Everything Is Not OK

 

I went for a haircut today. Money is no object when it comes to my appearance – only the absolute finest will do. So I went to Sport Clips in the strip mall next to Target, with a $3 coupon in hand. Like many other fashion-conscious men, I frequent this establishment and don’t think I’ve ever had my hair cut by the same person twice. Like many other seemingly mundane things, this interests me. Well, most of the things that interest me actually are mundane, I suppose. But I’m fascinated by these young ladies. Who are they? Where do they come from? Where do they go? So I’ve applied for a federal grant to study attractive, rural, 30-year-old women who cut hair at gimmicky chain barber shops.

Well, actually, no – I just talk to them. And I learn a lot.

Kaitlyn (not her real name) just moved here from Georgia. Her husband is an auto mechanic. “He can fix anything with four wheels! Well, except my car – it runs like crap!” She went on at some length about how good he was at fixing things. His plan was to start his own shop once they moved here. They moved into a double-wide trailer that had a nice pole barn out back, which he planned to outfit with electric and a high-end air compressor, maybe even a grease pit, and start his own business.

He spent almost a year working on permits, licenses, inspections, and so on. He spoke to people from the county, city, state, feds, and the EPA. He talked to attorneys, accountants, and consultants to help wade through all the red tape. After about a year, he realized that the start-up costs were more than he was willing to gamble on the eventual success of a business that did not yet exist, so he got a job with the city, maintaining their trucks and mowing equipment. It doesn’t pay very well, but it has good benefits. It’s not a bad job, she says. Nothing to complain about. Everything is ok.

Kaitlyn did a great job on my hair, was very pleasant and personable, and is clearly very intelligent. She said that a few miles from their house, a barber recently retired. She considered buying his shop. She’s always dreamed of owning her own business. She said that’s the whole reason she went to cosmetology school. I said that sounded great – the shop is already set up, it has a large group of established customers, and she could expand from there.

She said that she spent several months looking into it, but she would need permits, licenses, inspections, and so on. I pointed out that it has been a barber’s shop for years, so the inspections, permits, and so on would already be done. She said that it would be a new business, and she would have to pay for all that to be done over again. She spoke with attorneys, accountants, and consultants to help wade through all the red tape – some of the same individuals that her husband had just consulted. She soon realized that the start-up costs were more than she was willing to gamble, so she got a job with a chain. The pay is not very good, and the benefits are lousy. One reason her husband took a government job was for the health insurance for their family. But she doesn’t mind working for Sport Clips – it’s a decent job, she says. Nothing to complain about. Everything is ok.

So how does this story end?

Well, in my view, it’s already ended. This young couple from a modest background has all the potential in the world. They’re both ambitious, intelligent, and very good at a valuable skill. They’re devoted to their family, their dreams, and each other. They dream of better things and are willing to gamble, willing to work hard today for a better tomorrow, and willing to take on the additional responsibilities that come with owning a business. They’re savvy enough with modern government to hire attorneys and consultants to help with the red tape.

And even they can’t open a new business, to do something they already know how to do.

And 30 years from now, nothing will have happened.

My Uncle Fred (Frederic Bastiat) described this as the seen versus the unseen. Progressives win elections because the benefits they provide are immediate and obvious. They give people free money with taxpayer dollars, or build highways with taxpayer dollars, or start new general assistance programs with taxpayer dollars. They’re working for you, and anyone with eyes can see it. The benefits provided by progressives are seen.

But the damage they cause is mostly unseen. In 30 years, Kaitlyn and her husband could have retired to a very nice community on the Gulf Coast and played golf for the rest of their lives. But they won’t. She’ll still be cutting hair for $12 an hour plus tips, and he’ll still be fixing lawn mowers for the city. Just like they are now.

They didn’t lose a fortune, because they never had the opportunity to earn one. Nothing happened. There they sit. And there they’ll stay.

Progressives may think they’re utopians who dream of a better tomorrow. But, in reality, they are the robotic defenders of the status quo. Everything stays the same because nothing happens. And when things don’t happen, those things don’t make the evening news. They didn’t happen at all, so there’s nothing to complain about. Everything is basically ok. And that’s the way it will stay.

Until it doesn’t.

Change is scary. You never know what might happen. It might be good. It might be bad. You roll the dice like this young couple tried to do. Twice.

