I was reflecting the other day on how caught we all are in a stifling web of regulations, rules, and laws about how we must conduct all of our actions, lest we disturb some imaginary delicate balance of nature or something. I realized that compliance with these measures (particularly those where there is no way for the Apparatus to actually enforce them) is actually part of the problem, because the acceptance of one encroachment by the criminal gangs in Trenton or D.C. simply encourages more encroachments.

Witness the recent rage over Obama’s plausibly deniable health-care non-plan. People suddenly, belatedly realize that destructive encroachments that occurred under Republican administrations have paved the way for worse, and have (rather inarticulately) begun to protest.

As I was reflecting on this, the massive “Cash For Clunkers” scheme came to mind. I thought about how this massively expensive, corporatist, loony, anti-social, metastasizing piece of legislation actually punishes those who engaged previously in behavior more responsible than that of the “beneficiaries” of the plan. Namely people (like me) who responsibly bought vehicles that return better than 18 miles per gallon, and those who maintain their vehicles, are by definition and regulation ineligible for the $4500 subsidy. And to take advantage of this vaporous subsidy, one had to go out and purchase an expensive NEW car, increasing the “beneficiary”‘ debt load when most people should be cutting back on deficit spending.

We in New Jersey labor under a good many more and harsher laws than some in surrounding states, though the rulers in those states are doing their dead-level best to catch up. One set of regulations that seems particularly to affect Southern New Jersey are regulations of all kinds governing water use, reflecting the fact that the various water supply systems in the state are not only anti-market, with all of the supply problems that entails, but also anti-property, since the state also prohibits the drilling of new water-supply wells without its say-so.

And the forces arranged against the consumer on this issue are entirely the ones you might expect, see here;

So, armed with this realization, a morning to myself, and in possession of a rather dirty car, I decided to take the path of civil disobedience and wash my own car in my own driveway, using water that I am paying for.

Take that, Corzine!