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Today

Tippecanoe (and, sadly, MLK, too)

On April 4, 1841, William Henry Harrison died of pneumonia, becoming the first President of the United States to die in office and the one with the shortest term served (he died on his 32nd day as president). Renowned Indian killer (having risen to fame for his part in 1811’s Battle of Tippecanoe), a proponent of the expansion of slavery into Northwest Territories, and a Whig, Harrison won the presidency in part by turning the Democrats’ “log cabin and hard cider” aspersions on his character as the basic symbols of the campaign.

Though hardly a “limited government man,” some limited government history buffs proclaim him the Greatest President, on the ostensibly droll and possibly cynical grounds that he spent so little time in office.

On a sadder note, Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated on this day in 1968.

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education and schooling folly nannyism national politics & policies too much government

D.C.’s Diaper-Dandy Regulation

Washington, D.C., daycare, day-care, licensing, regulations, bureaucracy, laws, rules, accreditation

Where is child care most expensive?

In America, it is in our shining, shimmering national swamp. Yes, in Washington, D.C., infant care averages nearly $1,900 a month, more than $22,000 a year.

So naturally, if you’re a politician, you see that as too . . . low?

It has been decreed, since last December, that workers caring for infants and toddlers must upgrade their educations to keep their licenses. The District’s brave new world-class day-care regulations, the Washington Post informs us, are designed to “put the District at the forefront of a national effort to improve the quality of care and education for the youngest learners.”

Yesterday, at Townhall.com, I provided the details on

  • which day care workers or home caregivers must acquire
  • what type of college degree in early childhood education or,
  • if currently degreed in another field, how many semester credit hours in early childhood education they must have, or
  • whether a Child Development Associate (CDA) would suffice, and
  • by what date . . .

. . . just to keep their relatively low-paying jobs.

You may be shocked, but these new regs do not apply to the politicians and bureaucrats regulating the “industry.”

The costly credentials required to provide child care will certainly raise prices that D.C. parents already can ill afford. And won’t help those newly credentialed, either: “prospects are slim,” the Post admits, “that a degree will bring a significantly higher income.”

In a perfect world, every child-care worker would wield a Ph.D. in early childhood development. Be a pediatrician. As well as a psychiatrist.

And a former Navy SEAL, to fend off terrorists.

But who can fend off this regulatory attack on common sense?

I’m Paul Jacob.

Printable PDF

 

Illustration based on photo by Carolien Dekeersmaeker on Flickr

 

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Thought

Dave Barry

You can only be young once. But you can always be immature.

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Today

Mountaintop

On April 3, 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech.

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links

Townhall: Stupid Mandates to the D.C. Degree

At Townhall, Paul discusses the latest wonder of regulation in our imperial city. Click on over. Then come back here for more detail. Details such as….

The District has decreed that the directors of any licensed “Child Development Centers” or day care, in non-bureaucratic nomenclature, must have a “Bachelor of Arts (BA) in early childhood education or a BA with at least 15 semester credit hours in early childhood by Dec. 2022.”

The regs also mandate that “teachers” have at least an “Associate of Arts (AA) in early childhood education or an AA with at least 24 semester credit hours in early childhood by Dec. 2020.” What the non-state’s Office of the State Superintendent of Education calls “assistant teachers” must have a “Child Development Associate (CDA) by Dec. 2018.”

Of course, not all day care is performed in perfect, state-of-the-art child development centers. Some folks throw caution to the wind and simply keep other folks’ kids in their home.

They’re quite sensibly known as “Home Caregivers.” They still need a license, however, and the helpful D.C. regulations order them to garner that piece of paper known as a “Child Development Associate (CDA) by Dec. 2018.” Indeed, so must the people dubbed “Associate Home Caregivers.”

Additionally, an “Expanded Home Caregiver” is ordered to obtain an “Associate of Arts (AA) in early childhood education or an AA with at least 24 semester credit hours in early childhood by Dec. 2019.”

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Thought

Aristotle

Anybody can become angry, that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.

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Today

Camille Paglia

American author, art critic, and commentator Camille Paglia was born April 2, 1947.

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by Paul Jacob video

Video: Police-Citizen Interaction Video Initiative Vote

The people of Ferguson, wherein the infamous Michael Brown shooting took place (followed by protests and riots), have a chance on the Fourth to do something regarding contentious police-citizen interactions:

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Thought

Dave Barry

Gravity is contributing factor in 73 percent of all accidents involving falling objects.

Levity from Dave Barry

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Today

April Fool’s Day

On April Fools’ Day, 1957, the BBC offered for viewers of the current affairs program “Panorama” the infamous spaghetti tree report hoax. In the spirit of the day, Common Sense offers these “historic” events:

On April 1, 1787, James Madison, father of the Constitution, removed the General Welfare clause from his draft of the U.S. Constitution, telling friends that, “I fear future big-government-loving politicians will undoubtedly abuse the clause’s vague concept to drown the people in federal overreach.”

On April 1, 1918, Woodrow Wilson became the first and only President of the United States to be impeached and removed from office for lying about munitions being aboard the Lusitania in an effort to whip up war fever against Germany and push the nation into World War I.

On April 1, 2002, the U.S. Congress refused to grant President George W. Bush’s request for a declaration of war against Iraq.

On April 1, 2014, President Barack Obama admitted to being a Kenyan, er, Keynesian, but argued that the Constitution did not bar Keynesians from office.

As of April 1, 2017, President Donald Trump — often declared a fool or worse by the “Not My President” crowd — has proven himself foursquare for liberty, extolling the Freedom Caucus in Congress, and praising them from saving the nation from House Speaker Paul Ryan’s ObamaCare Lite plan.

Alas, only the first paragraph, above, is completely true.