Mr. Rodman goes to Korea del Norte
The recent visit by celebrity basketball cross-dresser Dennis Rodman to the Asian Gulag Kingdom of Kim Jung Un has re-ignited the debate over what degree of normal relations should be accorded to confirmed genocidal maniacs before it merely encourages more genocide. In particular it raises the question of liberty of individuals, in this case rich and famous American citizens, to associate with monsters of their choosing, as implicitly guaranteed by the First Amendment.
The solution, in the spirit of the times, is a tax. There's no problem that can't be solved with the right tax, right? But this would be a special tax. Rather than pay cash to the Treasury, American citizens wishing to hobnob with sworn enemies of the United States would be permitted to do so as long as they agree to spend equal time up front with the family members of at least one victim murdered by the subject regime.
This 'tax' would apply to any individual with an adjusted gross income in excess of $200,000 per year, or $250,000 for a married couple or civil union filing jointly. Moreover in the case where the individual's or couple's income is a multiple of that base number, the visa applicant(s) would have to spend equal time with family members of that many multiple genocide victims (how many would that be for Rodman?).
The Supreme Court should have no trouble upholding this law based on Congress' power to tax, given recent precedent.
For a MUCH more thoughtful article on this subject, see Seven Ways of Looking at Dennis Rodman by Bruce Bawer on FrontPageMag.com.