Falling afoul of the enforcers in Key West’s fatuous and elaborate game of “Mother May I” put me in mind of a simpler time when we were not so eager to saddle ourselves with the attentions of the ethically challenged. I pine for the good old days when only the Mob ran protection rackets. The business model for our self-inflicted departments of licensing and permitting is the same. People don’t ask for permits, licenses and inspections because they want them. They do it for the same reason people pay protection money to the Mob, to avoid punishment.