Case studies in government run amok

[Amelia]

Music teachers, beware. The feds are onto you. Better not try to raise the price of your lessons.

Teddy Roosevelt busted Standard Oil. The Obama administration? It's making the world safe from rapacious piano teachers.

Every month, it seems, brings a new story of this presidency leveling the intimidating powers of the federal government against some law-abiding citizen. Now comes a terrifying tale of how the Federal Trade Commission, a governmental Goliath, crushes an average David—because it can.

In March of this year, a small nonprofit in Cincinnati—the Music Teachers National Association—received a letter from the FTC. The agency was investigating whether the association was engaged in, uh, anticompetitive practices.

This was bizarre, given that the MTNA has existed since 1876 solely to advance the cause of music study and support music teachers. The 501(c)(3) has about 22,000 members, nearly 90% of them piano teachers, including many women who earn a modest living giving lessons in their homes. The group promotes music study and competitions and helps train teachers. Not exactly U.S. Steel.

The association's sin, according to the feds, rested in its code of ethics. The code lays out ideals for members to follow—a commitment to students, colleagues, society. Tucked into this worthy document was a provision calling on teachers to respect their colleagues' studios, and not actively recruit students from other teachers.

That's a common enough provision among professional organizations (doctors, lawyers), yet the FTC avers that the suggestion that Miss Sally not poach students from Miss Lucy was an attempt to raise prices for piano lessons. Given that the average lesson runs around $30 an hour, and that some devoted teachers still give lessons for $5 a pop, this is patently absurd.

....

Read more: Kim Strassel: Piano Sonata in FTC Minor - WSJ.com




I bet you thought this was going to start out with Obamacare, didn't you! That one goes without saying for now. Please add your examples. No need for "gotchas". I know Republican administrations and legislators go too far, too. I'll offer this disclaimer in advance: Advocating for small/smaller/moderate government is not the same as advocating for no government -- and I personally am not anti-government. Government has a necessary role in protecting life and security.

 

[Listening]

Maybe we could take the assholes who are worried about this and put them on the website project.

I'd love to hear a lib back up the fed going after piano teachers.....when the principle of price fixing is at the heart of Obama beloved unions.

 

[freedombecki]

My Gosh, the Federal Government is starting to act like a proctologist to non-worshippers.

I don't think the Obama supporters had this kind of snooping in mind when they elected him President.