Millionaire tells millennials: if you want a house, stop buying avocado toast

[Toni]

Eh, millenials have it harder in some ways: wages haven't kept up with inflation.

On the other hand, my kids ---and their friends-- think we are making stuff up when we talk about how poor we were when we first started out. Husband grew up in a much more affluent family; mine was barely off the farm and by farm I mean I remember when both sets of grandparents got indoor plumbing. Heck, I remember when WE didn't have indoor plumbing. Went back to one of the houses my family rented when I first started school, many years later, with a friend from high school. I actually could find the place just fine. We both looked at it, mostly unchanged: still shabby and tiny and remarked how lucky we were (in our very modest middle class homes as adults). And meant it. I used to tell my kids about how poor we were when they were little but it was a false poor. We could manage rent, had health care, ate very cheap (everything from scratch), and mostly read books and hung out with friends. If we were feeling flush, with beer or wine. Otherwise, not. Clothes were shabby but so were our friends' clothes. We passed clothes around as one kid outgrew his wardrobe, shared what we could, laughed a lot. And knew better times were coming after grad school. And they did come.

In my day, we could reasonably pay for a good state school working summer jobs and part time jobs during high school, if we didn't go crazy buying expensive stereo systems. Can't do that these days, at least not most places, and not full time. Of course, when we went off to college, we just had a few pairs of jeans, a few t-shirts, a dictionary, thesaurus, a calculator if you were into science or math and some shampoo. A few pairs of socks and if you were well off: more than two pairs of shoes. And that nice stereo. If you brought your car, it was impounded and you could have it at Thanksgiving, Christmas, Spring Break and end of the year. Freshmen and sophomores were required to live in dorms unless there was a very good reason not to (i.e. you were 30 years old and raising kids, working AND finally starting college). When I dropped off my oldest, the van was crammed full and I was embarrassed at how much crap he had and was bringing. And then I saw the parents with trailers hitched to their vans and felt....less embarrassed.

Kids today think they are poor if they can't afford a coffee that costs more than I made in an hour at their age or go out for beers a couple of times a week or see whatever hipster show is playing down at the 'neighborhood' bar. They have more clothes in their closets than I had if you added every single item of clothing I ever wore from birth through age 25. They eschew hand me downs but love the second hand places--I mean: vintage clothing stores. They have cars. And bicycles that cost as much as a semester's tuition my freshman year. Of course, their books for a semester cost more than my tuition for a semester, freshman year, too. Mostly finished school with little to no debt and mostly on parents' dime. Their parents had received virtually no help from their own parents but we could manage with part time jobs and scholarships.

They either have cable or have figured out clever ways to watch without paying for cable. Their phones can carry out calculations and take photos and access a library's worth of information.


What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

 

[Derec]

And he is talking about the kids he sees. Rich kids who can buy $22 toast and have it not mean a damn because trustfund babies get cars and condos regardless.

How do you know they are "trust fund babies"? Are you really denying that there are many non-rich people who spend too much money on luxuries and frivolities.
We had a thread a few years ago where I posted the article about that family which was barely scraping by who just wanted to have a $1,500 sofa and love seat set so much, they agreed on a rent-to-own plan that would end up costing them >$4,000? And the kicker is, every time they would go down to the store to make the payment, they'd end up putting something else they didn't need on their tab.

He has done some fucked up mashup in his empty head and giving advice to working kids about the extravagant practices of the wealthy

And you know who buys $20 (AUS) smashed avocado sandwiches in Melbourne exactly how?

Yeah, it must annoy the hell outta you to know she's right and you ain't. And that will most always be the case.

It doesn't annoy me because she isn't.

 

[DrZoidberg]

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

 

[AthenaAwakened]

How do you know they are "trust fund babies"? Are you really denying that there are many non-rich people who spend too much money on luxuries and frivolities.
We had a thread a few years ago where I posted the article about that family which was barely scraping by who just wanted to have a $1,500 sofa and love seat set so much, they agreed on a rent-to-own plan that would end up costing them >$4,000? And the kicker is, every time they would go down to the store to make the payment, they'd end up putting something else they didn't need on their tab.

