Feds should look for real problems
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We’ve all read about some of the ridiculous nuisance lawsuits that end up in our courts and slow down the process of justice for everyone else. What we don’t typically expect is that one of those suits will be brought by our own government.
But that’s exactly what the U.S. Department of Justice is guilty of with its lawsuit condemning the way in which the Pennsylvania State Police screen applicants for the force.
Those hoping to become state troopers in our commonwealth must take physical fitness tests. More men than women are able to pass those tests. In the eyes of the Justice Department, that means the test is bad.
The foolishness of that logic, and the feds’ conclusion, boggles the mind.
State troopers find themselves in situations that demand strength and endurance. The fitness tests are designed to determine which candidates are likely to be able to withstand those demands, and to weed out those who can’t. Nearly all male applicants meet the standards, while about 70 percent of female candidates pass muster.
The Justice Department wants a federal judge in Harrisburg to end what it believes are discriminatory hiring practices. And, if you can believe it, it wants the judge to grant back pay and other awards to any woman who failed to pass the test.
The state replied to the lawsuit last week, saying it is making “strong affirmative efforts to recruit qualified women to join the trooper ranks … and will continue this commitment, independently of any hectoring by the United States through this or any other form of legal action.”
The key word in that statement is “qualified.”
We want men and women to be afforded the same opportunity to pursue positions with the state police, but that does not guarantee people are equally qualified, or qualified at all, for the jobs they are seeking.
Each of us has his or her own limitations. None of us is cut out for every job or task.
The lawsuit brought by the Justice Department is political correctness run amok. We would hope the judge in Harrisburg recognizes that and sends the feds packing.