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Freedom from government

Because of what our forefathers fought for, the American dream of entrepreneurship, prosperity and limitless creative ambition has become a reality for so many people.

But this July 4th brought a harsher reality for Americans as one of our most core freedoms hangs in the balance: The freedom from the government to force citizens to buy a certain product or participate in any one part of commerce.

Three months ago, Congress passed and President Obama signed the healthcare bill into law. The nation needed healthcare reform but this law was not the way to do it. In fact, this law is unconstitutional.

The healthcare law infringes on every American’s right to purchase what they please, including health insurance plans. The law forces Americans to buy health insurance, whether they want to or not, or face a penalty in the form of a fine. Our nation was not founded upon a government that forces its own citizens to purchase something against their will or face a penalty.

Maybe being forced to purchase health insurance doesn’t sound so bad to you. But what about if the government forces you to buy vitamins or join a gym or say that we can’t eat our BBQ on July 4th because it’s unhealthy? If the courts uphold the healthcare law, there is no limit to what the government will be able to mandate Americans purchase.

This law is not only detrimental to our freedoms but also to our businesses, particularly infringing on small business owners’ abilities to manage the day-to-day operations of running their businesses.

The individual and employer mandates combined with the onslaught of new taxes, paperwork requirements and new rules will dramatically increase the cost of starting and running a small business.

And while there are a few provisions that may benefit a limited number of small businesses, the overall effect of the law will do much more harm to small businesses than good.

A law that harms small business harms the entire nation. Small business deserves better than a healthcare law that was rushed through the legislative process, ignored the Constitution, and ultimately will destroy jobs and force some small businesses to close their doors. Along with 20 states, NFIB is fighting to overturn this legislation and protect our nation’s freedoms through a lawsuit against the healthcare law.

Mandates from a central government authority that forced the people to behave or act in certain ways were exactly what we won our independence from over 200 years ago. Let’s not go back.

Julia Ciarlo Hammond
State director
National Federation
of Independent Business
Richmond

Be mindful of the heat in vehicles

The 5-year-old boy who was allegedly left in a hot Richmond school bus for more than an hour is lucky to be alive.

Hot vehicles can be deadly for children and animals: On a 78-degree day, the temperature inside a shaded car is 90 degree, while the inside of a car parked in the sun can reach 160 degrees in minutes — with the windows cracked open.

According to KIDS AND CARS, a national nonprofit organization that PETA has partnered with, hyperthermia is the third-leading cause of death in children in non-traffic vehicular incidents.

Countless dogs also suffer and die in hot cars each year.

With only hot air to breathe, dogs can succumb to heatstroke in as little as 15 minutes, resulting in brain damage or death.

Please, when it’s even a little warm outside, never leave any living being in a parked vehicle, even for a minute.

If you see a child or dog left in a car, have the car’s owner paged or call local police or humane authorities right away.

Take immediate action — the victim’s life may depend on it.

Visit http://www.HelpingAnimals.com to learn more.

Martin Mersereau, Director
Emergency Response Team
Cruelty Investigations Department
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)
Norfolk,