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I graduated college (Hofstra University) debt-free. (B.S. (Math) and M.S. (Computer Science). I took the bus to campus, live at home, and worked while in schoo

I graduated college (Hofstra University) debt-free. (B.S. (Math) and M.S. (Computer Science). I took the bus to campus, live at home, and worked while in school. So part of me says "why should kids who wanted to live in a country-club atmosphere far away from home on borrowed money for 4 years get a bailout?" However, I also realize the crippling seriousness of the problem. I think the immediate solution is: The Governments Should Get Out of the Student Loan Business. Now. Allow private companies to give loans, but they're like any other unsecured loan, and you can cover them in a bankruptcy. Tuition will drop like a rock! And maybe people will realize that not everyone has a "right" to go away to a country club for 4 years on borrowed (or someone else's) money. Only if the Government stops backing student loans would I be happy with any sort of loan "forgiveness" program. And I think these people's creditworthiness should forever be tarnished.

throwawaydebtor 9y ago
> I took the bus to campus, live at home, and worked while in school. Congratu-fucking-lations. I worked in school too (on top of, you know, the full-time job of getting a CS degree). Still didn’t put a dent in my $90,000 of private loans. > And maybe people will realize that not everyone has a “right” to go away to a country club for 4 years... O Arbiter of Rights, then do tell me who DOES get the PRIVILEGE of obtaining knowledge. Right now, it’s only those who can afford it. > And I think these people’s creditworthiness should be forever tarnished. Sincerely, fuck you. Fuck. You. Wishing future financial ruin on people who were duped by the system is such a shitty thing. I spend a lot of time wishing I had the courage to kill myself because of the debt that’s looming over me. But hey, you got yours so fuck everyone else, right? Go to hell.
DaggerDagger 9y ago
Do you think we asked the colleges to turn us into profit centers? College costs have gone up because bureuacracy has bloated. By the times undergrads figure it out it's too late. If you actually went to school to study and ended up in insane amounts of debt (like I did) you wish you hadn't gone even though you were happy to have learned what you did. It's a shitty double edged sword. Not everyone can get scholarships and school isn't easy/cheap enough to make paying for it an option by working through school. Not if you want a real job after school. Frankly it should be free. Why are you charging people to better themselves and their surroundings. It's obscene that we charge people for healthcare and schools. The United States is a corporate neocon fantasy world. Low taxes for the rich, student loans for all.
- gowld 9y ago
  neoliberal, not neocon. neocon is global war in support of US oligarchical economic interests. neoliberal is global free markets in support of global oligarchical economic interests
fuckdebt 9y ago
> I took the bus to campus, live at home, and worked while in school. Congratu-fucking-lations. I worked in school too (on top of, you know, the full-time job of getting a CS degree). Still didn’t put a dent in my $90,000 of private loans. > And maybe people will realize that not everyone has a “right” to go away to a country club for 4 years... O Arbiter of Rights, then do tell me who DOES get the PRIVILEGE of obtaining knowledge. Right now, it’s only those who can afford it. > And I think these people’s creditworthiness should be forever tarnished. Sincerely, fuck you. Fuck. You. Wishing future financial ruin on people who were duped by the system is such a shitty thing. I spend a lot of time wishing I had the courage to kill myself because of the debt that’s looming over me. But hey, you got yours so fuck everyone else, right? Go to hell.
mempko 9y ago
Or you know, we can have free college tuition like other sane and not nearly as wealthy countries do.
- dvddgld 9y ago
  Australia uses inflation-adjusted, zero-interest loans which are paid back like extra tax once your income is over a certain threshold. I think it’s a pretty great system, takes a lot of risk out of persuing tertiary education at much, much less of a cost than free tuition.
palimpsests 9y ago
You realize there's a much wider spectrum of the university and college experiences that are financially supported by student loans than "country-club atmosphere far away from home", right? And that these are not solely used by "kids"? If so, then I would hope your internal question would reflect that level of nuance.
stillbourne 9y ago
I work at a University, its a 501c3 Jesuit institution, budgets and salaries are very lean. As a software developer I make 1/2 of market but I get free tuition. We receive dollars from FAFSA but little else due to our religious status. And yet, tuition is still high despite the amount of annual fund raising we perform. For our university tuition is 35k for a year, 17.5k for a semester or $1k per credit hour with most courses being 3 credit hours. Why does college cost so much? I've been working at one for 10 years now. I can state that its because operating a college is fucking expensive. Country club atmosphere my ass, we're packing these fucking sardines into closets because we've run out of housing! Why? Because in the ambition to keep tuition low and accessible to all students including all the scholarships we dish out we've got fucking nothing for building new dorms. Oh you want a rent a place off campus? Hah! Good luck finding an studio for under $1400 a month in this neighborhood that's half ghetto, half gentrified $500k row homes. This isn't a government in the pot problem, the truth of it is its an inflation problem. The cost of EVERYTHING has gone up, not just college, household wages have not increased to meet demand. "But little Johnny can stay at home and go to school." I hear you say. Nope, many, if not most, colleges require freshmen to live on campus at least one year. Furthermore, you often have parents that want their children to attend their alma mater. Stupid as that may be it often leads to parents shipping their kids all over the fucking place despite what the child's wishes may be. Bureaucracy? Nope, I'll admit there is bureaucracy but its not the cause of the problem and its certainly not the cost. "B-b-b-b-but big gubment!" I hear you retort. What big government? You think all schools are fat cat librals sitting on their tenure teaching communism to gentle minds? Man fuck you. You're the problem. The real reason college costs are so high is because of all the poor people we give scholarships to so disadvantaged students can have a chance at life outside of the situation they were born into. The problem is cutting taxes on rich twats that don't want to give back. Give em all free college and subsidize it off every schmuck that doesn't give a fuck if some poor kid chokes to death in the ashes of the trailer park they were born in.