He has done some fucked up mashup in his empty head and giving advice to working kids about the extravagant practices of the wealthy

And you know who buys $20 (AUS) smashed avocado sandwiches in Melbourne exactly how?

Yeah, it must annoy the hell outta you to know she's right and you ain't. And that will most always be the case.

It doesn't annoy me because she isn't.

It does cuz she is.

I know this because you doth protest too much.

Unlike other people, I'm not going to keep repeating myself. Don't have to. I'm right. You're wrong. As it should and most always will be.

you know, I really don't get your need to defend rich people, no matter what stupid thing they say or do. I don't defend them, I criticize them to their faces and they actually pay to hear me speak. You find nothing wrong with anything they do, and most likely, they'll pay security to speak to you.

 

[laughing dog]

By the way, I stand by that quote. It is about advisability of running from and fighting with police, not about prosecuting cops for unjustified shootings. Even if a cop is convicted, it is not bringing you back to life.

The dead cannot be brought back to life regardless of the profession of the killer. But I doubt you are calling a permanent moratorium on prosecuting all kiliings.

 

[Harry Bosch]

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

The above is pretty sharp. The Bernie or bust millennials screwed themselves by either not voting or voting third party. Republicans aren't going to be helping out with college. In fact they are going to be cutting.....

 

[LordKiran]

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

Yeah that's great unless you have no aspirations for leveraging that degree for profit.

 

[Toni]

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

You just contradicted yourself in first paragraph vs last.

In the US, WE are crippling an entire generation by making education so expensive. I would never presume to actually know or to criticize how another country manages its own affairs without deep personal experience in that country.

 

[Deepak]

Millennials are killing everything

 

[Derec]

By the way, I stand by that quote. It is about advisability of running from and fighting with police, not about prosecuting cops for unjustified shootings. Even if a cop is convicted, it is not bringing you back to life.

The dead cannot be brought back to life regardless of the profession of the killer. But I doubt you are calling a permanent moratorium on prosecuting all kiliings.

Did you even read what I wrote? It was not about prosecuting cops or anybody else. Of course they should be prosecuted. But that prosecution will not bring anybody back from the dead, which is why it is still stupid to do things that increase your chances of getting shot by police.

 

[DrZoidberg]

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

Yeah that's great unless you have no aspirations for leveraging that degree for profit.

But that's like saying you have no aspirations to make money. Good for you. But then you can't come and whine when you can't afford to buy your own home

Reality is reality. It doesn't care about what you think should be right.

 

[DrZoidberg]

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

You just contradicted yourself in first paragraph vs last.

In the US, WE are crippling an entire generation by making education so expensive. I would never presume to actually know or to criticize how another country manages its own affairs without deep personal experience in that country.

So you're saying that I'm wrong?

 

[Toni]

You just contradicted yourself in first paragraph vs last.

In the US, WE are crippling an entire generation by making education so expensive. I would never presume to actually know or to criticize how another country manages its own affairs without deep personal experience in that country.

So you're saying that I'm wrong?

I'm saying I'm right.

 

[DrZoidberg]

So you're saying that I'm wrong?

I'm saying I'm right.

If you think a little about it I think you'll figure out there's no contradiction.

 

[Toni]

I'm saying I'm right.

If you think a little about it I think you'll figure out there's no contradiction.

Actually, there is. At best, what you wrote is not at all applicable to the US.:

Here's the exchange:

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Y
But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

Let's break this down:

My assertion: We (meaning in the US) are crippling an entire generation (due to student debt).

Your response: No, we're not.

I honestly don't know about Sweden, but in the US? Certainly we are. A huge portion of our college educated people under the age of 40 are carrying an enormous amount of student loan debt that is crippling their ability to purchase a home, start a family, or even marry. Looking at your prospective partner's credit rating is not only a thing now, but prudent.

