Bloomberg Swings Both Ways

Last week, Mayor Bloomberg made two rare ventures into national issues. And as usual, the Democrat disguised as a Republican tried to keep himself covered by playing both sides. On Thursday, while giving the commencement address at Johns Hopkins Medical School, he called for scientific freedom, and attacked conservatives and religious zealots for rejecting the facts and "common sense" of stem-cell research, evolution-even the right to die. Just a day before that, though, he made national news by calling for more government surveillance and control of the public, in the form of a national ID card for all workers, which would contain either fingerprints or DNA. While these are not necessarily contradictory views (we've gotten used to liberals calling for extreme control measures over the masses), it is disturbing. Not the call for scientific freedom-we're all for that. No, what's disturbing is the notion that Bloomberg, in commenting on national issues, might be considering a future run for higher office-senator, governor, even president. If that happens, and if he wins, cigarettes will cost $30 a pack-and we won't be able to smoke them anywhere.