Over in the Nevada state Senate on Tuesday, three Republicans joined every Democrat in approving new government regulation – complete with a new $200 licensing tax (fee)! – of, get this, “Music Therapists.”
What the hell is a Music Therapist you ask?
Well, according to the American Music Therapy Association, music therapy “is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music therapy program.”
Yeah, that sure cleared things up. Let’s try this from another angle: What do music therapists do? Again from the AMTA:
“Music therapists assess emotional well-being, physical health, social functioning, communication abilities, and cognitive skills through musical responses; design music sessions for individuals and groups based on client needs using music improvisation, receptive music listening, song writing, lyric discussion, music and imagery, music performance, and learning through music; participate in interdisciplinary treatment planning, ongoing evaluation, and follow up.”
In other words, it’s a load of crap. But hey, if somebody thinks they can cure Alzheimer’s by listening to Yanni music over and over and over again…who am I to argue? Live and let live, right? However, is this really something Nevada’s government now needs to license and regulate? I don’t think so.
Sidenote: And for all you Music Therapists right now sitting down to tap out an angry email telling me how I know nothing about music therapy and what wonderful things you do….forget it. By the time you read this I’ll be blasting Led Zeppelin music into my ears through my iPod while working out on the treadmill. That’s all the music therapy I need!
In any event, this is exactly why it is so hard to shrink government. Even in the worst stinking recession in our state’s history, some well-intentioned, busy-body nanny-state legislators think the government just has to do more, when what’s really called for these days is for the government to do LESS. MUCH less.
Oh, you wanna know who the Republicans were who voted with the Democrats to expand government and increase taxes (fees)? That would be Sens. Barbara Cegavske, Joe Hardy (naturally!), Ben Kieckhefer and Dean Rhoads.
BTW, whatever happened to that letter signed by all 10 Republican senators saying they backed Gov. Sandoval’s budget and wouldn’t be voting for any new taxes or fees? Or was there some fine print or weasel-wording in the letter that the average Nevada voter/taxpayer missed that, um, doesn’t appear in the Taxpayer Protection Pledge?
And some still wonder why I’m so adamant about getting candidates to sign the Pledge and never take their word for it? And, um, yes….Sen. Cegavske did sign the Pledge. So as you can see, nothing is fool-proof.
