You might note that it’s not the students who are sucking up the subsidies here.

I only had to borrow $2500 my senior year. Tuition was $4800 per year and books about $700.

In current dollars the tuition would be almost $12,000 and the loan $6000.

The recession started with round after round of foreclosures, the people with ARMS had been forced to default because the couldn’t handle the higher monthly payments.

I’m not saying education financing is bad or wrong, but I am saying that loaning money to people who are going to have a hard time paying it back is unwise at the least. There has been plenty of news stories lately about students who’s projected income doesn’t justify the borrowing for their schooling.

It makes about as much sense as loaning money to a small start-up business that doesn’t have a business plan.

There needs to be mechanisms to protect against follies.The interest rate is one such mechanism.

But when the Soviets wanted to buy up a good piece of our grain harvest, they not only backed it, they also lobbied for providing the Reds with financing to allow them to do it in style.

It is only natural for people, not just Conservatives, to modulate their principles in order to make them coincide with their interests.

As a rule, very large businesses.

These people will not come from anywhere other than the middle class, which cannot as a rule afford to pay for their education. The nation purchases tanks, missiles, ships, and rockets from companies because it perceives a need for these items. There is no reason it should not pay for the education of its’ citizens as it perceives a need for these trained people.

Every cut in social programs is permanent. Things will never get better as globalization proceeds, and other countries become more technically proficient, mostly by educating their citizenry. For all his faults, Ghadafi provided as much education for Libyans as they wanted, the state paying for it all.

If the US is serious about cutting back spending, it could cut the military budget in half without degrading the security of our country. When that happens I’ll believe Conservatives are serious about saving money.

I remember thinking at the time it was a fair arrangement and I was very happy with it. Of course, if I had had a mortgage or a family it would have been impossible.

Even in those countries where college is “free”, only tuition is covered by the State. Books, fees and other expenses are the student’s responsibility. My grandfather attended the University of Havana Med School in the early years of the 20th century (until he was thrown out for radical politics), and he relied on help from his parents even though his tuition was covered by the government. As in most civilized countries, if you are able to pass the entrance exams, the State has the obligation to pay for at least your tuition.

Actually, we have the same system here because tuition does not cover the cost of an education. Only here, the government subsidizes those people who can already afford the tuition. This is why I like to call it a form of middle-class welfare.