While there were a number of suggestions if we had to spitball one (from Le Pew’s post on the topic of New Hamsphire legislators’ re-education), this would be the pick as it goes multi-dimensional.
Since our elected representatives create laws that make our lives a living hell, wouldn’t it be nice if they were educated? And not the ideological one like NH Rep Marjorie Smith’s “unconscious bias” which automatically assumes everyone is guilty – a very subjective viewpoint.
OldNHMan is much more objective (reformatted, emphasis mine):
- Mandatory firearms training, both sidearm and long rifle. Include a run through Hogan’s Alley as a final exam?
- Mandatory reading of the US Constitution and the Federalist Papers followed by a written test, essay questions only. Failing the test means you have to go through the reading and testing a second time. A second failure gets you booted out of the Legislature.
- Mandatory reading of the NH Constitution followed by a written test, essay questions only. Failing the test means you have to go through the reading and testing a second time. A second failure gets you booted out of the Legislature.
- Mandatory Economics 101 instruction (Adam Smith, von Mises, Sowell, and Hayek) followed by a written exam. Failing the exam gets you booted out of the Legislature.
- Mandatory instruction in Critical Thinking and Second-Order Thinking so our potential legislators will learn how to look for the unintended consequences of proposed legislation and programs. Failing this training gets you booted out of the legislature.
- If a legislator fails more than two of the mandatory training courses they will be banned from running for office at any level – town, county, state, or federal – because they haven’t a clue how the real world works and shouldn’t be voting on things they don’t understand. They won’t be eligible to try again for 20 years.
These are just suggestions, but I have a feeling that if they were implemented we would end up with better informed legislators and those who base all of their decisions on ‘feelz’ would be weeded out.
I like this thought experiment; let me add this:
- You have to have been in situation(s) where you had to sign both sides of a paycheck – as an employer and as a manager/owner. The first part gives you an appreciation/acknowledge of one part of the equation while the second gives you a MUCH better appreciation of what goes on to make a business survive or thrive. It ALSO gives you an appreciation of what a pain-in-the-butt by elected busybodies who believe they know how to run your business better than you do.
OldNHMan went academic – as long as we’re spitballing, what other real-life experiences could be part of our set of non-existent (per the NH Constitution) requirements?
And remember the only requirement? Article 14 for Constitution – House of Representatives:
[Art.] 14. [Representatives, How Elected, Qualifications of.] Every member of the house of representatives shall be chosen by ballot; and, for two years, at least, next preceding his election shall have been an inhabitant of this state; shall be, at the time of his election, an inhabitant of the town, ward, place, or district he may be chosen to represent and shall cease to represent such town, ward, place, or district immediately on his ceasing to be qualified as aforesaid.
