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I am no libertarian, but I hate the way these laws (and the dead beat parent laws) are used to centralize what should be state decisions.

However, the author did himself no favor when he said “Hundreds of years ago a guy named Galileo said, ‘the universe is really not flat, the way Rome says it is’.”

The debate had to do with the Copernican theory, which had NOT yet been proved, and has nothing to do with the world being flat, but whether it rotates around the sun. Galileo got in more trouble for his attitude than for the theory itself. Copernicus himself remained in good standing with Rome.

Getting such a basic fact so wrong makes me question his characterization of his earlier examples. Nonetheless, I do agree with the principle of his argument, so the article was worth a read.

However, the author did himself no favor when he said “Hundreds of years ago a guy named Galileo said, ‘the universe is really not flat, the way Rome says it is’.”

Heh, this line jumped out at me too, but I didn't take it quite as far as you did. To me, I was just thinking that nobody ever thought the universe was flat; they just thought the Earth was flat. They still believed that the Sun and the moon and all the stars rotated around the Earth, which wouldn't be possible if the universe was flat.

Dear Doctor,
Lay offa Galileo and the Pope. No one who could read and write Greek had thought the world was flat for 2000 years. Some well read fellows even had an inkling that the Sun was at the center of the solar system. Galileo was working without official permission, filling the peasants heads with thoughts which might lead them to challenge the Church's authority, and Heavens forfend, might thus lead them to dangerous heresies, and believe it or not, to actually learn to read and write to try to read the Bible for themselves!

The astronomy charge was merely a prosecutorial convenience. Eventually, even Galileo figured that out, and copped a plea to a lesser charge and kept his mouth shut around Rome. Not hard, since he was under house arrest!

BTW, some cases were wending their way toward the VA Supreme Court, attempting to show that a statutory limit has very little to do with drunkeness and beyond that, impaired ability to operate a motor vehicle. Any cop can tell you that many hardened alcoholics drive home every night in a safe and sane fashion. Of course, many do not, hence the roadblocks, which by screening everyone, violate due process.

Also by the way, a fair percentage of LEO's are alcoholics, and driving under the influence. It might just be fair to ask the breathalyzer jockies to blow first!

Tried it once in MA, and the state cop, who btw, looked an awful lot like Teddie K on a bad night, actually, n.s., stumbled off and let me go!