You:

Our world is more complicated today.

Possibly it is. I'm not actually certain that is true or whether we just feel more informed because of the 24/7 news cycle and internet. Plus, it always seems more cool and grown up to believe that our lives are so much more complicated and more difficult than our parents' lives were.

My own parents grew up during the Great Depression (and let me tell you: the Great Recession did not even come close. Not close to what happened world wide in the late 30's through mid '40's.). In a sense, their lives, or more particularly, the lives of my grandparents, were 'simpler' in that they centered on mostly making sure there was enough food on the table to ensure the kids did not die of starvation. Never mind that there was no money or other resource to look after the kids while all grandparents held paying jobs, farmed (which may or may not have actually resulted in a net profit) and two were actively dying. Without health insurance. One as a result of injuries sustained in WWI, so treating vets like crap is hardly new.

We boomers grew up in relative prosperity but that meant, at best, driving a beater of an automobile, having about 3 pairs of jeans, a collection of t-shirts, sneakers and a pair of dress shoes and one or two decent outfits 'for good.' Those are the days people my kids age think were better, although if they actually were magically transported back then, they'd be certain they were in abject poverty.

There's a lot more stuff now, and a lot more choices about what stuff to buy. A lot more choices about what kind of job to have.


You:

Making money is easier in terms of effort.

Probably not. Oh, most farmers don't have to do as much back breaking physical labor but it's still a lot harder a job than anything you'd likely deign to do. Aside from that? I don't really think you know much about the jobs people did and how much effort it took then. Or now.

Nearly all jobs today are in tech.

Not true. Yes, technology affects a great many jobs, perhaps most jobs. But not all jobs or nearly all or even most jobs are in tech. Maybe in your world, but your world is a pretty small place, after all. That's not an insult: mine is too, and so is everyone else's. We only know what we live.


You:

Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say here, and how much of it is a difference between the education system in your country and in mine but in the US:

Yes, it is difficult to have a decent paying job if you do not have some kind of education beyond high school.

In the US, there are universities, which typically grant 4 year degrees and generally have graduate and perhaps professional schools associated with them, where one might say, become a physician or a pharmacist or a lawyer, or a research scientist, etc.

The term college in the US is evolving. It used to be a 4 year institution of higher learning, typically more aligned with liberal arts and not generally associated with any graduate or professional schools. People here typically still say 'college' when they mean 'university' at least in informal conversation: When I went to college (at a university) or where is your son/daughter thinking of going to college (that is: university).

There were and still are another layer of education: Technical schools where one learns a trade such as carpentry or plumbing or to be an electrician. A fair number of these prepare people for tech jobs, actually. Also community colleges which often serve as an entry point into higher ed for less strong or less well prepared students or simply students with lesser means. Typically you can much less expensively earn enough credits in general education requirements to knock a couple of years off a more expensive university degree. Typically community college classes are actually less rigorous (although community colleges say they aren't but they are wrong about that. Completely. At least in my experience with students who started in community colleges) and less expensive and the instructors are less likely to hold terminal degrees. The students often still live at home with parents and usually also work at least one job.

If you want to have a relatively secure economic future and are not interested in becoming a plumber or electrician, you probably need a university degree.

You:

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo

This part I agree with, but it is contradicted by what you wrote before that.

Why does the US do this? I think it is part of a long term strategy of the Republican party.

 

[DrZoidberg]

If you think a little about it I think you'll figure out there's no contradiction.

Actually, there is. At best, what you wrote is not at all applicable to the US.:

Here's the exchange:

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Y
But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

Let's break this down:

My assertion: We (meaning in the US) are crippling an entire generation (due to student debt).

Your response: No, we're not.

I honestly don't know about Sweden, but in the US? Certainly we are. A huge portion of our college educated people under the age of 40 are carrying an enormous amount of student loan debt that is crippling their ability to purchase a home, start a family, or even marry. Looking at your prospective partner's credit rating is not only a thing now, but prudent.