Or you don’t. Like progressives do, every day.

I wonder if Kaitlyn views progressives as nice people who are trying to help her. Or if she views them as well-meaning fools, as I do when I’m trying to be charitable.

But in bed late at night, I wonder if she ever hates them for destroying her life and the lives of her children.

Probably not. Because nothing really happened. And nothing ever will.

There’s nothing to complain about.

Everything is ok.

I left her a $10 tip for a $15 haircut, and I walked out. I looked good – it really was a sharp haircut. But I felt like I wanted to puke.

Everything is not ok.

Published in General
This post was promoted to the Main Feed by a Ricochet Editor at the recommendation of Ricochet members. Like this post? Want to comment? Join Ricochet’s community of conservatives and be part of the conversation. Join Ricochet for Free.

There are 123 comments.

Become a member to join the conversation. Or sign in if you're already a member.
  1. Skyler Coolidge
    Skyler
    @Skyler

    Hang On (View Comment):
    My case for regulating garages is the square placard turned at a 45-degree angle you will find at garages. Those are the number of hazardous (and flammable) chemicals that are on site. Many of the fluids contained in vehicles are poisonous, e.g., radiator fluid. Many are non-biodegradable (at least easily), e.g., motor oil. How these materials are disposed of is a public health and environmental issue and should be regulated. 

    My lord, how did we ever survive until regulations?

    There’s a difference between having regulations and having a permit or license.  It’s not rocket science to follow the law about proper disposal of chemicals.  

    • #121
  2. David Carroll Thatcher
    David Carroll
    @DavidCarroll

    Hang On (View Comment):

    Dr. Bastiat (View Comment):
    I’m not suggesting that. I’m simply pointing out that if someone does want to start a garage, the government should not prevent them from doing so.

    My case for regulating garages is the square placard turned at a 45-degree angle you will find at garages. Those are the number of hazardous (and flammable) chemicals that are on site. Many of the fluids contained in vehicles are poisonous, e.g., radiator fluid. Many are non-biodegradable (at least easily), e.g., motor oil. How these materials are disposed of is a public health and environmental issue and should be regulated.

    The young man may very well be an excellent mechanic. That doesn’t necessarily mean he knows how to run a garage and protect public health and safety, which should be a government concern.

    The case for regulating cosmetologists is that they handle caustic chemicals for dying and perming hair. Let it sit too long and the client will have a nasty chemical burn. The case for regulating barber shops, as already mentioned, is the use of a straight razor. Cosmetologists and barbers are regulated differently in my state – though not all states (some states don’t allow straight razors as a result of the AIDs epidemic.)

    It’s all well and good to make up what-if scenarios of how the lives of these two (and similar others) could have been improved. Countervailing what-if scenarios could also be made up of those whose health was damaged if there were not public safety and environmental regulations that these two had to adhere to.

    Where did you get the strange idea that:

    — a license stops a garage from being careless with the disposal of hazardous waste substances;

    — a license makes any difference in a cosmetologists handling of caustic substances;

    — a license determines whether a barber cuts someone’s through with a straight razor?

    Why does a license make anything more safe than legal penalties for such misconduct?  Answer: there is no evidence to support the proposition that it does.  

     

     

    • #122
  3. CarolJoy Coolidge
    CarolJoy
    @CarolJoy

    I thought this little glimpse into the lives of real Americans was so revealing and so well done.

    Also, as far as your comments on how it surprised you that Powerline picked the essay up – that is the way of so many good writers.

    A long time ago, a technical  writing teacher at Berkeley remarked to our class that one of his prior season’s attendees had been writing a Tom Clancy-styled novel for six years.

    Then at a NYC cocktail party, suddenly and surprisingly for her,  she was introduced to a big time editor at one of the world’s top publishing firms. She launched into a description of her “Tom Clancy” novel with all its intricate twists and turns. And knowledge of defense systems, intel agencies and the rest of it. He stopped her mid stream to say, “Is there anything else you have worked on?”

    “Yes I am also scribbling away at this  rather simple tale of how funny cats are.”

    I leave it to your imagination as to which novel was published. (Not that humanity doesn’t need a good laugh over cats  once in a while, but you also graced us with the insight of why governmental regulation can be so hideous.)

    • #123
Become a member to join the conversation. Or sign in if you're already a member.