Comments on: When my problem becomes your problem. http://healthysimplicity.com/when-my-problem-becomes-your-problem/ Making health simple. Tue, 05 Jul 2011 21:46:35 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v= By: Lucas McDonnell http://healthysimplicity.com/when-my-problem-becomes-your-problem/comment-page-1/#comment-3030 Lucas McDonnell Mon, 10 Dec 2007 18:18:07 +0000 http://www.healthysimplicity.com/when-my-problem-becomes-your-problem/#comment-3030 While there are certainly behaviours or objects in our society that we must ban outright (murder and automatic weapons are two obvious examples of things we don't want out there in our society), with most things, we must strike a balance between the good of the individual and the good of the whole. Deadly allergies are certainly no laughing matter - and for those afflicted with such an allergy (especially when it's a young child who may not know to look out for him/herself), the consequences of exposure can be deadly. However, I completely agree with your argument on broad bans. They simply don't work - and give people a false sense of security where there is none. Banning nuts from schools is a perfect example. While parents rightly have the best interests of the children in mind, kids are kids. They may sneak some Halloween candy to school that contains nuts - and parents who may think the school is a 'nut-free zone' may not take the proper precautions with their allergic child. While I can't argue that certain bans don't make sense (i.e. automatic weapons, as I said earlier), I worry that these broad bans not only provide a false sense of security, but also abdicate individuals of their personal responsibilities in society to contribute to the common good in our society - which we can only achieve through education, empathy and understanding - not outright bans. While there are certainly behaviours or objects in our society that we must ban outright (murder and automatic weapons are two obvious examples of things we don’t want out there in our society), with most things, we must strike a balance between the good of the individual and the good of the whole.

Deadly allergies are certainly no laughing matter – and for those afflicted with such an allergy (especially when it’s a young child who may not know to look out for him/herself), the consequences of exposure can be deadly.

However, I completely agree with your argument on broad bans. They simply don’t work – and give people a false sense of security where there is none.

Banning nuts from schools is a perfect example. While parents rightly have the best interests of the children in mind, kids are kids. They may sneak some Halloween candy to school that contains nuts – and parents who may think the school is a ‘nut-free zone’ may not take the proper precautions with their allergic child.

While I can’t argue that certain bans don’t make sense (i.e. automatic weapons, as I said earlier), I worry that these broad bans not only provide a false sense of security, but also abdicate individuals of their personal responsibilities in society to contribute to the common good in our society – which we can only achieve through education, empathy and understanding – not outright bans.

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