Banned Products, Hybrid Cars and Discrimination Lawsuits

Issues in the News

1. POLITICS

Virginia residents object to a law banning the sale of sangria, even in restaurants licensed to serve alcohol.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Senior Fellow Eli Lehrer on the dumbest consumer product bans in the U.S.:

“Even as the array of consumer products available to the average American expands each day, a bewildering variety of government regulations serve to limit consumer choice. From the aircraft on which Americans fly to the food they buy in the grocery store, government regulation limits product choice at every turn.”

2. ENVIRONMENT

A new study finds that plug-in hybrid electric vehicles could actually increase air pollution.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Senior Fellow Iain Murray on the drawbacks to hybrid vehicles:

“Hybrid-electric cars are the flavor of the moment for environmental campaigners. Yet there are a few problems with this dream of a hybrid tomorrow. Surveys show that people are highly resistant to them; their owners are starting to realize that they aren’t quite as fuel-efficient as advertised; and when it comes to their expense, a new study suggests that lack of access to affordable cars hurts minority employment.”

3. LEGAL

Federal judges enforce discriminatory double standards in sexual harassment and free speech cases.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Special Projects Counsel Hans Bader on the uneven judgements applied to harassment law:

“All too often, the uneven way that sexual harassment law is applied serves to reinforce prevailing biases, rather than deter actual discrimination (and it usually comes at the employer’s financial expense, since it is usually the employer, not the employee who engages in ‘harassment,’ that is held liable and forced to pay damages).”

Blog feature: For more news and analysis, updated throughout the day, visit CEI’s blog, Open Market.

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