The Baltimore Sun Calls for a Nanny State, Literally

Anyone who lives near one of Maryland's bustling urban centers is keenly and painfully aware of the debilitating crime problems.  The heavy handed tyranny of the Maryland government that brazenly regulates and governs every aspect of our lives is suddenly rendered impotent in executing the core function of crime prevention.  Yet, the Baltimore Sun feels that the most pressing issue for state government is to eradicate those evil....crib bumpers.  Talk about cradle to grave socialism!

"Finally, the description of Maryland as a "nanny state" could actually apply — and it's a good thing.

Late last week, a state task force recommended that crib bumpers, the padded liners used on the inside of baby cribs, be declared a hazard. They have been associated with cases of asphyxiation where infants may have accidentally wedged their faces between the soft liner and crib mattress or become tangled with the strings that attach the bumpers to the crib slats.

If Maryland Health and Mental Hygiene Secretary Joshua M. Sharfstein accepts the proposed regulations, Maryland could be the first state in the nation to ban their sale. That is the sort of leadership role that Dr. Sharfstein, a former city health commissioner and FDA deputy commissioner — not to mention a pediatrician — ought to embrace.

Manufacturers have often disputed the claim that the bumpers are a hazard. They believe the scientific evidence is less than conclusive and have argued that liners serve a good purpose by preventing babies from striking their heads against crib frames. But the risk of a bruised head (if babies can even hit the slats with enough force for that to happen) pales in comparison to what has happened to some children across the country.

To begin with, this is not the first time the Sun is pushing nanny-statisim; they've been doing that for nearly a century.



Aside for the fact that if the government can regulate our cribs, there is no limit to their power; the idea in itself is profoundly cloddish.  My one year-old recently woke up from a nap screaming.  When we entered the room, we found that his leg was stuck between the slats.  On the spot, I admonished myself for not buying a bumper and immediately went out to purchase one.

There are times in life when centuries worth of commonsense supersedes any fatuous study that is propagated by subsidized researches.  The basic rationale for crib bumpers is a quintessential example.

This new push for nanny-statism merely shows us what we are up against; womb to tomb and cradle to grave tyranny.  Unfortunately, Maryland is usually the antecedent to the most extreme manifestations of asinine government ideas.