What can we learn from Drudge today?

For starters, we learn that a big, sturdy SUV might save you from serious injury or death in the face of someone else’s grievous stupidity.

One driver told CHP investigators he swerved and avoided the Toyota, which then struck an oncoming Hummer. The couple in the Hummer was treated and released for minor injuries but the Toyota driver was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

“We have reason to believe he was operating his laptop because it was still on and plugged into the cigarette lighter,” said CHP Cmdr. Scott Silsbee.

Chalk one up for the Biggie Sized carbon footprint of the SUV.

Unfortunately, the Hummer is unlikely to save occupants in the face of an entirely different kind of stupidity.

Prince Charles today said banning McDonald’s fast food was the key to a healthy lifestyle.

His comments came as he attended the launch of a public health awareness campaign.

Charles, a strong advocate of organic food, was touring the Imperial College London

Diabetes Centre in Abu Dhabi with the Duchess of Cornwall.

He asked nutritionist Nadine Tayara: “Have you got anywhere with McDonald’s, have you tried getting it banned? That’s the key.”

Thank God Charles will never actually have the capacity to make (or, honestly, even directly influence) law in the UK. He’ll only and forever be an awkward presence with none of the dignity or force of his mother. Not that I entirely disagree with him: you are generally better off with fewer Big Macs in your belly than you are with more--but talk of “banning” is just irritating blather from someone who wants to play the part of nanny.

Sadly, we’ll find more and more people with real legislative power who are more than happy to act on Prince Charles’ worst instincts. Our world is smaller--less vivid--when some do-gooder swoops in to deliver us from our choices and preferences. Sure, many of their suggestions are healthier and would often benefit us (although the obsession with “organic” foods is still unproven in terms of health benefits (and just as demonstrably beneficial to the bottom line of the organic food manufacturers, many of whom take sizable chunks of money from me on a regular basis) and seems to inculcate a sense of culinary elitism in adherents), but bans rob us all of the opportunity to choose for ourselves how much we indulge in “bad” foods.

Talk about your convoluted, run-on sentences. Sorry about that.

Anyway, if you want to see a real change in the way people eat and exercise, make people pay for their own health care. That is, make them pay for their health care plan and feel the financial squeeze caused by too much food and too little physical work. Most people are at least somewhat shielded from the cost difference by companies that take up the slack and would be shocked by the actual monthly cost of their health care. They would be doubly shocked by cost if they were individually evaluated for coverage. That’s what I would call market based reform.

I imagine that most people would still have an occasional Big Mac (because some days that just sounds good), but they would be eager to protect their financial investment in themselves and their children. That is because a ban is unnecessary but moderation is good sense.

Here’s to McDonalds, here’s to Hummers, and here’s to people finding a way to mind their own business instead of embedding themselves in mine.

Just sayin’.