Great bureaucracy ideas #213: Office of Parenting

15 October 2009

Editor, Los Angeles Times

Dear Editor:

In her open letter to Richard Riordan, Esther Jantzen starts off well by discussing the importance to children's welfare of good parenting ("Dear Richard Riordan," Oct. 15).  But she soon goes completely off the rails by proposing "a federal and state Office of Parenting Education and a massive marketing campaign about best parenting practices."

Has the Cult of Politicization become so hypnotic that sober people sincerely believe that all serious problems can be solved by government bureaucrats?  Is this cult's influence now so great that it blinds us to the reality that any "Office of Parenting Education" will be a stage upon which rival political extremes - from Biblical literalists to Vegan Nudists for Hemp - routinely joust with each other for influence over parenting?  Do persons such as Ms. Jantzen not worry that a bureaucracy charged with "educating" parents will balloon, in budget and power, to eventually intrude itself into the most intimate and private aspects of family life?

Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Professor of Economics
George Mason University

http://www.cafehayek.com/

All I want for Chanukah...

Imagine how much I could save on space heating if I had these USB-powered warmers!

Stillwater, Minn. Oct. 12

 

I love Minnesota, I love Minnesota, I love Minnesota ...

Poll: Are you a geek just because you host a Win 7 launch party?

39 Cent Stamp

"I say, no, hosting a Windows 7 (with Media Center) party is not geeky, i do it all the time and friends are amazed at how cool and social the experience can be."

And this from someone who calls himself MediaCenter Guy. Right.

Participate in the poll, top right.

Responsible party tips for Win 7 Launch Party

Responsible Party Tips
Serving alcohol.

1. Designate a bartender who can serve your guests and keep an eye on how much everyone is drinking. The Federal Dietary Guidelines define moderate drinking as no more than two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women.
2. Remember: alcohol is alcohol. It is important to understand that a standard serving of beer (12 ounces), wine (five ounces) and spirits (a cocktail with 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits) each contains the same amount of alcohol.
3. Make sure that you provide food to complement your cocktails. Consider food pairings to enhance the flavors of your chosen cocktails: fresh seafood and breads accentuate vodka cocktails, spiced and smoked meats and cheeses complement Bourbon and Scotch whiskies, and fruit enhances rum and tequila flavors.
4. Make available non-alcohol beverages for your guests. Create festive non-alcoholic punch for those guests who choose not to drink alcohol.
5. Make sure your guests have a safe way home either through designated drivers or a taxi. Have local taxi service numbers available for your guests. 

Anyone have a recipe for festive non-alcoholic punch?

Celebrities not getting enough voice in healthcare debate

Even stupid people have B.A. degrees

Well, this doesn't help my own personal cause, but I do agree with Charles Murray whose rant was published in the New York Times Magazine.

 Do Away With B.A.

Discredit the bachelor’s degree as a job credential. It does not signify the acquisition of a liberal education. It does not even tell an employer that the graduate can put together a logical and syntactically correct argument. It serves as rough and unreliable evidence of a degree of intelligence and perseverance — that’s it. Yet across much of the job market, young people can’t get their foot in the door without that magic piece of paper.

As President Obama promotes community colleges, he could transform the national conversation about higher education if he acknowledges the B.A. has become meaningless. Then perhaps three reforms can begin: community colleges and their online counterparts will become places to teach and learn without any reference to the bachelor’s degree; the status associated with the bachelor’s degree will be lessened; and colleges will be forced to demonstrate just what their expensive four-year undergraduate programs do better, not in theory but in practice.


CHARLES MURRAY
Murray is the W. H. Brady scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and the author of ‘‘Real Education: Four Simple Truths for Bringing America’s Schools Back to Reality.’’