According to this Boston Globe editorial, Massachusetts is considering the creation of new law school, which would be the only “public” (that is to say, taxpayer-funded) law school in the state.

The Globe takes a skeptical view of the claim that the school wouldn’t cost state taxpayers because it would cover its costs. That’s a sensible position. Political assurances that X “will not cost taxpayers anything” are like Lucy telling Charlie Brown that this time she will let him kick the football.

But there is a line that bothers me: “It’s not a point of pride for MA to be one of just six states without a public law school.” Baloney. There is no reason why legal education should be done by state-sponsored schools. I’d say the fact that Massachussetts doesn’t blow taxpayer money on something that the free market provides perfectly well should itself be a point of pride.