Lemonade Legalization

Open for business, after a fight

The Knowles children were selling lemonade across the street from their house in 2018 when Denver police informed them they needed three different licenses to operate. The closure of their stand, which was raising money for needy kids overseas, led to an outcry. On April 1, newly elected Democratic Gov. Jared Polis signed the Legalizing Minors' Businesses Act, which exempts temporary, minor-owned businesses from local licensing regulations.

Comments

[Don't look at me!]

I dunno, pretty fancy equipment for kids. Who’s fronting this obvious money laundering operation?

[CE]

Yeah, they're reselling water bottles at a markup, and something called "soda" in cans. Maybe it's pop?

[gdeangel]

One thing that is worth discussing: why are they raising money for needy kids oversees? Are THEY already self-supporting and self-sufficient? Teach kids the healthy attitude that making money for YOURSELF through your own hard work is a good thing. Let them take the $5 they make and buy some candy or go to a matinee.

It is indicative of a major problem with the generation coming up that they think in order for ones talent, lavor, and other contributions to be "socially responsible" they need to be given away. The fundamental basis of the free market is aligning marginal cost to marginal benefit. The popularization of "feel good" social justice economics is in reality a form of socialism designed to demonize marginal private benefit, and in so doing, it reduces resistance to attempts by big brother to tear down the free market and replace it with a command economy.

By the way, one permit was a business permit (necessary to make sure taxes get paid), one permit was a health inspection permit (necessary to watch over and protect people from germs in the big, bad scary world of e coli and highly publicized dead mice in cheeseburger lawsuit scams that undermine consumers' appetites ), but what was the third permit? Setting up on public space -- the photo of the park may be across from their house, but it's still pretty clearly a park.

So the next time they think about sending money to poor kids abroad, they should think about donating money to their poor government that has to spend so much money and manpower (and tax their mom and dad so heavily) to pay for and operate the park, the tax collections, and the health inspector.

[Agammamon]

Dude - its a charity. Of course they're paying themselves a cushy salary plus expenses. And its sad how much 'administrative and fundraising' expenses eat into the donations.

[Demosthenes of Athens]

"...exempts temporary, minor-owned businesses from local licensing regulations."

Good. Now do it for adults.

[C. S. P. Schofield]

But if they don’t collect all those stifling fees, however will the local politicians fund all the programs they administer that nobody much wants?