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June 11, 2005

License? I Don't Need No Stinkin' License!

As this is written (06/11/05 08:15 PM EDT), Rob has a poll on the front page asking what activities one should have to have (need?) a license for. The choices run from plausible to ridiculous.
When I lived in Washington State in the late 1990's, they had a controversy over high school diplomas and graduation testing requirements. It seems Olympia's chief educrat had a scheme in mind that would require high school seniors to take and pass a test in order to graduate. Even if their grades, attendance, necessary credits and other requirements were already met too.
To add to the insult Mr. Education wanted these test results printed on the front of the diploma too! Whether Mr. Education wanted this in order to give the little bastards incentive to study or to scar them for life was not made clear. Given Washington's progressive populist tradition and history it was no surprise to me that a ballot initiative was immediately launched to make all Washington state office holders and candidates for same, (appointed or elected), take this test as well and have their scores next to their names on any subsequent election ballots.
The uproar amongst the ruling political classes of both parties and the media pundits was worse than the forest fires they have in Washington every summer. It makes me laugh out loud to this day when I think about the discussions that occurred over this issue.
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The whole business flared up into quite a firestorm on Washington's editorial pages and talk radio shows. In an anti-climatic pre-emptive move, the legislature rejected the idea and so it went away to the great relief of the political classes. Mr. Education moved to California and was never heard from again.

Posted by Ali Massoud at June 11, 2005 10:11 PM

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