You:

Our world is more complicated today.

Possibly it is. I'm not actually certain that is true or whether we just feel more informed because of the 24/7 news cycle and internet. Plus, it always seems more cool and grown up to believe that our lives are so much more complicated and more difficult than our parents' lives were.

My own parents grew up during the Great Depression (and let me tell you: the Great Recession did not even come close. Not close to what happened world wide in the late 30's through mid '40's.). In a sense, their lives, or more particularly, the lives of my grandparents, were 'simpler' in that they centered on mostly making sure there was enough food on the table to ensure the kids did not die of starvation. Never mind that there was no money or other resource to look after the kids while all grandparents held paying jobs, farmed (which may or may not have actually resulted in a net profit) and two were actively dying. Without health insurance. One as a result of injuries sustained in WWI, so treating vets like crap is hardly new.

We boomers grew up in relative prosperity but that meant, at best, driving a beater of an automobile, having about 3 pairs of jeans, a collection of t-shirts, sneakers and a pair of dress shoes and one or two decent outfits 'for good.' Those are the days people my kids age think were better, although if they actually were magically transported back then, they'd be certain they were in abject poverty.

There's a lot more stuff now, and a lot more choices about what stuff to buy. A lot more choices about what kind of job to have.


You:

Making money is easier in terms of effort.

Probably not. Oh, most farmers don't have to do as much back breaking physical labor but it's still a lot harder a job than anything you'd likely deign to do. Aside from that? I don't really think you know much about the jobs people did and how much effort it took then. Or now.

Nearly all jobs today are in tech.

Not true. Yes, technology affects a great many jobs, perhaps most jobs. But not all jobs or nearly all or even most jobs are in tech. Maybe in your world, but your world is a pretty small place, after all. That's not an insult: mine is too, and so is everyone else's. We only know what we live.


You:

Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say here, and how much of it is a difference between the education system in your country and in mine but in the US:

Yes, it is difficult to have a decent paying job if you do not have some kind of education beyond high school.

In the US, there are universities, which typically grant 4 year degrees and generally have graduate and perhaps professional schools associated with them, where one might say, become a physician or a pharmacist or a lawyer, or a research scientist, etc.

The term college in the US is evolving. It used to be a 4 year institution of higher learning, typically more aligned with liberal arts and not generally associated with any graduate or professional schools. People here typically still say 'college' when they mean 'university' at least in informal conversation: When I went to college (at a university) or where is your son/daughter thinking of going to college (that is: university).

There were and still are another layer of education: Technical schools where one learns a trade such as carpentry or plumbing or to be an electrician. A fair number of these prepare people for tech jobs, actually. Also community colleges which often serve as an entry point into higher ed for less strong or less well prepared students or simply students with lesser means. Typically you can much less expensively earn enough credits in general education requirements to knock a couple of years off a more expensive university degree. Typically community college classes are actually less rigorous (although community colleges say they aren't but they are wrong about that. Completely. At least in my experience with students who started in community colleges) and less expensive and the instructors are less likely to hold terminal degrees. The students often still live at home with parents and usually also work at least one job.

If you want to have a relatively secure economic future and are not interested in becoming a plumber or electrician, you probably need a university degree.

You:

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo

This part I agree with, but it is contradicted by what you wrote before that.

Why does the US do this? I think it is part of a long term strategy of the Republican party.

It's got to do with leverage. When you are young and have little money, you have nothing to leverage with. Loans put you in negative. It means it takes you a hell of a lot longer before you get into a position when you can invest in anything. Like a home. Investments matter, because it's essentially compound interest.

Middle-aged people who have all this sorted have high leverage. They've already reached that point in life. They make a lot of money, and have less costs (than people with loans).

It's better for society as a whole if you take money from middle-aged people, and give it to young people who study. That gives increased leverage to young people. They get rich quicker, and can start contributing earlier. It speeds up everything. That's what all sensible and affluent countries are doing around the world. It's becoming standard operating practice. The Scandinavian countries and Germany have been doing it for 70 years now, and we have the strongest, most successful and dynamic economies of Europe. It's obviously working for us.

