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A Democrat Governor Did a Good Thing
To be honest, I don’t follow the shenanigans of most US governors. Living in Washington state, I am sadly aware of the work of Gov. Jay Inslee to further and further restrict our freedom. And the MSM doesn’t let me forget the ongoing idiocy of the governors of California and New York and, for some inexplicable reason, Michigan. I do take pleasure in the adventures of the honorable governor of Florida and his never-ending battle with woke stupidity.
I am usually content to stay ignorant of what the other governors are up to — for good or ill. But I happened upon a piece of good news from the Keystone State. Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, on his first full day in office, in his first executive order, removed the requirement of a four-year degree for tens of thousands of state government jobs. This is a good thing.
Now a couple of disclaimers: 1) I assume most of Shapiro’s policies, as he is a contemporary Democrat, I would find abhorrent. 2) I’m not thrilled with the fact that every state has tens of thousands of jobs. But still, this is a good thing.
As Shapiro said, “In Pennsylvania, the people should decide what path is best for them, not have it decided by some arbitrary requirement or any arbitrary limitation.” And let’s be clear, a four-year degree is an arbitrary requirement. Would a person who spent four years studying astrobiology or psychometrics or (ας μην γίνει ποτέ) critical race theory be better equipped for a job in the tax office than someone who spent four years doing the books for a large plumbing business? We’re being rhetorical here.
I linked above to an article about this story from The Pennsylvania Capital-Star and a portion of the story tells about Beth Christian, an acting deputy secretary in Shapiro’s administration. As a teenager, she decided college wasn’t for her, but “I never realized how the stigma would follow me through my career.” But she worked her way up through hard work. Imagine that.
And it is also admirable that this executive order was a campaign promise of Shapiro’s that he kept.
Could it be that maybe college isn’t all that?
I was interested to learn that five of the first seven presidents of the United States did have college degrees. Here are five presidents who didn’t graduate from college: George Washington (though he did have a surveyor’s certificate from William and Mary’s, good for trade schools), James Monroe, Abraham Lincoln, Grover Cleveland, and Harry Truman. Five presidents who did have college degrees: Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Jimmy Carter, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden. Need we more proof that a degree is no guarantee of competence?
Published in Education
I am delighted whenever a politician makes a wise decision, even if his reasoning is absurd, as it is in this case.
The reason is this.
It is rare for a politician to display the capacity to reason, whether the result is destructive or constructive of the public good. Why?
Because the present procedure of selecting, developing, and retaining politicians filters out almost all who are able and willing to think, write, and read.
As long as I haven’t the energy and priorities to be anything but a voter whose vote in a primary is his first action (when there are already no courageous, honest, and intelligent candidates in the pool) there’s nothing I can do about the process with my vote.
I could use my platform here to advocate successfully for tiny, incremental changes to the process, but it would require better powers of persuasion than the Lord gave me.
A good policy is all I hope for, for now.
Seems like possibly a mixed bag. Since that also makes it easier to fill jobs with affirmative-action candidates that never went to college.
I like it! All of the credentialing comes from the Progressive Era, and it’s good to dump it when it doesn’t make sense. I don’t care who does the dumping.
If this makes even one college president or education union thug sad – it has merit.
I concur with your sentiment and appreciate the way you expressed it. It’s healthy to call balls and strikes on whoever makes the pitches. I consciously try and do this to the extent I follow politics. It helps when I’m disagreeing with someone if I can find points where we can agree. Good post!
And yet, when a Democrat politician does something that appears good, it’s wise to consider ways in which it might not be good.
Yes, and that’s what’s going on here. Overall, the proposal made sense to me when Shapiro mentioned it last year. We’ll see how it germinates in the next year.
Cuz it appears to also open the floodgates to hiring a lot of unqualified “minorities” and other Democrat-favored groups who don’t have a college degree.
It’s said in many places that a college degree these days may be about the equivalent of a High School diploma not terribly long ago. So what this measure is actually saying is that these jobs don’t even need a High School diploma.
Is that really a good idea?
This is a great reform. If memory serves, outgoing two term Maryland Republican Governor Larry Hogan did this before he left college.
This is also an appropriate response to woke Universities. We don’t need you.
And if actual testing is now illegal because it seems to be “racist,” what measures are now available to determine if someone is actually qualified for/capable of performing some job?
I think what would be important is if those who are to interview candidates for a job knew how to conduct an interview.
In the 1980’s, I became aware of how many educated corporate-trained people who hire people do not know what to ask, or how to keep the interview moving along.
Of course, this interviewing process now often involves the HR departments far more than the people who need a new employee in their department.
And with diversity training putting a boot on the neck of the hiring process, the main way in which any company would acquire a good employee these days would be that in addition to having the appropriate PC status (disabled, person of color, proper mixed up gender affiliation etc,) the hiree possessed a working brain, a decent skill set and some experience for the position and some education.
Back in the day, to work in a clerical department, the individual had to fill out a simple math work sheet, a simple grammar and spelling work sheet and perhaps submit an essay. At some point in the mid-1980’s, that was no longer a requirement. But to me it made total sense.
That sounds like the kind of thing that became illegal – or at least unwise due to lawsuits – due to claims of “systemic racism” etc.
That’s what is going to happen. Spoils system, racial grievance edition.
Glancing at the opening paragraph of your post, I saw Inslee’s name, and I thought, NO! Then I read, and I was pleased to read your comments about that benighted soul. The only thing he could do that would be considered positive would be to resign.
Last week, Brandi Kruse of KIRO had Inslee on her show, and he adamantly refused to give up his unilateral power, assumed in 2020 due to the “pandemic”. He still rules like a Dictator, and will do so until the voters decide he should no longer dictate. Which might be a long time, since the state is run by Seattle.
That was the 1971 Supreme Court Griggs decision. Basically a basic aptitude test is racist if it produces disparate impact.
Utah did a similar thing in December. The article states that Maryland did as well last March. Hopefully it will go well in these test beds and be adopted in more states.