Norway’s War on Butter Causes Crimes

The nanny state wants to control even our diets. They pretend to know what is best for us.

But each time they do so unintended consequences arise.

From NY Daily News, (hat tip Dan Mitchell)

A pair of slippery smugglers were busted in Norway looking to peddle an illicit contraband - butter.

The two men, who snuck into the country from Sweden, were arrested with about 550 lbs of butter divided into 18-ounce packets, the Norwegian daily newspaper Adresseavisen reported.

They were nabbed Saturday, and both admitted to churning up the scheme, authorities said.

So in effect, Norway’s high tariff on butter prompts some people to engage in smuggling. In short, the government’s “social engineering” regulations creates criminals. This another noteworthy example of the corrupting effect of repressive/arbitrary laws.

Worse, the shortage of butter have made many Norwegians ‘bitter’ to the point that lawmakers are considering a temporary easing of high tariffs, as shown in the video below from Al Jazeera.

I'd further say that any backtracking or implied retreat by Norway's government may eventually lead to its liberalization, a sign of government failure.