My turn re the student loan forgiveness program (for which I say "Bravo, Joe" and "Fuck you, repubs"

[NewHendoLib]

We either look at the world and its people as one and do what we can to help each and every one - we win or lose together - or we look at ourselves and elevate our own importance above all else. We see this in how we consider distant wars, the climate, even how we treat animals. Do we cherish and support life - or do we cherish and support ourselves at the exclusion of others? To me, that is a moral yardstick.

When I went to college, I paid 230 dollars each semester, plus books, and commuted - that got me my BA in chemistry and biology. I came from a lower middle family - I worked at a grocery store through high school and college so I could pay my tuition and for books. I worked my ass off - and then decided to get a decent job, it was time to go to graduate school, and I chose chemistry.

As a teaching assistant, the income was horrendous. I met my wife, we got married, had a child - and were really struggling, so we took out a loan using the Sallie Mae program, assisted by the Dean of finance at Dartmouth. It took 20 years to pay back that 20K, but we made the monthly payments and paid it all off.

One of our daughters went to an excellent school in MN that was pretty costly - I could help with some, but she needed loans to get her through. She then went into the Peace Corps, then to graduate school and accrued sizeable loans that, 15 years later, are still very onerous for her. Education costs skyrocked between my experience and hers. This bit of help from Joe Biden won't solve the whole problem, but some of it.

I am delighted I could pay off my loans and would not think of considering a need for reimbursement. But I am also delighted our daughter - and many others - will get a bit of relief.

I have nothing but disdain for those who react as if they are being personally harmed when groups get some help. We all know the typical reaction to taxes - those who chose not to have children taking a fit because some of their taxes support the cost of education for others.

So what?! Yes, each of us chart our own path in life - we make some good decisions, some not so good decisions. There is luck involved - it isn't all skill and smarts. But to begrudge someone else's relief or good fortune as if it is a personal affront to us?

Call me a socialist, a bleeding heart - I don't really care. But life is pretty screwed up right now in so many parameters. Let's not be "republican" or "conservative" in our response to a great program that will benefit so many. Let's be happy and celebrate and realize how fortunate we are to be liberals, and Democrats, and have a president to cares - who is not a psychologically sick, narcissistic monster.

[Stinky The Clown]

1. Rec 1 / Kick 1 . . . . Right there with you!

[NewHendoLib]

2. thanks, my friend.

[Ocelot II]

3. You nailed it. I do not want to hear whining from people who don't think anyone should benefit

if they don't. I had to pay back my student loan. It took 20 years and sometimes it was tough; I even had to get a deferral for a bit when I fell on hard times financially. I'm sure I paid back a lot more than the actual loan, since interest rates were brutal in the early '80s. But I did get the education that loan helped pay for, and they can't take that away from me. More importantly, I don't give a damn if other people are getting a benefit I didn't get. Life's like that. And we all benefit when some who need help get it.

[NewHendoLib]

4. Bingo!

and thanks.

[NewHendoLib]

5. kick for the late afternoon crew

[slightlv]

6. You know, I don't at all begrudge

anyone getting their student loans cancelled. The costs are astronomically through the roof, and for no good reason that I can see, except for profiteering. It does me no harm, and does the country good to invest in these students.

I'm tickled to death that my daughter won't have her student loans hanging over her head for the rest of her life like I did. She's recently widowed with three sons to raise. This is more than a welcome boon to her. It's the leg up in one of the worst years of her life; a year filled with the death of many of those close to her. Though money can never replace them, it will go a long ways towards providing for her and those three sons. It will go a long ways towards giving her back the peace of mind she lost when her husband died.

I do wish, however selfishly, there was something Biden could do that would be a sort of a "Jubilee" for the rest of us, particularly those of us on fixed incomes who have been hit so hard by the high inflation this year. The extra in SS in next year's check will be eaten up by the increase in Medicare, which won't help those of us who got took in by those Medicare Advantage plans. We get screwed 16 ways to Sunday. Our fault, I guess, but we got tricked, nonetheless, thanks to GW and Trump and the Repubs, and the slickness of "Part C." I hate they present it like that. I'd even like to see a 10k tax credit on this year's return. That would be something the Democrats could tout for everyone under the 125k limit. The Republicans could scream bloody murder, and likely would, of course. But it would stop everyone else from screaming they'd been left out, and it might actually turn a few more votes our direction come Roevember. I wish someone on his staff would have this percolating in the back of their minds, because I think this would be so good for us in the midterms. Surely we could do something like this on a reconciliation... that wouldn't have to go through and break the precious filibuster, would it?

[dchill]

7. You're a bleeding heart socialist! 😃 👍

[NewHendoLib]

8. Present and accounted for!