The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-09-01
FOOLISH LEGISLATION A BAR TO LAW ENFORCEMENT


 violators. That statement has been made many times by "wet' advocates to bring discredt on prohibition, but how many citizens of this country realize that it would be true if there were no eighteenth amendment or Volstead act?
 There are so many laws on our statute books, that are foolish and cannot be enforced, that with the best intentions we break them. Men in public life and jurists have frequently called attention to the growing tendency in America to enact legislation for every con- ceivable purpose, but apparently these warn ings have had no effect. Writing for the Mag azine of Wall Street, John w. Weeks, Secre- tary of War, says:
 We have invincible tendency to seek the at- tainment of perfection by of legislation. We say that all should be good and perfect, then we pass laws to make them and proclaim that the job is done. We not only weaken the authority of government by acting impracticable ideal and enacting impossible laws in harmony there with. but carry Don Quxotsm far that we weaken public respect for law by of the nature of the law. Tho prohibition law constitutes in point However desirable total ab- stinence be. 1t is undeniablc that a large portion perhaps half of population, that form of prohibition. regards it and tyrannical
 Our laws must be passed the broad and solid foundation of the sanction of the deliberate juds- of people Nevertheless. legislatures and congresses. yielding continually to what they suppose be the popular will which may be noh- ing than sensational newspaper question naire enact innumerable laws. most of which either superfuous vicious and many of them both. Such unpunished butchery that of Herrin. H., at ndicts and demoralizes the public authority.
 We have many laws that nobody possibly avoid violating of them unless he spends all of his time studying them to find out what they mean. and others absurd ridiculous that they invite violation. We need fewer laws, law enforcement and respect for law; and the last is largely a product of the first two.
 Impractical, uncomfortable laws are the curse of this country and have done more than anything else to create disrespect for govern ment. Tie World war led to restrictions being placed on the rights and liberties of the Amer never dreamed of, and many of these laws are still in existence. The income tax is just one example. It is necessary that the people should bear the burden of our war debts, but tne ieuerdi government eAeIclSeS dutocTaLlc control over every citizen in the United States by it's system of collecting income taxes. It pries into the personal affairs of every wage earner and property owner. There is no such thing any more as freedom from federal in- terference and the invasion of state rights has increased to such an extent that the funda- mental principles of our government have un- dergone radical change, with centralization of authority in Washington.
 This is but one phase of the subject. Taxa tion is necessary, although there may be honest differences of opinion to the way it should be imposed and collected, but great deal of our legislation is the result of hysteria, lob bying by certain factions of our population and the prevalent belief that legislation is the cure for all the ills of the body polite. Peopie who are continuously harassed by trivial laws inevitably lose respect for the law. There would be better law enforcement in the United States if scores of ridiculous laws were re- pealed and the energies of the legal authorities were concentrated on upholding laws that are necessary and can be enforced.
 The American people are not morons who are unable to think for themselves and must be hedged about with regulations that hamper individual initiative
 
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