Instead of trusting parents to manage their families, lawmakers from both parties prefer to empower the Nanny State.
by Steven Greenhut
Reason.com
After the California Assembly’s Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee recently voted 11-0 to support a far-reaching, speech-quelling, lawsuit-promoting bill in the name of protecting “the children,” Assemblymember Joe Patterson (R–Rocklin) posted this on X: “The most simple bill ever and I was pleased to support it after a lot of heartburn. All the bill says is companies are liable if they don’t ‘exercise ordinary care or skill towards a child.’ Do you disagree?”
Well, yes, I disagree, but more on that in a moment. When asked by a reporter about his gut reaction, Patterson doubled down: “I worry a little bit about exploding litigation that could clog up our courts. But I think the risks to our children are greater if we don’t ask them to exercise ordinary care.”
I’m not picking on Patterson because he’s a bad guy. Quite the opposite.