http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/30/opinion/krugman-wasting-our-minds.html?_r=1
This article by Paul Krugman suggests that conservative policies are harming the ability of America's youth of getting an education, and then getting a job. College is extremely expensive, and republicans like Mitt Romney are in favor of cutting government aid to students. At the same time, Romney encourages young people to "get an education" and start a business, borrowing money from their parents if necessary. Krugman argues that this ignores the fact that a huge portion of Americans don't have the financial means to follow this advice.
In addition, the article addresses the issue of tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy, and how they hurt job creation rather than aiding in it. Even those who do manage to get a decent education are by no means guaranteed to get a job as a result. Because of this, a high percentage of the recently graduated are unemployed. This is bad for the government, as these people will make up a large portion of the tax base in the future. Education is important, but many policy maker's ignore this fact, instead favoring the already wealthy.
2 comments:
I agree that cutting aid for students would in the relatively long term be detrimental to the US economy. There are many other areas of government spending that could be trimmed to compensate for this essential expenditure.
However, it is important to remember that by subsidizing the cost of college, the government is contributing to the rising cost of college. What really needs to happen is changing the cultural mindset about college, so that not everyone feels like they have to go. There are plenty of jobs in the economy that do not require a rigorous college education, and if there were more alternatives to going to college, a lot of people could save money. Then the government would be less inclined to subsidize college, and fewer people would waste their money on a degree they will never use. College will then become cheaper for those who do actually need it.
Post a Comment