I've never been a fan of any law that is in place to protect a person from himself.The problem is, practically everything is financiallyinter-woven these days.Each of these "rights" have a profoundfinancialimpact onsomebody else.

Take this weekend for example. Anti-fireworks laws... Sickening. Who cares if I want to put off mortars in my yard? It's my yard, my mortars, and my body. Stupid, right?

But, the flipside is that when some dumbass blows hishand off - who gets the bill? That's right. Everybody except him. The costs are diluted through the insurance system and passed on to the consumers. That's if he has insurance at all. Get Uncle Sam on the phone.

Same goes for drug use. I really couldn't care less if some junkie wants to smoke a pound of crack in a day. But, when they show up at a public clinic for detox with no money and a laundry list of health problems... It sucks.

Freedom has a price. In the 18th century, the price of freedom was measured in pints of blood and human life. In the 21st century, the price of freedom is financial. How much are you willing to pay for it?

If you want gun freedom, be prepared to build lots of prisons and pay the piper when the tax bill comes. If you want drug freedom, be prepared to foot the bill for a lot of healthcare and rehab. If you want free speech, be prepared to watch Muslims rally on the courthouse steps. Be ready to see gay porn on the news stand. If you want to be in charge of your own body, be ready to cope with it when you see a woman stroll into an abortion clinic.

Freedom is never free. And that's the problem.

Rybo: I just don't think the government could be much smaller than it currently is. Time and time and time again, Americans have showed that they cannot function without government intervention. Unless we, as a society, are prepared to watch the poor and downtrodden starve, die, and go without healthcare, Uncle Sam has to step in, where nobody else is willing. It's a total mess.

Were it not for governmental healthcare repricing standards, there isn't a damn soul who could ever afford healthcare. Private citizens aren't going to take money out of their savings to go out and build bridges and highways. Who else would administer the courts? Who would oversee welfare programs. If you have welfare programs, you have welfare abusers. That creates a need for enforcement officials. Army, Navy, AF, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard... Who is going to run the school system? These are just some of the things that private citizens would NEVER do.

Trust me, government dollars are stretched to the max - so it's not like Uncle Sam is out prospecting for new private ventures to invade. Sure, the Fed is a monster, but there's a definite limit as to how "lean" it can really become.

It's easy to sit at home and say "the government is too big." But when the rubber meets the road, it's necessary.