throwawaydebtor 9y ago

> I took the bus to campus, live at home, and worked while in school. Congratu-fucking-lations. I worked in school too (on top of, you know, the full-time job of getting a CS degree). Still didn’t put a dent in my $90,000 of private loans. > And maybe people will realize that not everyone has a “right” to go away to a country club for 4 years... O Arbiter of Rights, then do tell me who DOES get the PRIVILEGE of obtaining knowledge. Right now, it’s only those who can afford it. > And I think these people’s creditworthiness should be forever tarnished. Sincerely, fuck you. Fuck. You. Wishing future financial ruin on people who were duped by the system is such a shitty thing. I spend a lot of time wishing I had the courage to kill myself because of the debt that’s looming over me. But hey, you got yours so fuck everyone else, right? Go to hell.

DaggerDagger 9y ago

Do you think we asked the colleges to turn us into profit centers? College costs have gone up because bureuacracy has bloated. By the times undergrads figure it out it's too late. If you actually went to school to study and ended up in insane amounts of debt (like I did) you wish you hadn't gone even though you were happy to have learned what you did. It's a shitty double edged sword. Not everyone can get scholarships and school isn't easy/cheap enough to make paying for it an option by working through school. Not if you want a real job after school. Frankly it should be free. Why are you charging people to better themselves and their surroundings. It's obscene that we charge people for healthcare and schools. The United States is a corporate neocon fantasy world. Low taxes for the rich, student loans for all.

gowld 9y ago
neoliberal, not neocon. neocon is global war in support of US oligarchical economic interests. neoliberal is global free markets in support of global oligarchical economic interests

fuckdebt 9y ago

mempko 9y ago

Or you know, we can have free college tuition like other sane and not nearly as wealthy countries do.

dvddgld 9y ago
Australia uses inflation-adjusted, zero-interest loans which are paid back like extra tax once your income is over a certain threshold. I think it’s a pretty great system, takes a lot of risk out of persuing tertiary education at much, much less of a cost than free tuition.

palimpsests 9y ago

You realize there's a much wider spectrum of the university and college experiences that are financially supported by student loans than "country-club atmosphere far away from home", right? And that these are not solely used by "kids"? If so, then I would hope your internal question would reflect that level of nuance.

stillbourne 9y ago

I work at a University, its a 501c3 Jesuit institution, budgets and salaries are very lean. As a software developer I make 1/2 of market but I get free tuition. We receive dollars from FAFSA but little else due to our religious status. And yet, tuition is still high despite the amount of annual fund raising we perform. For our university tuition is 35k for a year, 17.5k for a semester or $1k per credit hour with most courses being 3 credit hours. Why does college cost so much? I've been working at one for 10 years now. I can state that its because operating a college is fucking expensive. Country club atmosphere my ass, we're packing these fucking sardines into closets because we've run out of housing! Why? Because in the ambition to keep tuition low and accessible to all students including all the scholarships we dish out we've got fucking nothing for building new dorms. Oh you want a rent a place off campus? Hah! Good luck finding an studio for under $1400 a month in this neighborhood that's half ghetto, half gentrified $500k row homes. This isn't a government in the pot problem, the truth of it is its an inflation problem. The cost of EVERYTHING has gone up, not just college, household wages have not increased to meet demand. "But little Johnny can stay at home and go to school." I hear you say. Nope, many, if not most, colleges require freshmen to live on campus at least one year. Furthermore, you often have parents that want their children to attend their alma mater. Stupid as that may be it often leads to parents shipping their kids all over the fucking place despite what the child's wishes may be. Bureaucracy? Nope, I'll admit there is bureaucracy but its not the cause of the problem and its certainly not the cost. "B-b-b-b-but big gubment!" I hear you retort. What big government? You think all schools are fat cat librals sitting on their tenure teaching communism to gentle minds? Man fuck you. You're the problem. The real reason college costs are so high is because of all the poor people we give scholarships to so disadvantaged students can have a chance at life outside of the situation they were born into. The problem is cutting taxes on rich twats that don't want to give back. Give em all free college and subsidize it off every schmuck that doesn't give a fuck if some poor kid chokes to death in the ashes of the trailer park they were born in.