Civil Disobedience

[Russell Kanning]

So in order to be trained to tan people in NH the state makes you go to FL, MI, or 2 places in AZ?

If a person from NH goes to AZ in the middle of winter, they could receive a nasty sunburn just getting to the authorized training facility. That is completely irresponsible of the state board to do that.

[Kat Kanning]

I'm thinking like Dada and the follow-up should be something different.  Since my brief brush with the police and seeing how Mike was treated, I've also been thinking that I could go to jail for a while.  Also thinking more along the lines of just doing what we want as long as we're not hurting anyone and ignoring the law....as opposed to staging something. 

When I was contemplating moving to NH, one of the things I was thinking of doing was opening a massage business (just that, not a sex business).  When I looked into the licensing laws, I got totally turned off of doing it.  It cost way too much money to complete the training courses required.  So one of the things I've been contemplating is opening up this business without the license.

[Russell Kanning]

This is from the front page of the boards website (in red letters):


Any one offering Tanning needs to register immediately! You need to immediately file the application and $45.00 with the Board. You need to be actively pursuing and signing up for a class to become a certified operator. Please contact a provider on the approved list posted on this web page to find out the cost, in addition to the dates and times they will be coming to New Hampshire to provide training.

The public hearing on June 6, 2005 is regarding the rules posted on the web page. The law requiring tanning facilities to be registered cannot be changed or addressed by the Board. 


Do you get the feeling there could be people not registering?
This could be my thing........oh the trainers will come to NH to do tanning training.....that is good news.

[Russell Kanning]

I like the massage idea. You could just move forward with it and see what the state does.
You could have a ready made clientele of anti-government regulation liberty lovers.

[Russell Kanning]

If you had no ID to show them and were an unlicensed massage therapist......that would be almost assure you of a brush with the law.

[Russell Kanning]

Later we can move on to selling liquor

[Michael Fisher]

You guys and girls should do what you feel is your calling rather than listening to me. 

If there's one thing I've learned from this, it's that we each need to find our own path and followit, and consulting a third party is not necessary when we feel very strongly about it.

[Russell Kanning]

It also really worked well to follow the example of Thoreau and Gandhi. It was good to see you walk off with the police and not get beaten or your face ground into the asphalt. 
But there will be plenty of variety in how everyone does things here and I wouldn't want to get in anyones way as they fight for liberty.

Would it be good to get away from the particular manicure angle...(partly because someone we know has a license)....but continue pushing that one state board, since all of their licensing rules are soooo ridiculous?

[davemincin]

Tim's response to this editorial:

FYI, sent to the Portsmouth Herald in response to their Wednesday editorial: http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/05112005/editoria/41681.htm

Your May 11th editorial "This licensing law is one we can live with" is poorly written and misses the point entirely.

Someone at The Herald must have really been incensed by Michael Fisher's peaceful act of civil disobedience.  Actually, not someone but everyone on your Editorial Board, as the generous use of "we" throughout the hastily written editorial implies.  Unfortunately, as is often the case, haste makes waste and this editorial is a complete waste of paper, ink, and your readers' time.

First, it looks like the result of a Jr. High School writing assignment.  Were you worried that you would insult us or go over our heads if you actually did research on your own and cited factual evidence that would support your opinion?  Did you opt for a string of one word sentences because bullet points would have been too obvious?  Maybe next time you could use a USA Today-type bar chart indicating the percentage of laws that are good versus bad.  As one reader aptly put it, it's a good thing you don't need a license to write an intelligible editorial because this wouldn't have made the cut.

Second, I believe the point of Michael Fisher's act was less about this particular law and more about the thousands of federal, state, and local laws like this that attempt to micromanage the minutia of our lives.  Your writer doesn't see the forest for the trees.  If The Herald had been covering Gandhi in the 1920s the editorial would have read "What's Wrong with English Clothes?" 

You cite a procedure on how to clean a cut that the licensee is required to know.  I'm sure this is a relief to the millions of parents across the country who have been cleaning cuts since their children were born.  Shouldn't they be licensed too?  The editorial goes on to say that we would expect most manicurists would follow these rules whether they are licensed or not, but it doesn't hurt to make sure.  Yes, it does hurt.  You and I, and everyone in the country spend billions of dollars, wait countless hours, and lose hundreds of lives each year because of excessive regulation.  Regulation Magazine, which you can find at CATO.org is just one of the publications that brings this issue to light.  This law, and many, many like it are unnecessary uses of the legislature's time and the public's money.   

In this case, if someone would like to voluntarily get certified by an industry association, which they can proudly advertise in order to charge more and generate more business, then no one is stopping them.  However, they should not be forced into this type of certification or licensing.  If two consenting adults want to voluntarily enter into a business transaction, whether it be a manicure or otherwise, they should be free to do so without government intervention. 

To paraphrase your editorial: Sometimes the government is heavy handed, sometimes it is an annoyance, and sometimes it can be downright dangerous.  This is true, and the problem is that everyone's definition of these terms is different.  This is why our country and state were founded on the principal of erring on the side of personal liberty.  This is clearly outlined in the Constitution and Bill of Rights.  Your editorial board should read them sometime.

Tim Myles

[Michael Fisher]

Tim's response to this editorial:

NICE!!!    Thanks!

[AlanM]

Excellent LTE Tim. ?

[Kat Kanning]

Wow, great letter!

[Russell Kanning]

So the Portsmouth herald had a horrible editorial and the Union Leader did a great cartoon and a favorable editorial.....hmmmmmm

Looks like people should just skip the herald and go straight to the Leader.

[Michael Fisher]

Posted here:  http://www.livejournal.com/users/amanda42/387716.html?view=3033732#t3033732

This is Mike Fisher.

Sorry we missed you there, Amanda. It was a blast!
Thanks to everyone for their help in bringing attention to this cause.

Regarding the health concerns of manicures... I was well-aware of these issues before performing the manicure on Kat. As a matter of fact, it only took about 30 minutes to find the information on Google so I knew what to watch for. I even refused to manicure someone at the event because he had a nail condition that I identified - splitting and peeling layers.

I even have a nail condition called Leuconychia, but it is only the presence of small air bubbles under the nail caused by doing hard work with my hands, particularly the computer business I run, and it is not contagious.

Before performing the manicure on Kat, I made sure that she had no nail or skin conditions. I also followed all normal sanitary procedures, which also required only minutes to research on Google.

There are very few contagious conditions, and the sanitary procedures are extremely simple. There is no evidence to support any HIV or hepatitis infections EVER being transmitted through manicures according to my research, but it is still theoretically possible.

Besides, all I did was file and buff Kat's nails before they arrested me. A full french manicure is not easy at all and I do not have the skills necessary or the knowledge of the chemicals involved, but it wouldn't be that difficult to learn, and it sure wouldn't require $5,000+ worth of school to learn it.

It's also funny how the cosmetology schools are half of the people pushing for these laws. Gee, I don't know why they would do that. In any case, entry-level workers and entrepreneurs are seriously hurt by these restrictions.

It's too bad that so few people understand how fragile small businesses really are. If they did, they would never support such restrictions - instead, they would depend on professional reputations and optional private sector certifications when making their buying decisions.

Caveat Emptor. Buyer Beware. It's wisdom as old as time, but the government takes such responsibilities away from us with laws like this. Then they wonder why people have no sense of personal responsibility.

[Michael Fisher]

Later we can move on to selling liquor

That's what I'M talking about.

So which laws do you want to fight first, Russell?  State or Federal?