I'm not sure we should do away with all licensing/certification requirements. The argument for apprenticeship is a form of licensing/certification.
I do believe that one's opinion should not force one to seek a license or certification in order to give it. And that a professional with such credentials should not be barred from giving it.
To say that a layperson can't say how they did what they did to achieve a certain thing, like weight loss, or getting out of debt, or whatever, is ridiculous to think they need a license.
Rent seeking is not a term I had encountered before. I had to Google it to get a clear explanation. One option said that the terminology did not explain what it was, which I agree. This definition makes it clear: "People are said to seek rents when they try to obtain benefits for themselves through the political arena. They typically do so by getting a subsidy for a good they produce or for being in a particular class of people, by getting a tariff on a good they produce, or by getting a special regulation that hampers their competitors. " SOURCE:
http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/RentSeeking.htmlTaking the government out of the licensing/certification process would be an option, and if someone did not display the proper credentials or was not on the list of those with that credential, then you would know to steer clear.
I don't like the idea of just anyone hanging out a shingle and saying they are an appropriately experienced person as a doctor, lawyer, architect, or engineer.
With a mechanic, I still go to places that I have had a recommendation, the same for the above professions. But if someone recommended a professional without the proper credentials, I would be very hesitant to go there.
Getting insurance to pay out to a doctor without the right credentials would be interesting.
I'm not so sure it is a simple as do away with all government regulation. Regulations that I think are dumb, other might see as essential and vice versa. Transitioning to each profession doing the certification would not be that hard, since they are involved in the current law side of it now.
With all of the freedom of a world with no regulations, people have to be prepared to put in a lot more effort in researching and understanding things about all aspects of life than they do now. I don't see the majority of people wanting to wake up and do this. Freedom takes a lot of energy that most people would rather expend being couch potatoes.
So in the end, I see your point, and see how I could agree with it.