A Little Thought About Student Loan Forgiveness

It is the irony of college. It was always touted as something of great importance to get a good paying job. The reality has been forever and a day that some of the best paying jobs are ones that do not require a degree. I think you alluded to something that may be the real encouragement, and that is that people are opting for college more to get different kinds of jobs that require less work. I think that's the key, which is why very good paying jobs such as you mentioned have to be filled by other people from other places where college is not as accessible and by people who need the money more but also do not mind working for it.

@porwest That is a valid point about seniors and medical bills, but I actually believe both parties think the elderly are not worth the expense, instead solar panels from China and giving money to Ukraine are more important. Seniors do not receive the same respect found in other cultures simple as that. If the Government could, both social security and Medicare would be eliminated despite what they say publicly. Yes, totally agree with your view about college and the curriculum. Much waste in teaching students how to think by teaching liberal arts type classes and not enough on practical knowledge. Not much else to add there. You nailed it!

@dgobucks226 That's the irony of the situation when it comes to social security and Medicare. The democrats make people THINK they care about it while the republicans are open about wanting to raise retirement ages and what not. I think the thing about social security that irks me the most is that people think it is a pension. It's not, and was never intended to be. It was always intended to be a supplement to one's income from other investments they made while they were working, be it pensions, 401k plans, or other savings. The product of that is that most of the elderly are in fact suffering financially of their own design. Do we really want to reward irresponsible behavior? That's sort of the stance of the republicans. Or do we want to encourage educating people about the need to save more and plan more for those years when people can no longer work? To me, that's the better solution. It's a double-edged sword. You don't want to leave people behind. But does giving more money to people who don't know how to manage it solve the problem? It never does. Of course, the worst at managing money is the government itself. Nobody does it worse than they do. lol

That's what it basically comes down to at the end of the day. A simple process of buying votes. I made a comment on Facebook that I thought maybe it would have been a better thing, if we wanted to forgive anything, to forgive medical debt for the elderly. As much as the left has talked about the high costs of medical bills and wanting universal healthcare, forgiving some of that debt—while still not necessarily the best way to spend taxpayer money—would have done a lot more, and would have helped millions of people who already paid their dues in full and made their contribution to society, the economy. It would have been a way to ease life a bit for cash strapped senior citizens saddled with enormous medical bills and expensive prescriptions. But then, anything that makes sense does not make sense to a democrat. At the same time, printing more money, which is what they will have to do in the short term to pay for it, at a time when inflation is rampant and exists in PART because of all of the money printing we did before just seems to add fuel to the fire. But again, we are arguing common sense things here, something which the democrats simply do not understand. You are right as well about what college has become, both in terms of the liberal cesspool it has become to the nonsense degrees being handed out. The weird thing for college for me has always been that MOST college grads aren't even fully prepared to do whatever it is they have studied to do—in other words, there is little to no hands-on practice in college for the job that come after it. So, while the kids come out with a degree for this thing or the other, they still lack experience in the field they are pursuing. Beyond that, the cost of college could be reduced significantly, as well as the time it takes to get a degree, if the courses focused solely on what the degree will be for. If you want to be an accountant, then why history and science and all this other garbage? Just focus on what it takes to be an accountant and you can get that all wrapped up at half the cost if not a third of the cost and in one or two years.

@porwest Well I will say when I was doing my hairdressing, I had many a college grad sitting in my chair that could not get a job..My trade is so valuable.(And I more than paid for my license and schooling)

The bottom line for me is that while I feel for some of these kids who got duped, at some point it ought to be encouragement for educators to TEACH the kids rather than to continue to forge paths for the kids that tells them honest work is bad and college education is prime. The irony is that in some cases, a college grad will look down upon a cashier at Walmart for being "beneath them," and yet, it is quite possible that the cashier will be paying for that college grads student debt. On top of that, when you clamor for the rich to pay their fair share, is it any wonder they scoff at it when they realize that their hard work and success is being used to pay for someone else's irresponsible attitude and behavior? It is outright theft. And it pisses me off when someone says I got my own wealth by stealing it and then encourages this sort of thing as just the "right thing to do." No. It's stealing. Getting something for nothing is stealing.

