PRINTThe Good, The Bad & The Ugly
February 14, 2008 | 12:00 a.m. CST
The Good: Safety Bubble
Celebrities popular enough to grace the covers of entertainment tabloids might soon be protected by law. Los Angeles Councilman Dennis Zine is trying to create a 20-yard “personal safety zone” around certain superstars that prohibits paparazzi from snapping their photos. City Hall would determine which celebrities make the A-list. If the photographers snap an illegal shot, their profits would be confiscated.
The Bad: Taking its Toll
New Jersey’s Gov. Jon Corzine has proposed sky-high toll road increases for his state. He wants to pay off $16 billion of debt by increasing the current $6.45 tolls 50 percent every four years starting in 2010. After 2022, when the cost will jump to $31.40, the tolls would adjust to reflect inflation rates until 2085. This means, even if drivers can still afford cars and fuel, they probably won’t be able to afford taking toll roads to work.
The Ugly: Fat Chance
Mississippi state representative Ted Mayhall is promoting legislation designed to prevent restaurants from serving obese customers. One in three adults in the state is considered obese — the highest rate in the nation. The proposal has prompted backlash, with one local paper calling it “silly, insulting and certainly unconstitutional.” Even Mayhall, who co-authored the bill, doesn’t believe that it will ever pass into law.
