Tony Blair's government has created more than 3,000 new criminal offences during its nine-year tenure, one for almost every day it has been in power. The astonishing tally brought accusations last night of a 'frenzied approach to law-making' that contrasts with falling detection rates and climbing levels of violent crime. . . . The 3,000-plus offences have been driven on to the statute book by an administration that has faced repeated charges of meddling in the everyday lives of citizens, from restricting freedom of speech to planning to issue identity cards to all adults. (Independent ^[1], Wednesday)

The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.

–Lao Tzu, Sixth Century B.C.

FEE Timely Classic
The Awesome Powers of Government ^[2] by Murray Weidenbaum