Favoring big government implies you think people are stupid, and Chipotle is proof
Today I will take my last-ever law school exam: a 24-hour take home on Food and Drug Regulation. I ate lunch at Chipotle while reviewing what constitutes a food additive and whether certain ones qualify as GRAS (generally recognized as safe). My mouth danced with the flavors of fresh guacamole, savory onions, and spicy tobasco, and I glanced at my receipt indicating a payment of $6.65 for the burrito bowl. I was intensely struck with the reality that people who favor big governments, and specifically people who have a real fear that members of society would eat not-safe food additives but for government regulation, must really think people are dumb.
Let me back up. Having slept only three hours, gone for a 6+ mile run, and consumed nothing more than a bagel and cup of coffee, I decided I wanted an early lunch. Most of my study “meals” for the last two weeks have severely lacked nutritional value. I was sitting at Panera, because the internet in my apartment has been disconnected due to my imminent move-out. Knowing that Chipotle has both moderately high nutrition and insanely long lunch lines, I used the splotchy coffee-house connection to order my lunch in advance.
So then I found myself simultaneously contemplating both the delicious freshness and efficiency of my meal as well as the absurdity of imposing government regulations on the meaning of a safe food additive. Really? Am I Is anyone so stupid as to keep supporting a food business that makes people sick through unsafe food additives? I pay three times more for Chipotle than I would for Taco Bell, because to me, certain standards of quality and service are worth that cost.
The government didn’t need to tell me that I will feel more satisfied with a stomach full of rice and vegetables than with a stomach full of Gobstoppers and Runts.* I figure that out with my own experience. Likewise, Chipotle did not need the government to tell them they could charge more for fresher ingredients. Experience (meaning, transacting in a free market) teaches a business what works and what does not.
I get the argument that prohibiting unsafe food additives protects the naive consumer. But the reality is that consumers are not naive. Absent other absurd government regulations, products that aren’t good (whether for nutritional value or otherwise) fail. That’s how the free market works. Just like our personal experience informs our future choices on what works, so the experiences of innovative and value-adding businesses inform their future choices on what works.
Underlying almost all government regulation is the inseparable assumption that people are stupid. Regulations essentially say, “you’re too dumb to figure this out for yourself, so as the government we’ll make sure you’re taken care of.” Thanks, but no thanks. Let us figure it out for ourselves, please.
Now that I’ve effectively postponed studying and exam-taking, I think it’s time for me to buy more candy and get back to Food & Drug Reg.
*No joke: that was dinner last Friday.
