Sen. Al Franken: Student loan debt is damaging America’s economic growth

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25. My Understanding Is That There Are Private Student Loans And Federal Government Student Loans....

Your comment on lowering the interest to zero and no penalty for paying off the debt early would work for the private student loans but I believe the federal government holds the bulk of the student loans and that's the ones that I am saying they should absolve the debt totally.

The government can afford unbudgeted wars. The government can bail out banks that are too big to fail. The government should be able to absorb student loan debt that cripples the very future of the government and of the People.

We hear presidential candidates talking about free college education - and how important that is for the future. That would be the next step after the absolving of the current student loans.

Right now - what is the incentive for a person to go to college if they know that they will be saddled with student loan debt during the remainder of their life? Couple that with the lack of jobs; the squeezing of wages on those jobs remaining - would you make a decision to go to college, incur a great debt that you will be paying off until you die - in order to eke out a struggling existence?

This is a big problem folks.

We that came before (and there are references in this thread of us) that were able to afford our college tuition by working summer jobs and part time as we went to school - are not saddled by debt. We were able to get married. Buy a house. Furnish it. Take a nice vacation every year. Raise a family. That was the way it was then.

Now the tables have turned and education is big business. Look at the tuition costs now. Yet we still urge our kids to get a good education. And I agree - a good education is important. But one has to seriously figure in the long term effects of student loans when one graduates. Run the ROI and determine if it is still worth it.

Every day that ROI gets smaller and smaller and extended longer and longer - to the point that - does it really pay to go to college anymore?

There is some unwarranted passion in what I'm saying here. I'm really pissed by the fact that our kids are beaten before they start.
But I also think there is some truth in what I say here as well.

Again I'll ask - is there any movement by anyone in Congress that is pushing to absolve student loan debt - so that the money that was channeled into the government coffers as interest on these loans can be pumped back into the economy and create a decent future for our children?