Bill Borden: Pet proposal just one of many unnecessary ideas By BILL BORDEN AS I SEE IT April 26, 2007 As you may know, the Huntington Beach City Council is considering an ordinance making it mandatory that all dogs, cats, and possibly rabbits in the city be spayed and neutered. I guess that all of our budget and crime-fighting problems have been resolved. I hope that council is aware that this matter is being addressed by another law-making body, equally convinced that we are not smart enough to care for our pets. State Assemblyman Lloyd Levine of Van Nuys has put forth AB1634, a bill which would make it mandatory that all dogs and cats in the state older than four months be snipped or clipped. The fact that the legislature of the considerably great state of California is concerning itself with mandating birth control for pets is mind boggling. Considering some of the equally absurd legislation proposed in Sacramento, however, AB1634 is right in character. For example, AB755 would make it illegal to "spank" our own children if it hurts them. The initially proposed law just applied to "spanking." A subsequent modification made it a crime only if it "hurts" the child. What is this lawmaker thinking? I'm not going to take a position on the spanking of children, but I shall on the need for legislation in this regard. Children shouldn't be spanked for crying in church, but maybe they should be for running into the street. In any event, we don't need Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, of Mountain View, to be taking the decision away from parents and giving it to the infallible state of California. State Senator Joseph Simitian of Palo Alto, evidently in the running for the Most Redundant Bills Introduced Award, has given us, among many others, SB33. This laughable suggestion makes it illegal for drivers under the age of 18 to text message or talk on cell phones while driving. Since another piece of legislation, a much more sensible one to be sure, banning the use of cell phones while driving, has already passed, I wonder where the senator's head is. In 2008 it will be illegal for anyone in the state to use a cell phone while driving. Why do we need additional legislation that will not take effect until after the original is enacted? And why is it imposed on younger drivers only? There is not enough room in The Wave nor ink at The Register to bring to light all of the totally unnecessary pieces on legislation being introduced in City Hall, Santa Ana, Sacramento and Washington, D.C. The fact that they are not vital to the governing of a community, county, state or nation is merely annoying. The fact that much of this legislative folly takes rights away from citizens and assumes that we are too stupid to get along without elite, career, caretaker-government types is intellectually insulting. Government should fix the pot holes and put bad guys in jail; leave the rest to us. Contact the writer: wtborden@aol.com | 
