Writes Dave Griffus: “Just saw the blog post about the David Brooks’ article in the NYT. One thing I find ridiculous is that he equates the high school / college graduation rate to some sort of economic indicator of human capital. I’m sure that Gary North would disagree with this, as I do as well.
“In my opinion, FAR too many young people go to college these days. Government grants and low-cost government loans make it too inexpensive to attend college to study subjects such as “sociology” and “communications.” American colleges and universities have turned into a bizarre social experiment in which government subsidizes the delay of actual productive activities in favor of four years filled with bongs, drinking games, and the advancement of state worship through education by liberal elites. Education can be an end in itself and I understand that, but government schools just don’t give students the skills that they really need to be productive members of an economy.
“College is the new high school. If that’s the case, what is high school? The new elementary school? It used to be that many people would start learning real skills and contributing to society when they graduated high school, but more and more people are delaying this move another four to six years and amassing unnecessary student debt. The bottom line is that once government gets involved, the cost goes up, and the quality goes down, which is basically what has happened today. Of course, when I say ‘cost,’ I don’t mean the cost to students, I mean the cost to taxpayers.
“Even me, someone who is now a staunch libertarian, was almost made into a liberal by the University of Michigan. Luckily, I unplugged myself from the Matrix with the help of a good friend and the Mises Institute.”
9:14 am on June 8, 2007
