I’m going up to Boston to speak at a college next month, and I’ve been looking for some good “nanny state” stories to talk about while I’m there. I struck the motherlode (no pun intended) when I found this story about the debate over free formula for new mothers.

When it comes to breast-feeding, do mothers really know best?

Officials are facing that question in Massachusetts, which is debating whether to become the first U.S. state to ban hospitals from handing out free samples of infant formula, provided by formula companies, to new mothers.

Republican Gov. Mitt Romney says he believes mothers should decide how to feed their infants and has asked the state’s Public Health Council to repeal the ban that it announced in December and set to take effect in July.

The council, which is part of the state’s health agency, voted on Tuesday to suspend the ban and study the issue for three months. They will decide in May whether or not to go ahead with the ban.

I’m not a mother (heck, I couldn’t lactate if I tried), but this annoys the hell out of me. Why should the state care whether or not a new mom gets free formula or coupons for formula?

When our twins were born 11 months ago, my wife nursed them. It was a gigantic pain for her, but she did it. However, she had to supplement with formula, and we eventually switched them over to formula full time when they were about five months old.

Mitt Romney has it right. It’s not the state’s job to decide whether or not mothers should breast feed or formula feed their babies. Stay out of it.

Oh, this also kinda pokes a hole in the Crunchy Cons argument that the language of choice is the language of liberalism.

Hey lefties, hey righties, hey old guys in tighty whities… quit telling me how best to live my life. I do not need a nanny (unless she’s Swedish and gives back rubs in addition to watching my brood of children).