Originally posted by lazs2
hardtack... I am saying that TR was the last good pres... he was not god.
He was wrong about federal regulation... I would get rid of it. I would buy kosher food for instance. no one dies from it.. they do die from federaly regulated food and drugs.
child labor? You don't like? don't allow certain parts of it in your state. truth is... the morality of the people judges how these things would go.... if you abolished all child labor laws we would not go back in any event. the news would have a field day.
Unsafe factories? how long could they stay in existence with a strong court system? they would be sued into oblivion. No federal action needed other than protection from frivolous lawsuits in all things.
TR and conservation.... He simply took government land and said it couldn't be sold... he wanted it to be used by all people.. have you ever seen a list of the animals he would kill on a hunt? He would allow for the drilling for oil on public lands in my opinion.
lazs
Agree TR was not a god, but a good president nevertheless. Agree in particular with your statement about the morality of the people determines how things would go. Which is exactly why the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 came into being. Things had gotten so bad, the morality of the people demanded it. All you will accomplish with your plan is force us to march over the same gound, ground we covered years ago. Why do you think anything would go any differently than it did before?
Also, I don't share your confidence in the legal system and redress through lawsuit awards. For example, the Exxon Valdez ran aground and spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into Prince Edward Sound in 1989. The resulting environmental damage caused serious harm to 34,000 Alaskan fisherman, who sued Exxon and won a $5 billion award in 1994. Exxon has not paid anything yet (almost 20 years after the event) and continues to drag the issue out in courts. Most recently, the size of the jury's original punitive award was cut in half
Exxon Valdez damages cut in half I don't have anything against TR's killing of animals. I think he had a great respect and appreciation of Nature. I think you are wrong about his attitude towards the oil companies - I think he would be as furious with them today as he was with the great railroad monopolies. Did you know he was in favor of the federal government setting maximum railroad rates? The Hepburn Act of 1906 gave the Interstate Commerce Commission power over railroad rates.
I think he was a great man. A clear-thinking, rugged individualist who fought for balance, restraint and oversight when he saw what a serious threat unregulated capitalism could pose to the overall health of our Nation. I don't think expanding the reach of the federal government was a first choice as policy, but more of a reluctant conclusion on his part.