unintuitive laws

[quarrel]

The last time I was in the University of Washington bookstore, I saw sets of flash card study aids in the legal section. One was on Constitutional Law. The box had some example cards on it. I’d meant to get the details the next time I was there, but I just did today and the set wasn’t there, so I need to go by memory.

The example went something like this: You’re a pig farmer. You breed and raise pigs entirely on your own. You feed them with corn that you also plant, raise, and harvest entirely on your own. When the pigs are grown, you slaughter them for your own consumption. You do not buy or sell anything corn- or pig-related throughout the process. Does the federal government have authority to regulate any parts of this procedure?

The answer, though unintuitive, was “yes”. I don’t remember the reference, but it went back to some case in the early 1800s or late 1700s. The justification relied on the fact that even though you don’t participate in the market directly, your actions impact the market indirectly by reducing your participation in it.