Quote Originally Posted by Khendraja'aro View Post
Yes, Dread, life is so simplistic, we only need the Ten Commandments to cover all the bases...

And I don't quite get what you of all people should know about the life of a student in Berlin. Please don't talk about stuff you haven't got the faintest of inklings about.
Not to mention that you're conflating quality and quantity again, this time even without any knowledge of the subject.

Are we all now allowed to make wild suggestions and pose them as truth?

In that case I'll posit that "Quality = quantity conflaters" are people who do not think before they speak.
Ten Commandments? It's interesting how you seem to have a stereotype of the kind of person I am based on my political views on issues that have nothing to do with religion.

But, separately, have you not read my haiku thread? Most Americans haven't heard of Neukölln without spending time there. But, more importantly, have you not spent any time in Berlin recently? Your tax dollars are funding a caricature of state dependence. Still, it's a lovely/interesting place to spend time.

More to the point, I am explicitly conflating quality and quantity. I don't see the problem with pointing out the entropy that results from an ever-expanding body of laws. And it really is entropy -- the more laws are created to address some problem or another, the more likely there to be unintended/bad consequences.

At the very least, a legal code that never stops expanding becomes intelligible only to the professional class of lawyers. It makes it impossible to navigate government (and thus, your life) without professional expertise at every turn to avoid stepping in a government mouse trap.

Some have suggested that certain types of laws (especially certain categories of business/tax regulations) should have sunset clauses, so that politicians can continue to vote for them (or re-write them) if they feel they are really important. Which I think is an interesting idea, but it could also waste of ton of time.

And yes, I believe you have a stake in becoming part of that professional class. So please understand that I'm not insulting your assumed profession.