One thing that bothers me is that for all of this supposed education, these people have no idea about how to manage their money, and it seems to me are being enabled to buy things they cannot afford. What's more, most of these college grads are making LESS money than non-college grads, and when you add in the cost of the education—they are making FAR less money than non-college grads. It makes no sense. Look, I feel for these kids that get suckered into this whole thing. Shame on the high school guidance counselors who encourage this, and shame on the parents who sell their kids this bill of goods that life will be so much better for them if they just go to school and get a degree. Shame on the colleges for not only outright lying to their students, but soaking them with these high tuitions—that are only high BECAUSE the schools know they can get their money. Beyond that, shame on the lenders who allow these kids to ALSO borrow for living expenses while they attend school. Because let's not forget that some of these loans are not just for the education itself. They actually allow these kids to borrow for rent and food and clothes and other things. So that they can "focus on studying," not be bogged down by some job that would help them to pay for at least some of the cost of the education while they wait for that big job that's coming—that let's be real here, ISN'T COMING—that will forever pit them far ahead in the ranks alongside their non-college peers...which isn't true. It's just a bunch of crap. All of it. And once again someone else is expected to pay for all of this. When did personal responsibility become something frowned upon? The world has gone backwards and mad.

@porwest You are right to a point--at least in my experience. I was the 1st person in the family to attend a 4 year college. My parents let me decline a full ride at a state public college (that I didn't feel safe at as it was in a more urban area) to go to a private university at $25,000/per year. They didn't know any better nor did I. I've done the right thing and have paid all this time. Student loan debt is very complicated--students/parents who don't know any better, predatory loans, the interest that ensures the debt never goes away. Jim--I get it. You don't have a college degree and are proud to tell everyone you are a millionaire. That is fine. Some of us just went to school to get a job and we don't wish hardship on those who did or didn't. I would like to think that you are better than this awful stuff you are writing.

To me it seems more that the one education no one got in college is how to manage their finances. Perhaps that is what should be thought about before anyone is expected to pay for someone else's poor choices in life. Ever think about that? What makes you think that anyone is making anyone's life difficult in having to pay back money they spent? I mean, it's money THEY decided to spend. No one made that decision for them. No one forced them to make that decision. You know, if I go out tomorrow and buy a Lamborghini I can't afford, and I don't pay for it, they come and take away my Lamborghini. Maybe we should consider taking away the degree. You bought something you cannot afford that you cannot pay back... It's not yours to have the luxury of owning.

@NJChicaa It is only "awful stuff" to you because you have missed my point. Okay, so student debt is very complicated. So what? The education doesn't allow one to be better equipped to understand it? A guy like me who doesn't have a degree can understand it. Parents and students who don't know any better? Okay, fine. But isn't that the job of educators to inform the kids? Isn't that the job of high school guidance counselors to instead of just selling an education and all of its supposed benefits to explain the pros and cons? Explain the complexities? After four years of sitting in high school classrooms shouldn't the kids know about interest? How loans work? How long they take to pay off? Shouldn't the teachers themselves, who are saddled in their own debt, who complain about being underpaid explain to the kids that maybe college is not the only answer? You betcha the lenders are predatory. But consider that they only get to create "victims" when people allow themselves to be duped. You mean to tell me no one bothers to tell the kids about this stuff? When the opportunity is right there to do it? You mean it's just, let them walk into the fire and burn and we're not going to warn them about what the reality of all this is? As for sharing my own personal financial successes, it is to do exactly what it appears educators WON'T do. Teach about it. It's to provide real information that someone can use, hopefully to their own advantage. It's not to lie to people about the hardships and the impossibilities. It's not to lie to the kids about how bad and evil and corrupt the rich are. It is about letting people see another side of the coin. From a different perspective. From the perspective of reality and experience. These kids come out of school thinking a minimum wage job is worthless. And yet there are many people who work minimum wage jobs that become rich. On the flip side, there are many people in GREAT jobs who can't... Afford to pay off a simple frigging loan.

Education is overrated and kids are being sold a bill of goods as to its value. I think it serves no purpose other than to line the pockets of greedy universities who have no interest whatsoever in education.

If he does something that makes sense, of COURSE I would support it. Republican or democrat, conservative or liberal, I support GOOD POLICY. I rightfully also do not support BAD POLICY. And this is bad policy. I actually sided with democrats on the wall, you know, and disagreed with my republican friends. You do remember that democrats were LONG for walls and border security. It was the republicans who got accused of wanting open borders so they could get cheap labor. Democrats, on the issue of illegal immigration, had GOOD POLICY and republicans had BAD POLICY. So, on that issue I supported the democrats. Policy, policy, policy. It is all that matters. The reason for my "Never Biden" avatar is that I do not believe he is a legitimate president—something I have NEVER believed in the past with any other election. So, I also do not support presidents who are not in office through a proper electoral process.

The thing for me is that college is a choice mostly, and like most things we choose, whether it is buying a house or a car or an RV (such as I have been talking about a lot lately), it is no one else's responsibility to pay for these choices other than the person who made the choice. The irony is, in part, that MANY people who did not even go to college, some because they could not afford the expense, will be paying for those who did. To me that makes no sense.