A tuition freeze and other free stuff

 

 

"Sorry Goldie - we have seen through this flimsy façade also..."

My, oh my. We really have become "useful idiots", have we not?. We fall for everything and often times stand for nothing. Today in the paper our newly minted Lieutenant Governor inked a letter to the masses. And in this letter, she extolled the virtue of higher education for everybody. How that will make the state better. Really?

It seems that our Lieutenant Governor is flummoxed as to why the House Republicans are balking at a two year tuition freeze for 300,000 students at MnSCU as well as the University of Minnesota. With student debt going through the roof and costs continuing to climb, what is wrong with these troglodyte Republicans? Is there no heart beating in those empty chests?

First off, even though most (if not all) reading this already know a tuition freeze does not mean the out of control costs in our college and university system are frozen. They are not. This is only a cost shifting gimmick. Rather than have the students absorb these out of control costs, the taxpayers will. And the band will continue to play. Costs will rise, and the product will stay the same. Blah, blah, blah.

If we had a Governor with a pair, and the House and Senate in this state controlled by CONSERVATIVES (not RINOs), it would be fun to get into the knickers of every state college or university. I dare say there is at least 20% of fat (maybe much more) that could be trimmed. We could have a better product for a whole lot less money if we ran our colleges and university like a BUSINESS rather than like a government gravy train.

Do I think it is a good investment to have a two, four or six year degree? Many times, yes. However, there are many degrees today which are not worth the paper they are printed on. There should be no help for people who want those degrees. Many of the STEM degrees are still needed. IT, business, engineering and so on. Right now we have way too many young people with worthless degrees working at Starbucks while trying to pay off monster debts.

So Ms. Smith, if we really want to help our young people, can we please give them something which will not add to our debt? And that something is the truth. If they can't figure it out for themselves, maybe we can step in to help. A four year degree in Anthropology from Carlton College is as worthless as a screen door on a submarine. That degree serves nobody. Not the student, not the state, not the nation. If a student wants to major in something that will benefit our state by adding to its intellectual brain power to allow us to invent, invest, hire and build more, then maybe then we can talk.

I will finish with a "spoiler alert". There is no free tuition, there is no free stuff, there is no free lunch and there is no Santa Clause. There! I said it!