Canceling $10k of student loan debt is stupid.

[Anonymous]

I am late to the game and have not read too many of the prior posts but why don’t we make colleges/universities pay some of this back? Isn’t it obvious that they are way over priced? I feel for young people in debt but what about the young people who take small business loans? Assuming Biden even has the authority to do this (which Pelosi said only congress could forgive student loan debt) it seems like a Hail Mary to sway the November elections. So sad to see what our nation has spiraled into.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So many bean counters here who are unhappy about other people getting a so-called break while they “did everything right”. Cry me a river. You just want to screw everyone over because you’re bitter?

Maybe they had illnesses, disadvantages, dependents, or other circumstances that got in the way of paying the loans off. Maybe their parents didn’t help them out with cars or bills. Some people may have made out like bandits and others really needed it. Is it really worth all this solipsistic hand-wringing about what you did with your own loans? Can’t you see the broader policy implications of this?

+1 The biggest problem I see on this thread is that people don't see the benefit of supporting other people in society who are less well-off than they are. All they can see is that if someone gets something, they want it too, even if they don't have the documented need for it.

NP. I haven't read the whole thread and I could follow the whole student loan debt issue more closely. I 100% agree that too many generations of Americans were fed some version of the lie that if you pay big $ for college you'll be successful. But, please understand there are some (I just know about myself but I have to assume I'm not that unique), who got through school debt free on a combination of pell grants and work study, whose parents didn't help with cars or bills and in fact helped their parents. My parents' constant financial stress taught me to choose a college I could get through debt free, so they did give me that lesson. I went on to grad school and I repaid those loans ASAP through shared housing in school and when I graduated, NOT going out on weekends and when I did I spent very little. I didn't own a car until I got married (my husband owned a beater). We lived in some awful apartments that in hindsight were not healthy. We had kids AFTER the loans were repaid. I had the advantage of being healthy. While I agree that there is a lot of need for reform and in general agree that some amount of student loan forgiveness is probably a good idea, sentiments like the bolded are really irksome. Some of us without parental help still managed. That is all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So many bean counters here who are unhappy about other people getting a so-called break while they “did everything right”. Cry me a river. You just want to screw everyone over because you’re bitter?

Maybe they had illnesses, disadvantages, dependents, or other circumstances that got in the way of paying the loans off. Maybe their parents didn’t help them out with cars or bills. Some people may have made out like bandits and others really needed it. Is it really worth all this solipsistic hand-wringing about what you did with your own loans? Can’t you see the broader policy implications of this?

+1 The biggest problem I see on this thread is that people don't see the benefit of supporting other people in society who are less well-off than they are. All they can see is that if someone gets something, they want it too, even if they don't have the documented need for it.

No, we just understand the basic principle that nothing is free. Someone will have to pay for this and it’ll be rest of us not benefiting.

Do you not see the benefits of a more educated population for the country you live in? Because it's well documented that more educated countries have higher incomes and stronger growth trajectories.

[Anonymous]

Get ready for this… The government so far has collected $40k-50k from me in interest alone.
There’s no need to worry about where MY $10k forgiveness is coming from. I paid it.

Jan 1, it starts up again, so they’re not done collecting from me. $20 a day they will get from me, until I lower and finish it off.

[Anonymous]

I’m trying to applaud this but I just can’t. I have a business degree. I processed payroll at a big company during the day and worked as a waitress a few nights a week. I paid off my loans 2 years ago. Now I wish I had not bothered with the waitressing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m trying to applaud this but I just can’t. I have a business degree. I processed payroll at a big company during the day and worked as a waitress a few nights a week. I paid off my loans 2 years ago. Now I wish I had not bothered with the waitressing.

If it is was hard for you--why can't you find it within yourself to be happy that it won't be equally hard for those that come after you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m trying to applaud this but I just can’t. I have a business degree. I processed payroll at a big company during the day and worked as a waitress a few nights a week. I paid off my loans 2 years ago. Now I wish I had not bothered with the waitressing.

So you would have rather stayed in debt? Maybe you should have given up on processing payroll and gone on welfare while you were at it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m trying to applaud this but I just can’t. I have a business degree. I processed payroll at a big company during the day and worked as a waitress a few nights a week. I paid off my loans 2 years ago. Now I wish I had not bothered with the waitressing.

If it is was hard for you--why can't you find it within yourself to be happy that it won't be equally hard for those that come after you?

+1 Benefits change over time. I don't hear many elderly arguing that they don't want Social Security because they weren't able to pay in at the beginning of their employment, or because their parents paid for their retirement on their own without help.

[Anonymous]

Ok, so I survived cancer and I don't see why other people can't do the same. Why is the government working on curing cancer for these lazy people.

Yes, that is a really dumb argument and...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, so I survived cancer and I don't see why other people can't do the same. Why is the government working on curing cancer for these lazy people.

Yes, that is a really dumb argument and...

+1 million. I think people need to look inside themselves and think about why they want people to suffer the same thing they found difficult.

[Anonymous]

I have a high school senior. College prices have increased, not decreased. Does this $10K freebie extend to students who are just heading off to college? Biden has opened a Pandora’s box and it’s never going to be shut. I had really hoped he would devote part of his effort to addressing the cost of college. So we’re just going to continue this madness?

[Anonymous]

"So we reward those that took at debt for worthless degrees that can't pay it back? Wtf


Yup, pretty much. Only the genders studies, philosophy majors, english majors, and all of the crappy degree holders get this free handout."

Can you please connect the dots for us? Where does it say that this is for people who majored in these fields? The forgiveness program is not for people who CANNOT pay their loans back. The only qualification for receiving the loan forgiveness is that you must make under $125K single/$250K married and have taken out the loan before July 1, 2022. An electrical engineer who graduated 3 years ago and earns $90K is eligible.

[Anonymous]

"K. But the Europeans are not dumb enough to think that “college is for everyone.” As a result they can develop highly skilled tradesmen and educate their relatively small number of academically superior students for free. You’re right, this is a very effective model. But it requires a separate vocational tract for most high school students and national entrance exams. You still cool with this?"

It also requires trade unions that ensure high quality working conditions, pay, and benefits for these tradespeople. You still cool with this????

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, so I survived cancer and I don't see why other people can't do the same. Why is the government working on curing cancer for these lazy people.

Yes, that is a really dumb argument and...

+1 million. I think people need to look inside themselves and think about why they want people to suffer the same thing they found difficult.

I don’t want people to suffer but I do want them to prioritize and work hard. I don’t want a bunch of people sitting around waiting for a bailout. Get up and work!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m trying to applaud this but I just can’t. I have a business degree. I processed payroll at a big company during the day and worked as a waitress a few nights a week. I paid off my loans 2 years ago. Now I wish I had not bothered with the waitressing.

If it is was hard for you--why can't you find it within yourself to be happy that it won't be equally hard for those that come after you?

+1 Benefits change over time. I don't hear many elderly arguing that they don't want Social Security because they weren't able to pay in at the beginning of their employment, or because their parents paid for their retirement on their own without help.

+2 If you look back at when FDR did the New Deal, critics were complaining about the socialist idea of guaranteed income for the elderly (aka Social Security) in much the same way some people on this thread are whining now. Now it's something people accept as part of the way to keep the elderly out of poverty.