So far this year, FDA bloodhounds have crashed as many as 60 parties across the country looking for special effects violations, handing out nearly a dozen warning letters. If the FDA is to regulate theater, certainly there are other dangers to consider. Eye damage is not the only threat to club-goers. Wherever there is a laser light show, there is usually a deafening sound system. Such sound systems pose a serious threat to any nearby eardrum.
Alcoholic beverages pose a risk to bar-goers.
Arguably, mismanaged light shows can cause eye damage. So can the sun, for that matter. The safety of light shows and compact disc players is not the issue. Rather, the issue is that the FDA is willing to make patients wait longer for potentially life-saving new treatments so that it may engage in activities that have nothing to do with food or drugs and duplicate private sector efforts. Every penny the FDA spends going to parties and regulating special effects means less money for new cancer and AIDS treatments.