4 ms·

The Rent-Seeking Is Too Damn High

17 points by tokenadult 11y ago

csense 11y ago
In the case of barbershops, it's important that they know how to properly clean the stuff that'll be touching hair, as otherwise there are various nasty infestations that can be transferred from person to person.
- hga 11y ago
  The article is saying "too high". While it doesn't go out of its way to acknowledge the sorts of needs you refer to, the specific barber example it gives is: "In Nevada, according to Politico, barbers need more than two years of training to qualify for a license; that’s a high bar to anyone looking to break into the business." Again using the word high, and it's hard for me to see needing quite that much training to cover the hygiene issues as well as a minimum of technique and practice.
- tokenadult 11y ago
  One could compare different states and see how much regulation is enough. The most regulated states are surely regulated too much--infections from visits to barbershops don't even show up in health statistics as a meaningful risk.
- jannotti 11y ago
  It's important that drivers be reasonably competent too, and so we have a licensing program. But it is cheap and quick. (Where "quick" might mean a long line at the DMV, but not an apprenticeship.)
- gozur88 11y ago
  Sure. A four hour class would be reasonable.
  - venomsnake 11y ago
    For four hours you could not learn how to sharpen a straight razor properly. But a month seems reasonable. Two years is too much.
- clinta 11y ago
  Food safety is a much more significant risk, yet we seem to be doing fine without requiring licenses for every restaurant cook.
jschwartzi 11y ago
It's generally good to have a barber that knows how to cut hair and can shave you with a razor without injuring you. Those aren't things that can be done by an unskilled person. Furthermore, it would suck to find out your barber can't hack it by getting a bad haircut from them.
- hga 11y ago
  From the article: "In Nevada, according to Politico, barbers need more than two years of training to qualify for a license; that’s a high bar to anyone looking to break into the business." Is it possible that 2 years is a bit more than what's needed to achieve your desires? If so, if big enough, that additional requirement is "too much" rent seeking.
- clinta 11y ago
  And it sucks to get a bad meal at a restaurant, or poor quality customer service. So we have yelp and google reviews for businesses to try and avoid these situations. We don't need government licensing protect us from every having a bad experience with a business. Liability should be motivation enough for any business to not let unskilled barbers handle a straight razor.

17 points by tokenadult 11y ago

In the case of barbershops, it's important that they know how to properly clean the stuff that'll be touching hair, as otherwise there are various nasty infestations that can be transferred from person to person.

hga 11y ago
The article is saying "too high". While it doesn't go out of its way to acknowledge the sorts of needs you refer to, the specific barber example it gives is: "In Nevada, according to Politico, barbers need more than two years of training to qualify for a license; that’s a high bar to anyone looking to break into the business." Again using the word high, and it's hard for me to see needing quite that much training to cover the hygiene issues as well as a minimum of technique and practice.
tokenadult 11y ago
One could compare different states and see how much regulation is enough. The most regulated states are surely regulated too much--infections from visits to barbershops don't even show up in health statistics as a meaningful risk.
jannotti 11y ago
It's important that drivers be reasonably competent too, and so we have a licensing program. But it is cheap and quick. (Where "quick" might mean a long line at the DMV, but not an apprenticeship.)
gozur88 11y ago
Sure. A four hour class would be reasonable.
- venomsnake 11y ago
  For four hours you could not learn how to sharpen a straight razor properly. But a month seems reasonable. Two years is too much.
clinta 11y ago
Food safety is a much more significant risk, yet we seem to be doing fine without requiring licenses for every restaurant cook.

jschwartzi 11y ago

It's generally good to have a barber that knows how to cut hair and can shave you with a razor without injuring you. Those aren't things that can be done by an unskilled person. Furthermore, it would suck to find out your barber can't hack it by getting a bad haircut from them.

hga 11y ago
From the article: "In Nevada, according to Politico, barbers need more than two years of training to qualify for a license; that’s a high bar to anyone looking to break into the business." Is it possible that 2 years is a bit more than what's needed to achieve your desires? If so, if big enough, that additional requirement is "too much" rent seeking.
clinta 11y ago
And it sucks to get a bad meal at a restaurant, or poor quality customer service. So we have yelp and google reviews for businesses to try and avoid these situations. We don't need government licensing protect us from every having a bad experience with a business. Liability should be motivation enough for any business to not let unskilled barbers handle a straight razor.