Law Rant Part II

I don't mean for this blog to focus solely on my discontent with the legal profession, but some of this stuff is just ridiculous.

I need MCLE credit.  Are you fucking kidding me?  Let's list some of the many reasons why this is bullshit:
1) I just took the bar a year ago.  Has that much changed?  Or, with this "Basic Skills" course, are you implying that I didn't learn any basic skills in law school.  That can't be it.
2) I can't find a job as a lawyer.  What, exactly, is supposed to be my motivation for maintaining my license?  The prospect that I might actually become employable within the next year?
3) A well trained monkey could be a lawyer.  I'm sure that monkey doesn't need MCLE credit.
4) My current job involves filling in blanks and standing in line.  Are you going to teach me how to do that better?
5) I "have to" watch a DVD.  I'm assuming they mean I "have to" watch it in the same way they meant I "had to" go to class in law school.
6) Lawyers in Illinois didn't even need MCLE credit until a few years ago.
7) My regular legal education was a waste of time.  Why should I expect this to be different?
8) The DVD is going to cost me $70.  Some people get to be unemployable for free.  It costs me $70.

For those of you who still don't believe that the legal profession is essentially a money making scam, try this on for size.  As stated earlier, this DVD I'm going to pretend to watch will cost me $70.  Granted, the MCLE guy made sure to tell me that it's cheap compared to the $250 course I could be taking.  Fine, $70 is cheaper than $250.  I can do math too.  But, you know what would be even cheaper?  $35.  Which is the price if I could split the damned thing with one of my co-workers.  Can I do that?  Of course not.

Why don't they just say what they really want: Give us $70 and you'll continue to be licensed.  Wouldn't that be easier?  It would save me them the hassle of sending me a DVD, I wouldn't have to pretend to watch it, and I might at least have some degree of respect for my poorly chosen profession.