PUBLIC MARKS with tags judge & government

A judge ruled today a Virginia teen who has refused chemotherapy for his cancer does not have to report to a hospital as previously ordered by a court. Sixteen-year-old Abraham Cherrix, who suffers from Hodgkin's disease, has been seeking an alternative treatment amid threats the government will take him away from his family.

Each judge was asked to nominate a few programs for the 2006 list of the 10 Most Harmful Government Programs. We then sent them ballots listing the nominated programs. They ranked their choices 1 through 10, with No. 1 being the program they believed to be "most harmful." A program earned 10 points for each No. 1 vote it received, 9 points for each No. 2 vote, and so on. ()()One program that didn't make the list was the "War on Drugs." I think that belongs at No. 1.