My father worked hard, saved and made sacrifices so that I could graduate college debt-free.
If college tuition becomes free, I have that much less inheritance and/or he lives frugally in retirement because he spent those savings on me so that I can have a better life. I am eternally grateful.
Does the government plan to reimburse my father for paying my tuition? No.
However, I will have the luxury of paying more in taxes throughout my entire working career to fund other children's free tuition. The additional taxes I will pay over the course of a 40 year career will exceed what I would spend by funding it myself, should I choose to have children of my own.
When it comes to government, free equates to control. Control of your life, which goes against everything our founding fathers envisioned for its citizens. Control in this case comes through taxing our income, micromanaging the content taught in classroom curriculums and taking over a large part of the economy. College education becomes a political ping-pong ball – all depending who controls congress. We lose freedom on many levels.
Working hard, saving and sacrificing, which was once the American way, no longer seems to hold true for half our country. Like Amazon’s ‘free’ shipping, people intuitively respond to the word ‘free’ by having their eyes glaze over - failing to realize there is extra cost hidden in there somewhere. There is, and usually substantial.
I was amazed at how many of my peers had to take student loans, primarily because their parents failed to adequately plan ahead. People encounter difficult financial times, I get that. However, having children means responsibility and with that comes sacrifice. Not everybody is entitled to attend the best college, just as they are not entitled to have a luxury car simply because they want it.
So, when it comes to funding college for my kids, I plan work hard, save and sacrifice. I plan to shop for value, just like I would a new car or a refrigerator. I am capable of seeking out the best education for my money and know that when more and more people do this, the prices will come down. It is basic economics.
Jack Billsworth III,
Recent College Graduate,
Contributor