I’m sure most people have already heard about the ice cream stand in Massachusetts that got shut down due to not having a permit for a building addition. I would like to say that Massachusetts leads the country in government foolishness, as, among other things, they also recently sought to ban bake sales at schools in order to keep kids healthy. However, my home state of California takes the prize, far and away, for government stupidity. In my state, you pretty much need a permit to do anything with your house, your land, your…actually, that’s the problem. Your land or your house isn’t yours anymore. Over the years, the government has infringed on private property rights, more and more, until the working definition of “private property rights” no longer resembles the original definition. The government does this constant nibbling in the name of the environment, in the name of public safety, in the name of your safety, in the name of social justice. You name it, and they’ll find a way to use it to take things away from people.
As far as the poor guy trying to sell ice cream in Massachusetts, it might be easier to just close up shop and get some other kind of job. Maybe a job working for the government. That’s the only kind of job that’s safe these days.