imstandinghere

Name:
Location: Berkeley, CA, United States

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

"Ten people who speak make more noise than ten thousand who are silent."
-Napoleon Bonaparte

Are you part of the silent majority???

Check this link out. They are fighting over us, the givers as to how the work may be done and the receivers of massage. SB412 is out of the assembly appropriations committee and making a very quick passage through the assembly with a possible vote on Thursday the 17th of August, back to the Senate and then to the Governors desk.

Below is a letter I sent to the entire assembly. I decided to pick on the ludicrous notion that massage therapy is the umbrella title for any form of structured touch amongst other things.

This link is one stop shopping for SB412... You can see all there is to know about the bill. If you know all about the bill and want to oppose (or support) the bill in writing, you may go here .

The "voluntary" aspect of this bill will fall by the wayside once folk start lobbying their cities and townships to adopt the language recommended by the state.

I've said more than my share over the years. It's your turn! My letter follows...
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Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.
-Oscar Wilde

Dear Assembly Members:

Please say no to SB412.There is a lot more to touch than sex, violence and Massage Therapy. Massage Therapy should be considered a title under an umbrella of touch, NOT as the umbrella to all forms of structured touch.

Taken directly from materials from an AMTA membership packet is this:

Massage Therapy is a "profession" in which the practitioner applies manual techniques and may apply adjunctive therapies, with the intention of positively affecting the health and well-being of the client.

Massage Therapy is a "profession" created by the AMTA.

Massage Therapist is a title yet to be completely defined as an occupation created by the AMTA. I believe it is a disservice to the people you serve to allow for the creation of a certification program, voluntary or otherwise, that has the potential to eliminate the many paths that a person could follow leading to the skills required to earn income from touch. Imposing so restrictive a title for such a vast and diverse industry of touch/massage is wrong in my opinion.


In the realm of government our country has three distinct branches - the Legislative, Judicial and Executive. In the realm of massage, there are at least three branches. There could be a "profession" which regulation could be placed in the hands of a group such as AMTA, their AMTA Council of Schools or COMTA the AMTA spawned Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation, accredited by the Federal Department of Education for accrediting schools desiring to teach 'Massage Therapy'. Completing high numbered hours of training would entitle those desiring to be referred to as a Massage Therapist the right to do so.


Beyond a "profession", there is the 2nd and 3rd branches of trade and service involving people who desire to do massage or touch not requiring very much training at all. The three branches of massage/touch are understood to be "professional" as all are worthy of payment for services rendered. A title act written without interchanging the words massage or touch with Massage Therapy to satisfy those feeling the need for state recognition could be an option. Words implying a Massage Therapist is anything more than a title in a realm with many optional titles not needing standards set for the title Massage Therapist or Massage Therapy is more damaging than good for the vast majority of givers and those receiving the work.


Licensing CPA's did not kill accountants and bookkeepers, freelance or employees. Skilled touch and massage should remain unscathed. Rubbing is also a profession. Massage Therapists would be allowed to rub.


SB412 could be looked at as a foot in the door for the American Massage Therapist Association (AMTA). AB1388, was a failed licensing effort, in 2003/2004. The AMTA paid $75,000, in lobbying fees, in 2003/2004 to Griffin and Associates pushing AB1388. Since January of 2005, when this current two year CA legislative session began, the tab paid to California Advocates, by AMTA is $89,000. The AMTA has been the sole catalyst for state involvement in the governance of touch.


There is very little documentation of harm from those providing touch and the cost for my insurance to provide touch proves that. Rather than fill this letter, I invite you to read the best written document showing the two sides of the coin related to state involvement in touch at this site. The document served to defeat, temporarily, the AMTA drive for licensing in GA.


Please say NO to SB412!