Other issues
California's Cowering Governor
California’s destined-to-fail restructuring of its electricity market has sent politicians in the Golden State scurrying for cover. As costs soar and blackouts roll across their state, officials are making patently false statements and demanding that neighboring states clean up the mess California’s central planners created. Leading the charge is Governor Gray Davis, who has chosen to obscure the real causes of his state’s power debacle. His dangerous demands and irresponsible rhetoric are sending ripple effects across America. “What's happening here could potentially create a national backlash against deregulation,” says Adrian Moore of the Reason Public Policy Institute, a Los Angeles-based think tank. The crisis is also having a much more direct impact on the residents of the Golden State’s neighbors. Already, utility customers throughout the West are paying higher bills. As governors from throughout the West meet today to discuss the crisis, they should make it clear to Davis that their citizens will not be sacrificed for his state’s folly.
The Silver Screen State
As casino gambling sprouts up across the United States—and a number of indicators suggest fewer tourists are vacationing in Nevada—the need for economic diversification of the state’s one-industry economy has received renewed interest.
The Fallout over Fallout
In the 1950s, almost 100 nuclear bombs were set off in Southern Nevada. It is now known that residents, livestock and military personnel in the immediate vicinity of the blasts suffered adverse health effects. But for many years, activists have claimed that nuclear fallout from atomic testing made thousands of additional Americans sick—people who did not live or work close to the Nevada Test Site (NTS). This claim received a bit more credibility last year, when a federal health institute concluded that as many as 75,000 children developed thyroid cancer due to nuclear fallout. While there is no doubt that Americans were exposed to radioactive material from explosions at the NTS, the public health consequences of the blasts remain murky. Earlier this month, two federal science panels concluded that there is little evidence to indicate widespread thyroid cancers from nuclear testing, and thus a national screening program for the disease is not needed.
The Second Amendment Applies to Women, Too
Rape in Nevada, which had decreased since 1994, rose dramatically in 1997. According to "Crime and Justice in Nevada 1997," a collection of statistics compiled by the Nevada Uniform Crime Reporting Program, the rape rate rose almost 18 percent last year. The horror of rape has been brought home to residents of Las Vegas, where a serial rapist has attacked seven women since December of 1996. Although Metro Police officers have worked diligently to make an arrest, their dedication cannot change a fundamental reality about personal safety: Law enforcement personnel cannot possibly be present to ensure the security of every citizen at all times. Ultimately, individuals are responsible for protecting themselves against violent predators. More and more women have recognized this, and have made the choice to arm themselves.
Unclogging the Court System through Juvenile Justice Reform
The United States currently faces a severe juvenile crime wave. Youths violate the law with increasing frequency, and criminologists believe things are likely to get worse before they get better. States have responded to this crisis in a number of ways. Perhaps the most popular option is to "crack down" on violent offenders. These juveniles are often tried as adults and incarcerated at adult facilities.
A Raw Deal for Secondhand Smoke
Last October the Nevada Casino Dealers Association (NCDA) filed a lawsuit against 17 tobacco companies and organizations. Claiming that casino dealers are "particularly vulnerable" to "the dangers of secondhand smoke," the NCDA filed its suit in Reno federal court on behalf of nine dealers. Since then, separate lawsuits have been filed by individual dealers making similar claims. But a ruling last month by U.S. District Judge William Osteen may take much of the wind out of the sails of the NCDA lawsuit, as well as other attempts to attack the tobacco industry for the alleged health effects of secondhand smoke. On July 17, Osteen found that the Environmental Protection Agency dishonestly linked secondhand smoke to cancer in its landmark report on the issue in 1993. Herewith, a look at the little-known facts about "dangers" of secondhand smoke, and the weak science upon which secondhand smoke lawsuits are based.
Arms and 'The Man'
No longer does the federal government merely arm the U.S. Marshall’s service, the Secret Service, the FBI, the Border Patrol, DEA, BATF and the military. Today the IRS, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, EPA, the Forest Service and even the Small Business Administration are carrying firearms. In the deadly incidents of over-reaction at Ruby Ridge and Waco, hardly a flak-jacketed bureaucrat paid any meaningful price. Expanding the power of federal agencies to use force against U.S. citizens means the possibility of occurrences like Ruby Ridge and Waco are increasing.
Helmet Laws: Heading Off Personal Freedom
In June Harley-Davidson celebrated its 95th anniversary with a parade and party in Milwaukee, the company’s home town. Over 100,000 motorcycle enthusiasts turned out to pay tribute. For millions of Americans, motorcycles (of any type) are symbols of the individuality and mobility permitted in a country as vast and free as the United States. But in most states—including Nevada—riding a motorcycle isn’t quite as free as it once was. Helmet laws are currently in place in all but four states. To non-riders, helmet requirements may seem entirely reasonable. Yet helmet laws raise serious financial, constitutional and philosophical questions, all of which have the potential to affect non-riders. Herewith, an examination of the helmet law debate.
Reforming the 4,000 Pound Gorilla
Americans spend approximately $710 billion to finance federal regulatory agencies and to comply with regulations. Passing regulations is an attractive method that makes legislators appear to be doing the public’s business. Policy-makers portray concern for various environmental, economic or social problems by handing off the authority to regulatory agencies, thus receiving two for the price of one. They give the appearance of addressing a problem without seeming to raise taxes. Such slight of hand policy-making has proven neither beneficial nor cost effective for government, businesses or citizens. Regulation was meant to reduce uncertainty, illegal activities and to help consumers and citizens make informed decisions. The result was supposed to save money and resources. In reality, the regulatory behemoth has proven to be expensive and comes nowhere near accomplishing the goals for which it was intended. Instead the regulatory beast serves to make life more difficult and the costs of its upkeep threaten the economic and social stability of the United States.
A Beginner's Guide to the Politics of Power
Essential Concepts in the Restructing of Electrical Utilities Made Understandable
The deregulation of electrical utilities is coming. Nevada's legislature is likely to address this issue in some fashion during the 1997 session, and return to it in the 1999 session. Many legislators voiced concerns that Nevada will be left behind: several neighboring states, including California and Oregon, have already begun the deregulation process.
