half of outstanding student loan isnt being repaid. 7 million in default

[nil desperandum]

81. Missing the real problem.

I like your points, but I think it's more accurate to say that compared to inflation the costs associated with education since 1958 have risen on average 1.78 times the actual inflation rate. That's a fairly significant cost factor differential and not comparable with any business model I've been associated with over the last 33 years of my working career. I realize that might not be accurate for CSU but across the nation on average is fairly accurate.

I think it's important that we look at what is driving the cost of that tuition and determine if it's an actual cost of delivering a high quality instruction or a facet of some other unseen cost factors associated with running a college.

I agree with you that as a public good educating our populace is an important aspect of a successful powerful economy. I do believe that not every student requires a 4 year BA or BS to become gainfully employed, there has been a serious decline in heavy manufacturing in this country largely due to the free trade agreements that have destroyed the wage and union structure across the nation. Many of those blue collar jobs had great wages and benefits but were largely shown as jobs for people who were unworthy of supposedly better things. I still remember my guidance counselor telling me that without college I might be stuck getting my hands dirty (heavens to murgatroyd) for the rest of my life as if there was some shame in honest, good paying blue collar labor.

According to some articles there are as many as 3 million jobs unfilled currently in the US, many of them decent paying blue collar jobs. I would like to think we are smart enough to figure out how to get folks into that work, and smart enough to let people know that honest blue collar work is a respectable and decent paying living. Running any computer operated machine tool pays far more than the Walmart slave labor force receives and as a nation we should recognize the value of an economy that contains both the high tech silicon valley workplaces and the heavy blue collar industry that manufactures the necessary components for all of it.

Thank you for advancing this discourse, it's imperative that we get this right for the health of the nation's future.