Anger On Campus

It appears that college protests are all the rage these days. Back in the 60's, there were plenty of them... mostly about the Vietnam War but not just that. I could understand that, there was an active military draft at the time and getting sent to fight was a real concern. Not for me, I was already in the military by the time these protests became commonplace.

Today, the protests are more about financial concerns than personal safety.

Here's an example:
"Students held rallies on college campuses across the United States on Thursday to protest ballooning student loan debt for higher education and rally for tuition-free public colleges and a minimum wage hike for campus workers."


There are also protests over what is being called "systemic racism" at some colleges; a case in point being the University of Missouri (commonly called "Mizzou", I believe). I believe that racism is systemic throughout this country. I believe this because of my experiences and observations over the years. There is a lot of racism out there and it's not going away. I see it in action every day... in the comments of friends and acquaintances as well as in the actions and words of strangers.

It won't be eradicated in my lifetime, I am sad to say, because I think it is hard-wired into our DNA. Not just in white people but in all human beings. I have spoken of this before... probably more than you ever wanted to read.

But to complain about debt from student loans and demands for tuition-free state universities just irks me. Nothing is free, it must be paid for in some way. Either through taxes or through tuitions. Even "basic" education (elementary and high school) wasn't/isn't free. Teachers and administration staff must be paid, schools must be built, and all of this is why we pay taxes.

When they say "tuition-free" they mean for the students, not their parents or those who live in their states.

One of the lessons I learned growing up was that we do not appreciate what we are given but we do appreciate that which we earn. We need to have "skin in the game" so to speak.