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I really don't understand why people should sit by idly as wealth is transferred from those who don't have to those who have plenty.
by locopati 16y ago
I really don't understand why people should sit by idly as wealth is transferred from those who don't have to those who have plenty.
- jacques_chester 16y agoAre you assuming that higher education is a transfer to the poor? In developed countries this is not the case. University enrolments are dominated by the middle class. Effectively it is a wealth transfer from the poor to the decently well-off. Or, looked at another way, a transfer to the student from their future selves. If you take the last point of view, income-contingent loan schemes (like Australia's) are a reasonably sensible way to fund university education.
- pjscott 16y agoI'm uncomfortable with the zero-sum thinking that often accompanies that kind of statement.
- cperciva 16y agoI agree. Which is why I think higher tuition fees -- or, in other words, and end to subsidized postsecondary education -- is a good idea. Remember, those who don't have are the ~50% of the population who don't go to postsecondary education. (And don't try to claim that this is because they can't afford the associated costs; studies have repeatedly found that the costs of higher education are a very very minor factor in determining students' postsecondary attendance. The largest determining factor, by far, is the educational qualifications of students' parents.)
- Will_123456789 16y agoIs that what's happening? It sounds to me like a government at risk of collapsing because of over-spending it trying to cut back its expenses.