The Darkest Hours

Time to endure the Darkest Hours. Those final hours at work before a vacation or a long weekend. Those minutes that slowly go by. The meetings you endure that seem to last forever but in fact are only 30 minutes. The clock watching where you swear the second hand turn back a second just to spite you.

It has been a busy week for me. That will make this weekend- rain or shine- seem that much better. There will be some Brewers baseball viewed, beer consumed, and music enjoyed. I will attend church in the form of Drinking for Jesus and if it doesn't rain much there will be some grass cutting. As long as I am not getting involved with work issues I will be happy.

There is a silly proposal on the table in Washington. Among ways to pay for free health care they have included a tax on chocolate milk. Of course that has some people in Wisconsin in a tizzy. They are concerned about taxing a product that provides nutrition, a beverage that should not be lumped together with soda or energy drinks.

I applaud their outrage but they are being short-sighted. They should be talking with the Cokes and Pepsis and the Red Bulls of the world. They are targeting these products claiming it is the cause of obesity in kids. Children drink too much soda and chocolate milk and thus are getting fat.

Well, a tax on beverages that some health nuts claim are causing obesity is just the beginning. Because after they see that has no effect on kids gaining weight, they will go after other items. Taxing video games. Taxing television. Taxing movies. You name an activity that kids do while sitting and they will try to throw a tax on it.

That is the mentality we seem to be up against. If it is bad for you then we will tax it to make you stop. They have done it on cigarettes. They have done it- and continue to increase- taxes on booze. They, our elected representatives mind you, want to tell you how to run your life to their satisfaction.

They claim they want to provide health care to all. That simply cannot be done. Everyone is different. We are individuals. What I put in my body and how my body is able to handle it is different from everyone else around me. We don't have the same metabolisms, the same allergies, the same defense systems in our bodies. What works for one person is not going to work for the other. But they keep telling us what to do.

I don't care if you drink beer or liquor. I don't care if you smoke pot or cigarettes or cigars or a pipe. I don't care if you eat fattening foods and sit on your ass in front of a TV or if you eat salads, lean meats, and get an hour of exercise on a daily basis. I don't care if you go to church or spend the majority of your time in a casino. Just take responsibility for your actions. If you don't, the government will attempt to. They will dictate what you can do. They are trying with the finance industry (cutting fees, try to regulate pay), the auto industry (new CAFE standards, owning Chrysler and soon GM), and are going after the health industry.

I like being an individual. I hope you do too. Be an individual and go rock on with your bad self this weekend.