Reason TV has a good ten minute video about the licensing of interior designer.
(Update I - 2 May 2009, I removed the embedded version of the video because some times our blog wouldn't load. The link to the video is still good.)
(Hat tip: Instapundit)
While I watched it I thought about the similarities between professional teachers and licenses interior designers. The claim is licensing protects the customer. I was surprised to learn that states with licensed interior designers have twice as many consumer complaints. Many private schools often use uncertified teachers, and do just fine.
I let my daughters give me haircuts. They'll give me a pretty close buzz and then Janine will do the finishing touches. I think it would be great if they would be permitted to cut other children's hair. It would be a good little business.
But my state has decided that only licensed professionals can charge for cutting hair. I wonder why so many people feel like they need to be protected by the government. I think the truth is we need to be protected from the government.
As homeschoolers we are doing as good a job as most public schools. Our daughters are educated, confident, comfortable in social situations, and have a good work ethic.
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Technorati tags: government schools, public school, public education, homeschooling, homeschool, home school, home education, parenting, children, education
3 comments:
You got that right! Licensing only proves one thing to me: you paid the government money to say that you are OK. Maybe you took a class or two.
Bleah.
Maybe they'll start licensing parents next? If you are unlicensed you'll be "checked up on" by social services once a month?
That makes about as much sense as licensed interior decorators.
This may have nothing to do with the licensing of interior designers, but this story made me think of unions. In our city, the carpenter's union has been protesting the school board for at least three months. They sit out on the side of the road that leads to the school board offices with a big sign that says "Shame on (the superinendent)" and if you stop they'll give you a flier.
Their grievance is that the school board hired a non-unionized contractor to do some work for the schools. They also claim the winning contractor uses illegal aliens to do the work.
The way I see it, the non-union contractor won the bid fair and square. If the workers do sub-standard work, the schools will have to have it repaired, but, from what I understand, this contractor comes highly recommended. I don't necessarily agree with having illegal aliens - excuse me, undocumented workers - doing such dangerous work, as they aren't protected and employers can take advantage of them - that is, assuming the claim of the contractor using undocumented workers is true.
Anyway, the carpenter's union needs to get over it. I'm tired of seeing two carpenters sitting outside with that big sign - no matter the weather.
We have a lousy school system with too many problems go to into here. One of which is mismanagement of funds. They have raised our property taxes (which pays for the schools) every year allowed by law. They couldn't raise them this year, so the county did a "drive-by assessment" and assessed our house at 13K higher than the last time they did an assessment.
It's pitiful. The schools are literally crumbling down around the kids' ears. Some men at our church got together and did some repair work at one local school before the beginning of the year, but it was just a bandaid. Now, these unionized workers feel entitled to get the school contract, even though their bid was higher.
Spinning of of what MiaZagora said, I've also read of school districts that turned down volunteer help in doing things like painting school interiors because that was work that had to be done by unionized contract employees (but wasn't being done because the district couldn't afford the work).
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