Doing Math Requires a License in Oregon

[Martin Hash]

Doing Math Requires a License in Oregon

Järlström was fined $500 for violating a law that prohibits mathematical criticism without a license.

[Speaker to Animals]

Have fun in marxist utopia after the dissolution, fam!

[Alexander PhiAlipson]

The Institute for Justice says the actual fine was for Järlström calling himself a "professional engineer." The thing is, Järlström does have a degree in electrical engineering, though he doesn't carry a state license. In Oregon's eyes, that doesn't make him a real engineer.

There is a HUGE difference between having BS in engineering and being a Professional Engineer.

[Martin Hash]

The Institute for Justice says the actual fine was for Järlström calling himself a "professional engineer." The thing is, Järlström does have a degree in electrical engineering, though he doesn't carry a state license. In Oregon's eyes, that doesn't make him a real engineer.

There is a HUGE difference between having BS in engineering and being a Professional Engineer.

YUGE! (WA PE #48328)

[Alexander PhiAlipson]

Big league.

[jbird4049]

The Institute for Justice says the actual fine was for Järlström calling himself a "professional engineer." The thing is, Järlström does have a degree in electrical engineering, though he doesn't carry a state license. In Oregon's eyes, that doesn't make him a real engineer.

There is a HUGE difference between having BS in engineering and being a Professional Engineer.

YUGE! (WA PE #48328)

It's been a few days since I read the story, but what it appears to be is a nuisance fine. He noticed that the yellow lights where he lived were too short so he used a timer to check. They were too short, so he sent an email/letter on the situation to the appropriate authorities.

So unless he was doing anything but stating (ineptly) his expertise, in a private communication, to an organization that was failing in its responsibilities using a second language, It looks to be payback for his embarrassing and/or causing more work for them.

You can by squinting very hard, and being a pettifogger, that he was doing something wrong.

[Ph64]

http://reason.com/blog/2017/04/26/after ... meras-oreg

According to the board, Järlström's research into red light cameras and their effectiveness amounts to practicing engineering without a license. No, really. Järlström had sent a letter to the board in 2014 asking for the opportunity to present his research on how too-short yellow lights were making money for the state by putting the public's safety at risk. "I would like to present these fact for your review and comment," he wrote.

Instead of inviting him to present, the board threatened him. Citing state laws that make it illegal to practice engineering without a license, the board told Järlström that even calling himself an "electronics engineer" and the use of the phrase "I am an engineer" in his letter were enough to "create violations."

As crazy as Järlström's story is, it's not the first time the Oregon State Board of Examiners for Engineering and Land Surveying has been overly aggressive about enforcing their rules for who is and who is not an engineer.

According to the lawsuit, the state board investigated Portland City Commissioner Dan Saltzman in 2014 for publishing a campaign pamphlet that mentioned Saltzman's background as an "environmental engineer." Saltzman has a bachelor's degree in environmental and civil engineering from Cornell University, a master's degree from MIT's School of Civil Engineering, and is a membership of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

What he isn't, though, is a licensed engineer in the state of Oregon.

According to Järlström's lawsuit, the board spent more than a year investigating Saltzman's background before voting to issue an official "warning" against using the word engineer incorrectly.

In another case, the state board investigated a Republican gubernatorial candidate for using the phrase "I'm an engineer and a problem-solver" in a campaign ad. The candidate in question, Allen Alley, had a degree in engineering from Purdue University and worked as an engineer for Boeing (and, of course, wasn't trying to lie about his lack of an Oregon-issued licensed but merely was making a freaking campaign ad), but

It doesn't stop there. In 2010, the state board issued a $1,000 fine for illegally practicing engineering to a local activist who told the La Pine, Oregon, city council that a proposed new power plant would be too loud for nearby residents.

The board once investigated Portland Monthly magazine for running a story that described a young immigrant woman as "an engineer behind Portland's newest bridge." The woman in the story did not describe herself as an engineer, but the magazine's editors included that description in the headline, the board concluded.

[heydaralon]

With a Scandanavian sounding name like that, I'm surprised that guy didn't immediately file and then overpay for a math license.

[Alexander PhiAlipson]

https://www.nspe.org/resources/licensure/what-pe

A century ago, anyone could work as an engineer without proof of competency. In order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare, the first engineering licensure law was enacted in 1907 in Wyoming. Now every state regulates the practice of engineering to ensure public safety by granting only Professional Engineers (PEs) the authority to sign and seal engineering plans and offer their services to the public.

To use the PE seal, engineers must complete several steps to ensure their competency.

Earn a four-year degree in engineering from an accredited engineering program
Pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam
Complete four years of progressive engineering experience under a PE
Pass the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam

Dan's got a degree in history--but as he constantly reminds anyone who will listen, he is not a historian.
Apparently this guy tried to pass himself off as a Professional Engineer--a definite no-no--that's what the story says, anyway. Math is to engineering as sentences are to writing--he was not fined for "doing math."

[clubgop]

https://www.nspe.org/resources/licensure/what-pe

A century ago, anyone could work as an engineer without proof of competency. In order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare, the first engineering licensure law was enacted in 1907 in Wyoming. Now every state regulates the practice of engineering to ensure public safety by granting only Professional Engineers (PEs) the authority to sign and seal engineering plans and offer their services to the public.

To use the PE seal, engineers must complete several steps to ensure their competency.

Earn a four-year degree in engineering from an accredited engineering program
Pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam
Complete four years of progressive engineering experience under a PE
Pass the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam

Dan's got a degree in history--but as he constantly reminds anyone who will listen, he is not a historian.
Apparently this guy tried to pass himself off as a Professional Engineer--a definite no-no--that's what the story says, anyway. Math is to engineering as sentences are to writing--he was not fined for "doing math."

This is fucking maddening. He's not trying to defraud anybody or pull a fast one over some poor government sap he is presenting facts and instead of disputing that evidence they want to play a challenge coin game of bullshit.