“Do you really not remember my saying so early in this thread?”
I do not. Sorry, I guess. The recent posts seemed to condemn all forms of religious regulation. If you believe that, in an ideal world, the “Rabbinate” would decide policy, then why would you not support individual policies that are supported by the halachah?
“My point is just because something is immoral isn’t necessarily a reason to legislate it.”
I understand. That’s something that liberals and libertarians have in common. Given the recent republican grubbing for libertarian votes, it’s made this a more confusing discussion than it needs to be. I’m a traditional conservative; I support heavy discipline.
As for your side argument, it seems like you had it with Avram. I’m not going to say what others have already said. As I said earlier, I don’t believe the rare cases you two were discussing actually exist. That’s a halachic question, not political.