December 29, 2006 -- Does the City Council have too much free time?

Why, banish the thought.

Along with pit bulls.

And a lot of other stuff.

As the new year approaches, Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. wants to ban pit bulls - those snarly pups known for having the occasional toddler for lunch, and other depredations.

Banning things, or trying to, is what the council does best.

Here's the list from 2006.

* Trans-fats.

* Aluminum baseball bats.

* The purchase of tobacco by 18- to 20-year-olds.

* Foie gras.

* Pedicabs in parks.

* New fast-food restaurants (but only in poor neighborhoods).

* Lobbyists from the floor of council chambers.

* Lobbying city agencies after working at the same agency.

* Vehicles in Central and Prospect parks.

* Cell phones in upscale restaurants.

* The sale of pork products made in a processing plant in Tar Heel, N.C., because of a unionization dispute.

* Mail-order pharmaceutical plans.

* Candy-flavored cigarettes.

* Gas-station operators adjusting prices more than once daily.

* Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

* Wal-Mart.

Some of these are just silly. (Candy-flavored cigarettes?)

Others are egregious: Outlawing Wal-Mart is tantamount to picking the pockets of New Yorkers who really can't afford it.

All in all, though, what the council needs is a ban on bills banning things.

Unless it wants to ban . . . itself.