The McGinty - Carpenter Nanny State

McGinty Promotes Obesity and Unhealthiness

In a previous post, the Desert Rat has highlighted Health Minister McGinty’s obsession with new legislation. His latest bit of useless social engineering - designed to drown us all, has reached a new standard of legislative stupidity.

From February 2008, State Swim and other some other pool operators in Western Australia must now provide a lifeguard to supervise all lap swimming sessions at the pools. Consequently they have had no choice but to close down the lap swimming facility because of the extra cost. Also expect to see some pools closed and redeveloped if the reduced patronage will make them financially unviable. Thousand of kids currently train and swim at these pools in supervised sessions.

Swimming, and particularly lap swimming is a great way of keeping people fit and out of hospital. The Desert Rat thought Health Minister McGinty might be sensible enough to encourage this activity as a means of reducing obesity. Many pensioners and people with injuries and illnesses (arthritis, diabetes) swim laps to keep fit and healthy. Nurses and other workers, who spend most of the day on their feet, also swim laps to get the circulation going in their legs. A surgeon known to the Desert Rat swims laps at State Swim to ease his neck and back pain – this has allowed him to continue operating for years longer than he would otherwise be able. He has to find another facility if there is one.

Thousands of people swim laps and use pools to keep fit and have fun. Now killjoy McGinty has thought up a way to put an end to this risky and unhealthy activity. Can’t adults doing lap swimming take responsibility for themselves in a shallow pool?

Will McGinty now provide a lifeguard for nurses at Royal Perth Hospital pool during all opening hours so that they are supervised when swimming laps?

Will Aboriginal children be banned from swimming in creeks and waterholes without a lifeguard being employed because someone may drown? Will they have to wear helmets in case they hit their head on the bottom of the pool?

Where does McGinty’s Nanny State end?

The Desert Rat spent most of his misspent youth swimming in the Swan River getting half-drowned unsupervised – running the gauntlet of the occasional paedophile which the police ignored. He walked and later rode a bike to school. He was a fit little bugger. Poor kids were skinny as rats in those days. Now McGinty seems to be encouraging obesity, marijuana smoking and growing and almost any other high health-risk activities.

Small operators have difficulty keeping these businesses financially viable and their doors open. McGinty and Carpenter don’t care about the consequences of this stupid legislation.

McGinty and Carpenter only know how to squander and waste money and opportunities. They know little and care nothing about saving money or creating wealth.