Outlaw? I think you’re overstating the issue here. In fact, once you read the article its clear that they’re trying to aid the legitimacy of those who do readings… seems like they’re moving in the opposite direction of “outlawing.”

Marc – no I did not read it carefully because I have seen it before. A law like this was just recently passed in PA (I think it was)… they actually did make astrologers “illegal” and this is a trend at this time.

I thought I posted that here, but I must have put it on the astrology news… anyway this is a grave concern for people who read charts for pay. And as a gay man, you should understand this better than anyone. Do you want them passing laws about who can have sex with who and what kind… even a little?

Folks,
This is exactly why AFAN (Association for Astrological Networking) was established. They have successfully overturned these antiquated laws (irrespective of when they were legislated) based on First Amendment rights. They’ve got a legal team, lots of experience and are willing to go to bat for any professional astrologer who contacts them.
It’s a great organization, and no, I’m not on the board.

Again with the witch trials??? Oh Massachusetts… For shame. Bad times.

hmm… it is about regulating business, but it’s also about granting ‘legitimacy’ – which, on the surface, doesn’t seem like such a bad thing. not when it comes to lawyers, cops, security guards, or even (as you pointed out) hair stylists.

however, how do you determine criteria in this situation? it’s not like there’s a series of centralised schools with standardised tests – and even if there were, we’ve seen how well standardised tests work for the “real subjects” people study in school.

and in a sense, it is like regulating sexuality, if you consider the business from a spiritual point of view. someone who has been traditionally trained at home might not have a piece of paper, but that doesn’t mean they know any less about herbal medicine if they’ve been studying at their grandmother’s knee since they were old enough to stand. is she not a ‘real’ practitioner? is someone who doesn’t go to church but reads the bible and believes in god not a ‘real’ christian? likewise, someone who *did* have that piece of paper might not know a damn thing – look how many people graduate university and can’t get a job in their field.