We march onward to the Brave New World...

The encroachment of the nannystate continues: http://www.stltoday.com/suburban-journals/metro/education/parkway-s-use-of-fitness-monitors-raises-privacy-questions/article_af46b549-0f1e-5a41-8a26-7f77c91ced20.html#ixzz1iaLCRtpt

This is pure and utter bullcrap. End of story. What follows is an example of where I feel good intentions can lead.

As it now stands, when my kids visit a pediatrician we'll be asked if there are firearms in the house. My wife, the RN, initially saw nothing wrong with this. Then I gave a "what if" speech:

"What if Texas enacts gun control laws mandating that ammo and firearms in a home are to be kept separate. We both know that's baloney, when you need a gun you need it immediately and fully loaded. So we disregard the idiocy.

Our kids go to the doctor and in a discussion about the home it comes to light that Daddy emptied the .38 the other night before cleaning it. The doctor knows the law and also knows about potential liability for doing nothing. So CPS gets notified.

The next thing we know, theres a CPS worker at our front door with a local cop. Asking to be let inside and explaining just why gets a refusal from you and I. The CPS worker turns to the cop (just doing his job, the poor schmuck) and says theres a real potential the children are in imminent danger in the house. THAT is enough cause for the cop to demand entry with the CPS toady in tow.

Our firearms are produced, the presence of bullets in the cylinder is noted. The CPS worker demands our kids be taken away. It happens.

So now we begin trying to justify our case. Lottsa luck, in the history of Texas there has been only one couple who successfully fought CPS and won. Don't expect your status as an RN to help, as a matter of fact, since you knowingly broke a law designed to protect the children, you'll have to fight like hell not to lose your nursing certification. Tell me if I'm wrong on that one (silence ensued). We can also forget about my status as a retired military man, churchgoer and activist in the local prolife movement. As a matter of fact, those items might count against us.

Okay, now just for a moment realize that none of this really requires an avid anti-gun activist. All it is are a bunch of folks who do their job and don't want any future repercussions from it.

Do you now see why my panties are in a twist about telling the pediatrician anything regarding our home?"

End of my trip down Memory Lane. FWIW, the wife was convinced. I'm sure you see how it pertains to the linked article, the unintended consequences of seemingly beneficial policies can get good people really caught up in the gears of our society.

Now we see the possibility of 24/7 monitoring for health reasons. It currently speaks about activity levels, the article also notes the potential for expanding into the nutrition of a child. But why should it stop there?

"It's for the sake of the children" has become the greatest irrefutable position to take for any legislation. It is also a great tool for removing parental control of the little darlings.

So Billy and Mary are monitored for exercise levels at home. After that comes checking their caloric intake and filling out questionnaires about what gets served for dinner. What laws will be proposed/passed with the information gleaned from that?

What follows after that?