USA is basically giving rich people, more money, that they then piss away on consumption. While they make it harder for poor people to break out of poverty to get ahead in life.

USA has gotten, and still gets loads of free money from their oil industry. So they can get away with stupid economic policies, and they'll still do brilliantly. Just because you're successful doesn't mean you're smarter than others. It might just as well mean you were lucky. Russia once had a massive oil reserve, which they pumped up and squandered on consumption.

And add to that that the world is richer than ever. Compared to 30 or 50 years ago everybody is better off. Even the poorest. The green, tech and computer revolution has made our world incredibly efficient. This shows. Luxury goods is available to everybody today. Everybody. Anybody who puts their mind to it can afford a boob job. We're all better off. This means it's easier for everybody to pay off debts today.

Do you now understand why there's no contradiction?

 

[RavenSky]

Millennials are killing everything

 

[Toni]

Actually, there is. At best, what you wrote is not at all applicable to the US.:

Here's the exchange:

What I find truly unacceptable and absolutely shameful is the student debt burden far too many students must carry if they want to obtain a college degree. We are crippling entire generations and our future.

No, we're not. Our world is more complicated today. Making money is easier in terms of effort. But harder in terms of required knowledge before you start. It's way easier paying off student debt today than it's ever been. Nearly all jobs today are in tech. Y
But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo.

Let's break this down:

My assertion: We (meaning in the US) are crippling an entire generation (due to student debt).

Your response: No, we're not.

I honestly don't know about Sweden, but in the US? Certainly we are. A huge portion of our college educated people under the age of 40 are carrying an enormous amount of student loan debt that is crippling their ability to purchase a home, start a family, or even marry. Looking at your prospective partner's credit rating is not only a thing now, but prudent.

You:

Our world is more complicated today.

Possibly it is. I'm not actually certain that is true or whether we just feel more informed because of the 24/7 news cycle and internet. Plus, it always seems more cool and grown up to believe that our lives are so much more complicated and more difficult than our parents' lives were.

My own parents grew up during the Great Depression (and let me tell you: the Great Recession did not even come close. Not close to what happened world wide in the late 30's through mid '40's.). In a sense, their lives, or more particularly, the lives of my grandparents, were 'simpler' in that they centered on mostly making sure there was enough food on the table to ensure the kids did not die of starvation. Never mind that there was no money or other resource to look after the kids while all grandparents held paying jobs, farmed (which may or may not have actually resulted in a net profit) and two were actively dying. Without health insurance. One as a result of injuries sustained in WWI, so treating vets like crap is hardly new.

We boomers grew up in relative prosperity but that meant, at best, driving a beater of an automobile, having about 3 pairs of jeans, a collection of t-shirts, sneakers and a pair of dress shoes and one or two decent outfits 'for good.' Those are the days people my kids age think were better, although if they actually were magically transported back then, they'd be certain they were in abject poverty.

There's a lot more stuff now, and a lot more choices about what stuff to buy. A lot more choices about what kind of job to have.


You:

Making money is easier in terms of effort.

Probably not. Oh, most farmers don't have to do as much back breaking physical labor but it's still a lot harder a job than anything you'd likely deign to do. Aside from that? I don't really think you know much about the jobs people did and how much effort it took then. Or now.

Nearly all jobs today are in tech.

Not true. Yes, technology affects a great many jobs, perhaps most jobs. But not all jobs or nearly all or even most jobs are in tech. Maybe in your world, but your world is a pretty small place, after all. That's not an insult: mine is too, and so is everyone else's. We only know what we live.


You:

Just collage isn't enough these days. You need a university degree.

I'm not sure what you are trying to say here, and how much of it is a difference between the education system in your country and in mine but in the US:

Yes, it is difficult to have a decent paying job if you do not have some kind of education beyond high school.

