…You might start to realize that the people you’ve been drinking with actually stink.

From our friends in Scotland:

A PUB regular has been barred from his favourite Dunfermline boozer  for indiscriminate wind breaking.

Management at the bar say Stewart Laidlaw “revels” in his bouts of flatulence and other punters have almost been sick after exposure to the foul smells.

Mr Laidlaw (35), who is furious at the ban by Thirsty Kirsty’s, is thought to be the first person in West Fife to be barred for breaking wind.

The James Street pub’s owner says the stench has become unbearable since Scotland’s smoking ban came in last year but suspects drinkers could have been breathing in the waft for years before without noticing it.

Is there any question this is the next thing to be banned in our bars and restaurants?  Think of the employees!

Incidentally, this is more reporting than any state newspaper has done on a real issue in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race.

I apologize for presenting you with this tough choice, but you may have to put off watching American Idol tonight in order to watch this debate on campaign finance reform.  Since FEC vs. Wisconsin Right to Life is slated for oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court on April 25th, this debate is timely – especially since WRTL counsel James Bopp will actually be arguing the case before the Court.

I was talking with one of my guys in the Capitol the other day, and he mentioned that his office was getting a lot of calls opposing Governor Doyle’s proposed $1.25 cigarette tax increase.  Apparently, some stores are passing out cards with their cigarettes that say “call your legislator and oppose the increased cigarette tax.”  (Someone call the good government groups – someone is trying to influence legislation without their consent!)

There’s a more interesting angle, though.  He said that 90% of the people that call to attack Doyle’s tax increase suggest something else to tax.  They say, “why don’t you tax the rich,” or “try taxing alcohol more,” or suggest taxing porn or fast food.

So here you have a group of people who have been targeted to pay a new politically popular tax suggesting other people should pay a higher tax that they deem politically popular.  They’ve bought into the whole notion that you should tax people based on how much we like them.  They think we should tax people that the public dislikes – without realizing that they are those people.

Recently the Associated Press reported that a court in New Delhi has banned cigarette smoking and cell phone usage while driving a vehicle. They assume that these acts distract people from driving safely. So if we’re going to ban distractions behind the wheel, shouldn’t we ban radios, passengers, eating and even roadside advertising? In the interim, the fines in New Delhi should at least measure up to the danger of the crime. The fine for smoking a cigarette while driving in New Delhi is $32 which is pretty steep in India. For running a red light, a mere $13. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather see a driver smoking than running red lights…

Yesterday, WPRI released my study on cable competition.  Articles on the study appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the St. Paul Pioneer Press, and the Racine Journal Times (same AP story, complete with entertaining reader comments).  I also appeared on Wisconsin Public Radio, which can be heard here.  Fox 6 news in Milwaukee also ran a report on the issue.

In his most recent Wisconsin Interest article, WPRI Senior Fellow George Lightbourn details how Germans influenced the modern model of bureaucracy.  So if you think your taxes are too high, feel free to blame this guy:

In an attempt to make wpri.org your one stop shop for free market talk, we have decided to set up a multi-contributor blog. Often times, our authors want the chance to comment on things that may not have the depth of a full column or research paper, so this blog will give them the chance to do that – and maybe have a little fun in the process. Hopefully, this can turn into a forum to facilitate discussion on current topics between our contributors and readers.

So check back regularly, and enjoy!