Helmets and Freedom

While I was standing outside of the polls on election day, a fellow rode up and wanted to know if I stood for freedom or not. Of course I said yes because I can't think of a single candidate who opposes freedom. (Actually I just thought of a couple, some of whom I am running against.)

As it turns out, his biggest issue was the helmet law in Maryland which mandates that a biker must wear a helmet or face fines and possible criminal conviction.

I have to confess that I do not own a motorcycle and I have never actually ridden a motorcycle. My wife has. Her whole family, my in-laws, are big motorcycle people. Once you turn three in her family, you learn to ride a bike. She's not kidding, I've seen the photos. My father-in-law owns Deer Park Cycle in Westminster doing repairs and restorations. His brand of choice is the Triumph. (Trying to get you some business, Jack!)



I think it's absurd to have a law that forces people to wear helmets. To me, it seems like a good idea to wear a helmet, but that's just my opinion. And that's my point. It's your skull. It's not the government's business what you choose to do with it. It is if you are interfering with the life, liberty or property of another person. But wearing a helmet is a personal decision. I don't see how the government can justify this law.

I would proudly sponsor the legislation to repeal the helmet law in Maryland. To answer that voters question again, yes I stand for freedom.

Vote for freedom, Vote Chiappelli.

Thanks!

Thank you Democrats from the Fighting 31st for picking me as your nominee for the House of Delegates!

4,059 of you voted for me during the Primary and I appreciate each and every one. Now here's the tricky part, I need you to do it again and bring three friends with you for the General election on November 2nd.

Vote Chiappelli!

Political Forum

Last night was the first political forum where all the candidates were invited and given the opportunity to speak. It was interesting to hear everyone's stump speeches. There were about 14 candidates there so we were limited to about 3 minutes to talk. I stayed within the limits, the other candidates did not.

So, of course, afterwards I thought about what I should have said if I had taken more time like the other folks. I know, you always know what to say ten minutes after the moment passes. Luckily, with the power of blogging, I can give myself a do-over.

What I said, more or less:

"I'm Jeremiah Chiappelli and I'm running for the house of delegates. I'm from Pasadena. I was raised here. I left for a few years for school but then I came back because Pasadena is a great place to live. I have a law firm on Mountain Road, so look me up if you get into trouble.

"I have a wife and two young daughters ages 2 and 4. I'm running for the house of delegates to protect the future. I'm an optimist and I still believe that things are going to get better. When you have kids, you are saying that you have a stake in the future and you want things to be better. 'For ourselves and our posterity.' I think the future is going to be awesome. And we need to protect it.

"People ask me why I'm running, what are my important issues. The answer is all of them. Right now the economy is huge, we need to put people back to work. And the environment, we can put people back to work cleaning our environment. But I'm interested in all the issues. I'm not running on any one issue. I want to work on hundreds of small problems so that we can do better in the future.

"Thank you."

What I should have said, if I had taken the time:

(Same introduction)

"You'll hear all the other candidates and elected officials bang the table and complain about all the terrible things happening and all the problems facing us (they did). Doom and gloom. But that ignores our history. We've had almost 400 years of experience in overcoming problems. These problems shall pass. I have faith in the people. You have overcome problems in the past, you will overcome obstacles in the future. The goal is for government to assist you and not get in the way.

"Small businesses are the engines of the economy and the creators of jobs. We need to make it easy for people to start their own businesses. We need to shift taxes away from the incomes of the middle class and working poor. I'm a big fan of the green collar jobs. Helping the environment is a growth industry and there is no reason why Maryland can't be a leader in this field.

"You'll only hear problems and doom and gloom from the other candidates because they want to scare you into voting for them. I live in Maryland, one of the greatest states in the nation. We have a highly educated workforce, a nationally ranked public education system, and a great court system. Of course we can do better. But let's not ignore what we've already accomplished!

"I want your vote not because you're scared, but because you share my belief that the future is going to be awesome."

Early voting starts tomorrow! (September 3rd)

Get out there and Vote Chiappelli!