I suppose it depends on whose ox is being gored, but forgiving or reducing student loans is unfair and wrong on several levels. Sure, those currently having to pay off such loans love the idea. Who wouldn’t? But ultimately somebody has to pay those bills. And why should that somebody be the rest of us? How is that fair? Double that insult for those who’ve already spent years paying off their own student loans. Now you expect them to pay off somebody else’s?
And what about the people who never went to college because they couldn’t afford it. Yet now you want them to pay for someone else’s education? That makes absolutely no sense.
And what about the next class that wants an education. You paid off the loans of the class ahead of them but no, you won’t pay for their education. Explain to them how that’s fair.
Responsible people incur loans with the expectation that they, not someone else, will repay those loans. That’s the way it’s always been. That’s the way it should remain. Don’t mess with that, Mr. President. Just. Don’t.
(But if you’re absolutely determined to forgive loans, I’ve got a mortgage … and a credit card … )
Agreed. It is not fair. If rather see EVERYONE receive some sort of one-time government payment not just holders of student loans. If the US has that kind of money to spare, why not give EVERYONE $5 or $10 grand. Or implement a universal basic income UBI. Or Medicare for all. But now I’m rambling.
Better to use our tax money on projects that individuals and states can’t afford to do by themselves — hurricane relief or infrastructure projects or, at the moment, aid to Ukraine. But no throwing money at student debts (or any other debts) legitimately and willingly incurred by private citizens. That’s not why we pay taxes.
Agreed… Though hurricane relief needs some careful consideration when it comes to bailing out people who repeatedly re-build in hurricane zones.
Excellent point. All big government expeditures need to be carefuly considered for shortcomings just like that. Otherwise they are wasteful, if not actually counterproductive.
I completely agree. I paid for my sons’ college through savings with them working summers to help, and i have saved substantially for my grandchildren through Missouri’s 529 program. Like you, I’m not liberal on all topics, and this is one of them for sure. A similar issue is that of reparations for descendants of slaves. It’s a tough world out here, hard work being fundamental to a good democracy. They need to get used to it.
My son paid for a lot of his own education — and spent some years paying off the loans. No way he should now have to pay off someone else’s loans, especially since he’ll soon be paying for his own daughter’s education. Nor did my retirement plans include paying off someone else’s loans. And I’m right there with you on reparations. No possible way to do that equitably. Besides, no one alive today was ever a slave … or a slave owner.
Right. Tough love. Because we care. babsje has a good point also.
I thought it was a great point. People may not be able to move completely out of hurricane zones, but they sure shouldn’t be rebuilding in known flood zones. Oh, but that’s okay because we’ll spend millions building dikes to protect them.
I agree in the main with the general sentiments here, but feel like this could be one of those super math problems loaded with multiple components of the law of unintended consequence. Like NASA constructing a building to prevent weather from damaging some super big rocket, only to discover the very structure they build created its own weather. Would like to see some serious numbers…but whatever the plus or minuses, as the discussion on this post rightly indicates, it ain’t gonna be no zero sum political sell.
I’ve yet to see a bill from Congress that wasn’t fraught with unintended consequences. Same with state legislatures. So then they have to pass more bills to fix what was broken, thereby introducing more unintended consequences, etc., etc., etc.
and that’s the American way…nice post by the way. And what are you listening tonight in those wee hours?
Thank you. And tonight, in the wee hours, instead of listening to your videos, if any, I’ll probably be watching “Ozark.”
You make some good points. I wish something would be done about the cost of college and university education now in the first place — it’s outrageous! The loan system needs revamping as does the interest rates with which they soak these kids.
The “loan system” has always been fraught with the problem of high interest rates. The only difference I can see between a regular loan and a college loan is that you can’t evade payment on a college loan through bankruptcy. I think people sign up for them because they see it as normal, everybody does it. Nobody is forced to take out a loan. What is needed is better financial education.
I’ve never understood why college loans aren’t included in bankrupty. What makes them so special? What if all loan institutions wanted the same status?
The answer is that a very large committee in D.C. decided they wanted it that way. Student loans are subsidized by the feds and I think they knew that millions would be sucked in, mainly by greed and peer pressure. The average student loan debt is $32,000 and the total outstanding debt is about 1.6T, or $1,600,000,000,000, so they were right about that. If even half of those defaulted, it wouldn’t look so good on the old balance sheet.
… and I thought I couldn’t get any more disillusioned about our government.
I think I choked when my son told me what my granddaughter’s college tuition would likely be, even for the local state university. And she dreams of going to NYU! Unbelievable. I don’t know how anyone affords college these days.
(and a lack of higher education is a detriment to the nation!)