In the US, there are universities, which typically grant 4 year degrees and generally have graduate and perhaps professional schools associated with them, where one might say, become a physician or a pharmacist or a lawyer, or a research scientist, etc.

The term college in the US is evolving. It used to be a 4 year institution of higher learning, typically more aligned with liberal arts and not generally associated with any graduate or professional schools. People here typically still say 'college' when they mean 'university' at least in informal conversation: When I went to college (at a university) or where is your son/daughter thinking of going to college (that is: university).

There were and still are another layer of education: Technical schools where one learns a trade such as carpentry or plumbing or to be an electrician. A fair number of these prepare people for tech jobs, actually. Also community colleges which often serve as an entry point into higher ed for less strong or less well prepared students or simply students with lesser means. Typically you can much less expensively earn enough credits in general education requirements to knock a couple of years off a more expensive university degree. Typically community college classes are actually less rigorous (although community colleges say they aren't but they are wrong about that. Completely. At least in my experience with students who started in community colleges) and less expensive and the instructors are less likely to hold terminal degrees. The students often still live at home with parents and usually also work at least one job.

If you want to have a relatively secure economic future and are not interested in becoming a plumber or electrician, you probably need a university degree.

You:

But it is funny how USA choses to fuck their long term success in the ass, by not having free universities. Instead they're "investing" in short term consumption. I've never understood why they do that. Anyhoo

This part I agree with, but it is contradicted by what you wrote before that.

Why does the US do this? I think it is part of a long term strategy of the Republican party.

It's got to do with leverage. When you are young and have little money, you have nothing to leverage with. Loans put you in negative. It means it takes you a hell of a lot longer before you get into a position when you can invest in anything. Like a home. Investments matter, because it's essentially compound interest.

Middle-aged people who have all this sorted have high leverage. They've already reached that point in life. They make a lot of money, and have less costs (than people with loans).

It's better for society as a whole if you take money from middle-aged people, and give it to young people who study. That gives increased leverage to young people. They get rich quicker, and can start contributing earlier. It speeds up everything. That's what all sensible and affluent countries are doing around the world. It's becoming standard operating practice. The Scandinavian countries and Germany have been doing it for 70 years now, and we have the strongest, most successful and dynamic economies of Europe. It's obviously working for us.

USA is basically giving rich people, more money, that they then piss away on consumption. While they make it harder for poor people to break out of poverty to get ahead in life.

USA has gotten, and still gets loads of free money from their oil industry. So they can get away with stupid economic policies, and they'll still do brilliantly. Just because you're successful doesn't mean you're smarter than others. It might just as well mean you were lucky. Russia once had a massive oil reserve, which they pumped up and squandered on consumption.

And add to that that the world is richer than ever. Compared to 30 or 50 years ago everybody is better off. Even the poorest. The green, tech and computer revolution has made our world incredibly efficient. This shows. Luxury goods is available to everybody today. Everybody. Anybody who puts their mind to it can afford a boob job. We're all better off. This means it's easier for everybody to pay off debts today.

Do you now understand why there's no contradiction?

I understand that you don't know what you're talking about.

 

[LordKiran]

Yeah that's great unless you have no aspirations for leveraging that degree for profit.

But that's like saying you have no aspirations to make money. Good for you. But then you can't come and whine when you can't afford to buy your own home

Reality is reality. It doesn't care about what you think should be right.

No, it's like saying I have no aspirations to work in a line of employment related to the degree I wish to pursue. Are you now going to claim that degrees which cannot be leveraged into a profit are not worth the money spent on them?

 

[DrZoidberg]

But that's like saying you have no aspirations to make money. Good for you. But then you can't come and whine when you can't afford to buy your own home

Reality is reality. It doesn't care about what you think should be right.

No, it's like saying I have no aspirations to work in a line of employment related to the degree I wish to pursue. Are you now going to claim that degrees which cannot be leveraged into a profit are not worth the money spent on them?

It depends why you've gotten the degree. If you got the degree to make a living from it then they weren't. That's the definition of a bad investement