Why Is the Nanny State so Popular?

From FEE.org (Aug. 8):

Bans on plastic straws, soda taxes, bans on diesel cars, the crackdown on smoking, restrictions on alcohol consumption: the list of restrictions on people's personal freedoms is steadily increasing. But why is the Nanny State so popular?

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The theory of the brainwashed consumer

The idea that the consumer needs a centralized authority telling him or her how to behave, derives from the fundamental idea that he or she is inept at making rational decisions. It is interesting to see how the topic is addressed, in the example of restrictions on marketing for products: parents are seen as influenced by their own children, who themselves have been brainwashed by companies. As marketing becomes synonymous with manipulation, manipulated consumers need someone to protect them.

The basic flaw is a misunderstanding between "manipulation" and "marketing", two words which are not pointing to the same type of strategy. Governments seem to believe that all types of advertising mislead consumers about the product, when this is actually a more exceptional case. When Volkswagen manipulated their vehicles in order to show a lower emissions output, they were giving consumers false information about their product.

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But the idea of consumer protection remains important for governments because consumers have been taught to perceive themselves as victims. For this purpose, multiple European countries already have ministries for consumer protection. Much like the Ministry of Truth, it's a question of who gets to decide how the consumer is really protected, instead of letting that decision up to the individual.

The Nanny State is popular because people have lost trust in their own abilities to make their own decisions for themselves, not because they have actually lost them. Governments feed on the idea of the irresponsible individual, because confident consumers won't accept the mere existence of paternalism. If we want to defeat the Nanny State, we need not only oppose the individual policies that governments introduce, we also need to empower individuals to believe in their ability to act as responsible individuals. [read more]

It’s true that consumers don’t act responsibility sometimes. But consumers don’t need over-regulation because the powers-that-be don’t act responsible either and make stupid laws. Which is worse? An individual consumer making a bad decision or a gov’t leader(s) with power making a bad law (Obamacare for instance) that could potentially effect every citizen?

What’s not stated in the article is that the elitist Left believe they don’t make mistakes—that they are perfect. Therefore they make laws they deem are “good” for everyone else except themselves. They aren’t the brainwashed after all. They’re the brainwasher. (Just joking! I think…)