I am hearing too much micromanaging...how about you?

I want government out of my life, my business...OUT. I'm hoping, but not real optimistic, that after Nov. 2, some of this BS will stop and start rolling back. Government was never meant to be so intrusive. I'd like to take it back all the way to the days of our Founding Fathers. As little government as needed to protect the country...and yes, I'd roll it back to the days before FDR...no social security, no medicare, etc. and minimal taxes...

yeah ti is I blame obama

great points and questions. To simplify, I think Americans today actually EXPECT the government to decide for them. Very disturbing. I prefer to be left the heck alone. I understand intervention for protection of kids but their has to be a limit. I am sick of people thinking they know better than me. My child is happy and healthy. She is not abused, she is well adjusted. I dont need that help. Save it for the numbskulls that shouldnt have reproduced to begin with.

I heard the one about the parent/teacher conferences. Talk about totally defeating the purpose, if such a thing had a chance of becoming a law! So they want parents involved with their children's schoolwork; that's well and good but if the parent's in jail, he or she sure won't be involved with the child's schoolwork during that time. This is the first I've heard about making people vote. Where is it that they're talking about that? I wish there was a way to "make" everyone who is eligible to vote want to do so and to take it seriously, but we can't. I don't like being told what to do either but things like this are never going to happen nationally, it's hard to imagine them even making it in a single school district or locality. Annie

Clearly the government is better skilled at raising our children than we are. We should stop trying to assert our rights because we, as parents, our putting our children at risk of growing up differently than the FDA, Department of Education, and our local and state governments say is appropriate. I thank my lucky stars that the brilliant government of California has worked to put a stop to those homeschooling parents. Those sick freaks might even raise their children to think differently than the government tells them to and we certainly don't want that. In NYC the brilliant folks there are working hard to make sure restaurants can't use salt anymore because the last thing we want is food that is prepared properly. We need bland, crappy food and water intoxication for everyone! [/sarcasm] Ok, on to seriousness. Unless a parent is doing something that puts a child in danger the government needs to butt out. We live in a generation where most families have two working parents and making these conferences isn't easy, nor is it really all that necessary. Kids aren't fat because of school lunches or salt. I ate that crappy food and I've been UNDERweight for the majority of my life. They're fat because schools have taken away gym, recess, and team sports while making them sit in class longer so they can watch their a$$es grow. I'm curious, how does ANYONE think that putting a parent in JAIL will make them more attentive to their children's needs? How many valedictorians do you see talking about what great prison dads they had? If parents aren't showing up for parent teacher conferences, then they should send letters, make phone calls, and try to work around the parent's schedule. Putting them in jail is the single dumbest idea I've ever heard of.

Where does the belief, the feeling, the longing, the passion, the idea of government regulation in everyday lives even come from? Okay. Although it's not my ideal "form" of government, I reconcile it with myself through common sense, society's evolution, etc, that government does need to be involved in life perhaps a little (LITTLE!) bit more than a libertarianesque person may want. The idea of some social programs in place is okay with me. The idea that government may sometimes need to intrude on privacy or inconvenience someone for the greater good - I can live with that if it's truly keeping America safer. Beyond that: food regulations, mandatory voting/healthcare/etc, being real nannies in a nanny state, forcing individuals to do this or that, and even leaning toward--as this government and its proponents want--MORE entitlements and the government to regulate infinitely more - I don't understand it. Whether someone wants to blame Bush or blame capitalism or blame the Dems in Congress or whatever... it's all government. Big business is indistinguishable from government. We can't even exercise our choice and allow them to fail so other businesses get a clue and operate better for consumers! Government is there, left, right and elsewhere. It's hard for me to take someone seriously if they're all for big government. I try not to give them grief or to question their common sense, but most are loonier than UFO conspiracy theorists in the way they present their big government case. Ah, I ramble too much. Our government SUCKS. Simple as that. It needs to shrink dramatically.