Belt Tightening in Congress? How About Noose Tightening? That Would Be Real Reform

Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) has introduced a bill aimed at holding members of Congress accountable for doing their jobs by potentially holding their paychecks hostage. His bill (S. 2262) would withhold lawmakers' paychecks if they fail to get all federal spending bills to the president's desk by Oct. 1, the start of the next fiscal year. While I kind of like the idea of slapping members of Congress around for not getting their work done on time, this proposal is the opposite of reform. Instead of withholding lawmaker's paychecks when they fail to spend money, how about withholding their pay when they waste our money? Increase federal spending. You don't get a paycheck. Decrease federal spending. You get paid. That would be real reform.

In other belt tightening news, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago has a new book out that makes the case that being fat isn't so bad after all.

"Based on the statistics, most of the charges saying that obesity caused various diseases or that obesity caused thousands of deaths were simply not supported," Oliver says in his book of his findings.

From an interview:

In your book, you argue that the perception that Americans have ballooned in size is largely a myth pushed by the weight-loss industry and diet doctors. Explain. A small number of doctors and pseudo-scientific health organizations, like the International Obesity Task Force, have worked, with substantial financial backing of pharmaceutical companies and the diet industry, to lower the thresholds of what is considered "overweight" and "obese," even though there was no scientific basis for saying that someone with a BMI (body mass index) of 25 is at any risk because of their weight. They have also lobbied the government to get obesity considered a disease and to make certain weight-loss treatments tax deductible. Nearly every prominent obesity "expert" has been financed or supported in some way by the weight-loss industry.