Why should college be free?

[justawnnabewriter]

and what about those that graduate debt free (scholarships, grants, being smart with his or her money)

so If I can do it, why can't others?

 

[Wilson23]

Same reason high school should be free: We've developed a society where you can't get along without it.

 

[justawnnabewriter]

Same reason high school should be free: We've developed a society where you can't get along without it.

That's not very compelling

 

[Wilson23]

That's not very compelling

It is ABSOLUTELY compelling. That is why STATE universities exist.

 

[Chernosoth]

I fully agree. Colleges that fail to prepare students for careers should pay their own bills and stop taking money from students and taxpayers.

 

[MrsKissit]

The state of Maine just made college free for every Maine high school graduate effective 2026. It's better to pay for an education than a lifetime of welfare or building more prisons. Education is the most effective , least expensive means to improve society, lower crime and raise the standard of living.
.
You'll never hear Trump say this nor any republican for that matter.

 

[BrightShinyGirl]

Colleges and trade schools should be free because saddling young people with heavy debt when they’re just starting out is counterproductive. You want people to save up money over the course of their adult lives, rather than just scraping to get by.

 

[PaxNurgle]

I would argue that a college degree isn't what it's cracked up to be UNLESS that degree is in a very job-specific field.

"Go to college and major in something," they told the high school kids in the 70's and 80's, "And doors will open up for you and it's the key to a comfortable middle class lifestyle." That might actually have been true back then.

By the 90's, they were wrong. You have to have a degree in a specific field that will prepare you for a job that is in demand. Buisness, Economics, computer science, engineering, or one of the hard sciences. It's fun to major in history, philosophy, art, literature and political science. You learn a lot of interesting and relevant stuff. In fact I feel one thing that is lacking with many younger people, especially with some of the regular posters on this forum, is that they have very little background in history or political science, and are therefore woefully naive, even gullible, when it comes to world events and political movements. But (my point) if you are going to major in something like that, then while you are doing so you need to be co-developing a trade or skill that will translate into a career after college.

 

[Wilson23]

I fully agree. Colleges that fail to prepare students for careers

That AIN'T the whole point.

 

[Ad_hominem]

Personally, I would just prefer to live in a world where higher education isn't gatekept by wealthy people. At the very least, it'd be nice to push the corporate mobsters out of the stupid loans business and replace it with a tax-funded no-interest loan system.

But also, I'm painfully aware that the Epstein class prefers stupid ignorant uneducated citizens because those are their biggest defenders/supporters. Our overlords have nothing to gain by giving us permission to use our tax dollars on something that's actually America-First.

 

[justawnnabewriter]

The state of Maine just made college free for every Maine high school graduate effective 2026. It's better to pay for an education than a lifetime of welfare or building more prisons. Education is the most effective , least expensive means to improve society, lower crime and raise the standard of living.
.
You'll never hear Trump say this nor any republican for that matter.

Just cuz you have a college degree doesn't mean one is set for life

 

[TastySuckToy]

'Free' is just another way of saying 'make someone else pay for it'.

 

[SimonDoom]

It's a terrible idea. It represents a coercive transfer of wealth from those who don't go to college to those who do. It's especially dubious when the actual value of a college education--other than as a piece of paper that helps you get a job--is increasingly dubious.

As they say, there's no such thing as a free lunch, and the same is true of education. Somebody has to pay for it. Why should a plumber who doesn't go to college pay taxes to pay for the education of a lawyer? It makes no sense either from the standpoint of fundamental fairness or as a matter of policy. There's nothing wrong with requiring those who reap the benefit of a college education to pay for it.

You can make the same argument about everything. Let's make food free. Let's make housing free. Why should anybody have to pay for anything? Ultimately, a system based on this principle collapses. A rational system is based on the principle that those who want the benefit of something should pay for it. If the concern is that a college education is too expensive, then we should look hard at why that's the case, and address that problem. Making it "free" doesn't do that; it exacerbates the problem by ignoring the cause, subsidizing the demand for the good, and driving up the real cost still more.

 

[Wilson23]

It's especially dubious when the actual value of a college education--other than as a piece of paper that helps you get a job--is increasingly dubious.

