Can we afford to sit this one out?

Roger Clegg (via Betsy) calls attention to some pending legislation that should be kept in mind as we choose who will next sit in the oval office.

The first, a "comparable worth" law, "would push companies to set wages based not on supply and demand -- that is the free market -- but on some notion of social utility."

As Clegg correctly points out, "[a] great lesson of economic theory, not to mention historical experience, is that government-set wages and prices not only curtail freedom, but lead to shortages, surpluses and market disruptions.

Senators Clinton and Obama not only support this legislation, but are sponsoring it. John McCain opposes it.

The second bill, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, passed the House of Representatives last fall. It would prohibit discrimination on the basis of "sexual orientation." In short, private-sector employers who have religious or other objections to homosexuality would be told their moral views lack legitimacy.

Once again Clinton and Obama support the bill; McCain opposes it.

The third bill, the Civil Rights Act of 2008, recently introduced by Senator Kennedy and co-sponsored by both Clinton and Obama, aids trial lawyers in a variety of ways. "It would also give authority to the National Labor Relations Board to award back pay to undocumented workers."

It's clear that our next president will not only set the direction of the country on high-profile issues like the the war and the selection of Supreme Court justices, but also on many smaller issues that will affect our freedom, our economic well-being, and our way of life.

Something to think about for those who plan to boycott the November election.