. Thanks to our tough laws outlawing these activities, we no longer have to worry about drugged out crack whores committing armed robbery to get money for their next fix. We also don't have to worry about driving home on an early Sunday morning at 2 AM, because everyone on the road undoubtedly has a designated driver. Residents of DC are free to sleep with their doors unlocked.

Wait a second. You say that these problems still exist? How can that be, with the tough laws we have to fight them? Well, it is quite simple actually. You see, merely making alcohol, drugs, or guns illegal, does not prevent people from abusing them. Nevertheless, proponents of stricter laws and 'feel good' legislation continue to insist that tougher laws are the solution to all of life's problems.

For instance, over the past several years drinking and driving laws across the nation have been toughened. The Imperial Federal government, along with special interests have pushed states to lower the minimum allowed BAC from .10 to .08, even though the majority of drunk driving accidents happen at .15 or above. There also is no real data to support that the lower BAC will actually save any lives. In fact, as the minimum BAC creeps lower and lower, it will be hard to distinguish if an accident was caused by alcohol or any of the other numerous factors that cause accidents. However, you can bet that organizations like MADD will continue to play politics with statistics, and count any accident they can find as one that was related to alcohol.

Similar ploys are used by special interests to further the anti-gun agenda. Gang-land murders committed by 19 year old thugs are counted as 'accidents' occurring between 'children'. Organizations like the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence Ownership treat a gang execution as though it was a child who found daddy's gun and accidentally shot his little sister. Look for special interests to use the recent Maryland shootings to try to further the campaign of their gun grabbing candidate in the Governor's election. This is despite the fact that a well armed and defended populace may have actually prevented such shootings.

The real losers in these situations are the American people. We live with less and less freedom, but suffer from the same old problems. The tougher laws help wacko special interests take advantage of unsuspecting dupes, to bring in the big special interest money. Meanwhile, special interest 'executives' live high on the hog off the donations of people that genuinely want to make the world a better place. Congressmen also benefit in that they can cater to the special interests to keep hold of the political power they crave so much.

In the end, people's dependence on the special interests and politicians to 'fix' their problems is increased. Perhaps I am too much of a skeptic at times, however when an organization like MADD or the Brady Campaign comes begging for money, I have to ask myself where their loyalty really lies. After all, they are co-dependent on the very 'problem' they are trying to 'fix', and can only thrive when more and more people jump on board to try to support their cause.