You've got THAT just backwards. The value of higher education is ONLY dubious as a job qualification.

 

[justawnnabewriter]

The state of Maine just made college free for every Maine high school graduate effective 2026. It's better to pay for an education than a lifetime of welfare or building more prisons. Education is the most effective , least expensive means to improve society, lower crime and raise the standard of living.
.
You'll never hear Trump say this nor any republican for that matter.

Yes and no. Id be curious as to what % failed to complete the program...then once you have this free degree what is it worth? How will said person land a job and PAY the bills?

 

[justawnnabewriter]

If you want free college do the work for scholarship, grants, and other things. I paid very little for my time in college due to landing grants and scholarships.

 

[JohnEngelman]

People who share my interest in the liberal arts and the social sciences should study them on their own.

Any formal education after high school should be job and career oriented. It should also be practical and realistic. If you want to be a novelist, do not major in literature. If you want to become a singer song writer, do not major in music. If you want to become an actor or an actress do not major in drama, although it would be a good idea to take acting lessons.

Look for a field where there are more openings than people qualified to fill the openings. Look for a field that is not specialized, and which does not change rapidly.

 

[JohnEngelman]

If you want free college do the work for scholarship, grants, and other things. I paid very little for my time in college due to landing grants and scholarships.

We are so proud of you.

 

[latecomer91364]

Trade schools should be free. We need skilled technicians and they make great money.

 

[nowisthetime]

and what about those that graduate debt free (scholarships, grants, being smart with his or her money)

so If I can do it, why can't others?

Joined April, "newbie" and you already have all those posts?

You're not fooling anyone. You sound very familiar. You post like Sebastian Holt.

You think you did something there.

I get that you magats despise anything that uplifts your fellow human beings, because your Modus Operandi is all about punishing others, and "I got mine, you got yours".

However, at least learn how to properly debate.

It's great that some people graduate debt-free, but that’s not the norm. Access to scholarships, family support, and financial stability varies a lot. The argument for free college isn’t about individual success stories, it’s about making higher education accessible regardless of background, something you magats fail to grasp.

It's like running a race where some people start at the starting line and others start 100 yards behind then saying, “Well, I finished, so why can’t you?”

If you use your critical thinking skills, which magats tend to lack, this benefits society because a more educated population drives economic growth, innovation, and stability. When more people can afford college, you get more nurses, engineers, educators, and skilled workers, not just people who could already afford it. That helps fill workforce gaps and keeps the economy competitive.

Get that into your magat brain.

 

[eric_erosfan]

If you want free college do the work for scholarship, grants, and other things. I paid very little for my time in college due to landing grants and scholarships.

That $300 Lion's Club scholarship was nice when tuition was $3,000 a year. Now it won't even pay for the on-campus parking pass.

 

[PaxNurgle]

^That is, assuming IjustwannabeSebastian actually WENT to college.

He did not. That much should be blatantly obvious.

In all likelihood he isn't even old enough to have finished high school (judging by the way he thinks and writes I'd guess his age to be around 14 or so) or if somehow he is, I highly doubt he graduated, since I would diagnose him as borderline special needs. And I say this not to be insulting, but rather as a clinical observation based on how he writes, how he thinks, and how he interacts with other people on the forums.

 

[nowisthetime]

He sure oozes the same stuck up, arrogant negative energy. He was whining about his city spending $$$ on affordable housing....amirite Mr. "Illegals, blacks, and crackhead whites"?

We know you hate poor people and minorities.

Why did you create another alt, is one not enough? That education sure went to waste.

 

[rgraham666]

and what about those that graduate debt free (scholarships, grants, being smart with his or her money)

so If I can do it, why can't others?

Because it is a good investment. A well educated populace is a wealthy populace.

There is a reason America keeps falling down the charts.

 

[Rebel5soul]

The state of Maine just made college free for every Maine high school graduate effective 2026. It's better to pay for an education than a lifetime of welfare or building more prisons. Education is the most effective , least expensive means to improve society, lower crime and raise the standard of living.
.
You'll never hear Trump say this nor any republican for that matter.

And it's not going to work out as anyone thinks it will.