Libertarian principles are more important than people

To The Daily Sun,

Heather Alcott claimed that Peter Spanos’ HB-587 “Nay vote was not in support of conversion therapy to minors; rather it is an affirmation of parental control and a rejection of governmental intrusion.”

This statement is a deceptive smokescreen to hide the fact that Spanos opposed the prevention of dangerous and abusive psychological attacks on the mental health and personal dignity of vulnerable minors. By default, Spanos supported Conversion Therapy.

Norm Silber recently wrote in a spasm of theatrical fearmongering, “among the ‘worst of evils’ was the expansion of government into every nook and cranny of our lives, which this unfortunate bill would do.”

What a trail of scat! What a vacuous defense of the indefensible by using a general principle of less government intrusion to avoid taking responsibility for voting against a specific protection of minors. Government doesn’t belong everywhere but government rightly mandates childhood vaccinations. Government rightly removes children from unfit homes. Government mandates standards for manufacturing baby cribs. States have mandatory child passenger restraint laws. Government can court-order life-saving medical treatments when parents withhold it due to some ridiculous beliefs. U.S. toymakers follow a mandatory set of safety rules and regulations under ASTM International’s ‘Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Toy Safety’. States have cyber anti-bullying laws aimed at protecting kids. Child porn is illegal. There are mandatory reporting laws that require people who work closely with children to report suspected abuse.

Conversion therapy is abuse based on ignorance. I wonder if the xenophobe Spanos supports kids in cages, too. It fits.

Spanos opposed gun background checks and a waiting period. He opposed SB-263 which prohibits any child from being “subjected to discrimination in public schools because of their age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, marital status, familial status, disability, religion, or national origin.” Spanos opposed HB-1319, which banned anti-transgender discrimination in housing, employment, and public accommodations. Spanos opposed forming a human resources office to investigate sexual harassment complaints in the Legislature. Spanos opposes raising the present minimum wage of $7.25. All this opposition to bettering society and people’s lives means his naive libertarian principles of less government in the extreme are more important to him than people.

Spanos is no friend of Earth. Tackling climate change requires new ideas and initiatives. While the private sector assists in scientific innovation, government action is necessary to change laws in order to address the effects of climate change. Spanos voted against HB-582 which established a greenhouse gas rebate program. He opposed SB-165, the “Low-Income Community Solar Act of 2019.” It benefits those with household incomes at or below 300 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. It establishes Net Energy Metering, a solar incentive program that allows homeowners to store energy in the electric grid if their solar panels produce more electricity than they use. Utilities oppose such. Spanos opposed SB-168, which increased the renewable portfolio standard requirements for new solar energy from 2019 through 2025. He even voted against SB-2 which increased funds for job training!

James Veverka

Tilton