There is still — and, alas, ever will be — a huge class of liberals who laugh and roll their eyes at phrases like “liberal fascism” and even “the road to serfdom”, but it is always worth noting to our friends on the Left that totalitarianism need not mean jackboots and purges. Totalitarianism is primarily about destroying the wall between the state and the religious, private, civic, and economic spheres of life. And this is a fine example of it:
A more wholesome American scene could hardly be imagined: a bunch of kids selling lemonade on a summer’s day.
But local authorities in Montgomery County, Md., saw things differently. They shut down the kids’ venture and ended up fining their parents $500.
The Marriott and Augustine kids had set up their stand Thursday right next to the Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland, where the U.S. Open golf tournament has been taking place–bringing thousands of thirsty fans to the neighborhood. The kids planned to send 50 percent their profits to a charity that fights pediatric cancer.
But a Montgomery County inspector said the children needed a vendors’ license to run the stand, according to a report from local TV station WUSA9. And after the stand proprietors allegedly ignored a few warnings, the inspector slammed the kids’ parents with a $500 fine.
More here.