a degree

  Was up late last night watching WrestleMania. I was up until after eleven! I haven't done that in quite a while, and being sober when I did to boot! I see this advertisement about becoming your parents all the time, not sure what they are advertising, but I'm turning into my grandparents! I still got up at my regular time, about 4, although I feel an early nap coming on. As a result, my thoughts are a bit slow in coming and my fingers slow in typing. Well, they are always slow in typing. At my fastest three or four fingers gets involved. 

 I had read where Biden wants to forgive student loans again and part of that whole debate. I left my comment on that again as well. If you borrow the money you have to pay it back, that's the bottom line as far as I'm concerned. I can see no justification for having those that didn't borrow the money paying for a product others received. I will say that I would support some sort of legislation limiting the amount of interest charged. I'm not real familiar with the whole process and what rules are currently in place regarding that. 

 Still, you read the loan, you agreed to the interest, and it is up to you to pay that money back. You made that choice. You wanted the product and agreed to the price. If that product fails to produce the results you had hoped for, that isn't the fault of the product. You may indeed have buyer's remorse but that doesn't mean you are forgiven. I've financed a few things that I wasn't happy about afterwards but still had to pay for them. That's how a loan works. And yes, sometimes it takes years to pay it back.

 Why do people go to college? It is to further their education, isn't it? To obtain that piece of paper that will entitle you to a larger starting salary than those that do not have that paper. That's the belief anyway. You go to further your education and skill set to begin a little higher up the ladder. You feel like that degree is a certificate of entitlement. That is also why you are willing to take out a loan to obtain that, it's an investment in the future. Then reality strikes when you realize that investment just isn't paying like you thought it would. Turns out thousands of other people have that paper too. Turns out there really aren't many jobs in philosophy or gender studies. Turns out that you perceived value isn't anyway near what the actual world is willing to pay. You have a debt to pay! And not only that your employer doesn't care what loan(s) you have, they will not structure your compensation taking that into account.

 I'm old enough to remember when a high school diploma counted for something. Not everyone had one of those. You were obviously someone that could finish the job. It was proof of your character. Someone an employer could count on. Then having a degree got to be a big deal, even a two year one. That was viewed in a favorable light much like that high school diploma was. But today, well, today having a degree means little in the big picture. They are a dime a dozen. Shoot I can get one online for a reasonable fee. 

 Having that college degree is a prerequisite instead of the accomplishment. The same way a tradesman is compensated, ability and experience are valued more than participation.  Many getting that degree, subsequently complaining about having to pay back the loan because they aren't making that six figure salary they were expecting are just disappointed. They feel like they participated and should therefore get the prize! Doesn't really work like that. Simply buying a degree does not guarantee success. Simply being in debt for that degree doesn't entitle you to forgiveness of the debt. And that's the bottom line, the contractual obligation you agreed to when borrowing the funds. That degree does give you a measure of entitlement, a leg up so to speak, but you still have to climb the ladder. It isn't a degree of entitlement!  You have to earn that, not finance it.