At 07:28 PM 9/30/98 , you wrote:
>Someone took it upon themselves to deliver a "junior high civics 101" lesson
>to Jon on his recent post about "epa weenies".
That would be me. And it was junior high government, not civics (there's a
difference, you know)
>I can't find the post, but I think that before one delivers civic lessons to
>others, they need to pass the course.
Although it's been a while since I've been in junior high, I did pass the
course, really I did. The problem, I think, was that I was trying to make a
point in as few words as possible and that always leaves the door open for
misunderstandings.
>EPA, HUD, FDA and others are REGULATORY agencies.
That's what I said. Jon was saying that they pass laws, which they don't.
>One of my biggest gripes
>about the federal government is that these Agencies CAN and DO create
>binding regulations WITHOUT congressional approval.
Depends on what you mean by "without congressional approval". It may be
true that congress does not approve each and every little thing that they
do, but these agencies were created by congress and are subject to
congressional oversight (where do you think they get their money?).
Congress reviews the agencies on a regular basis and grants or withholds
funding based on that review (and, of course, on which way the wind happens
to be blowing). In that sense, congress does approve at least the overall
direction they are going.
>The point is, you have unelected bureaucrats creating regulations with the
>power of laws....except you and I have little or no say in the process.
This is true, but then again, how much say do we really have in *any* of
the laws that congress passes?
>These unelected folks have one goal in life...continually come up with new
>reasons to justify their existence (new dangers they must protect us from)
>and to grow in size and budget. That's It!
While I think you're being a tad too harsh (I certainly have no problem
with the government keeping an eye on the people who produce the food I
eat) I do agree with your overall philosophy. These bureaucracies need a
much tighter reign kept on them. Too bad congress is too busy doing special
favors for big money special interest groups and getting off on Clinton's
sex life to worry about the rest of us.
>Whew! Feel better now. :-)
Me too :-)
-- Mike Crumley mcrumley@airmail.net 97 RC 3.9L V6 3.55 Auto Rhino Liner Bug Shield Mud Flaps DDBCI think deep down, all any of us really wants is to be accepted, especially by young, attractive models with plenty of money and an unquenchable desire for sex.
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