[Rushy]

Obviously this is the best use of $300 billion that the Democrat party could think up. Definitely nothing better they could do with that money other than give it directly to the financial sector. Nothing at all.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/24/politics/student-loans-joe-biden-white-house/index.html

Should someone making $124k per year really get $10k of their debt paid off? Does it make sense to contribute so much aid towards the sector of America that is, in general, the most well off?

[Lord Dave]

Yeah, that upper limit looked weird.  But maybe its for doctors who have alot of debt?  Dunno.

[stack]

I guess it depends on how much debt a $124k paid individual has.

According to Forbes:

- $28,950 owed per borrower on average



Seems like people have this debt deep into their lifespan:



I'm also not sure if all higher education attendees are considered "the most well off". I think part of the reason that one assumes a student loan debt is because they are not "the most well off".

[Rama Set]

Definitely an improvement over standard GOP tax cuts for the wealthy.

[Rushy]

I guess it depends on how much debt a $124k paid individual has.

According to Forbes:

- $28,950 owed per borrower on average



Seems like people have this debt deep into their lifespan:



I'm also not sure if all higher education attendees are considered "the most well off". I think part of the reason that one assumes a student loan debt is because they are not "the most well off".

They were given money in the form of loans. Why should they not be required to pay them back? Because of their own incompetence? "wahhh I made poor life choices entirely of my own accord, now it's coming back to bite me!"

In my hot opinion, if you make more than the median salary in the US you should absolutely not be getting money handed to you just to pay off your debts that you voluntarily incurred in the first place.

"The median salary in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2022 was $1,041 per week or $54,132 per year."

Why should someone making more than twice the median salary get free money from the government?

Definitely an improvement over standard GOP tax cuts for the wealthy.

Now instead of giving tax cuts to the wealthy we just pay off their loans for them. That's somehow better?

[Rama Set]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

I also don’t consider kids that were told going to college was the only smart choice and then finding out it wasn’t to have made bad choices.

[AATW]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

It's in the top 5 percentiles

https://personalfinancedata.com/income-percentile-calculator/?min_age=&max_age=&income=125000#results

I generally approve of the policy, but the cut off is ludicrously high.

[xasop]

I generally approve of the policy, but the cut off is ludicrously high.

Or save the administrative costs of checking whether people qualify and eliminate the cutoff entirely at that point.

[Rushy]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

Then you are utterly disconnected from reality.

I also don’t consider kids that were told going to college was the only smart choice and then finding out it wasn’t to have made bad choices.

Lots of people make bad choices in life. Why do college kids get special monetary credits for theirs? Plenty of people in the US are in much more dire financial need than a bunch of indebted degree-havers.

[WTF_Seriously]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

Then you are utterly disconnected from reality.

Depends on how you define wealthy.

[Rama Set]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

Then you are utterly disconnected from reality.

So bold. So edgy.

I also don’t consider kids that were told going to college was the only smart choice and then finding out it wasn’t to have made bad choices.

Lots of people make bad choices in life. Why do college kids get special monetary credits for theirs? Plenty of people in the US are in much more dire financial need than a bunch of indebted degree-havers.

I agree. Let’s help all of them. Next up, single payer healthcare, agreed?

[Rushy]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

Then you are utterly disconnected from reality.

Depends on how you define wealthy.

Mysteriously, many define 'wealthy' as "people who make more money than I do". I use a much more simple approach: if you make more than the median salary in your state, you're wealthy. This often rubs a lot of people the wrong way because many very well off and wealthy people don't like to think of themselves that way. They sit around in a 2000 sqft house, thinking they're not wealthy because their neighbor has a house that's 3000 sqft.

So bold. So edgy.

This is almost as bad as the time Roundy thought it was odd that most posters here didn't have vacation homes.

I agree. Let’s help all of them. Next up, single payer healthcare, agreed?

Yes, absolutely, but not 'next up'. This student loan meme should be completely reverted.

[Rama Set]

We are just operating under different definitions of wealthy I’ll concede the limit of 124k jumps up quite a lot. My solution would be the same as Xasop’s, just give everyone free education.

[Rushy]

We are just operating under different definitions of wealthy I’ll concede the limit of 124k jumps up quite a lot. My solution would be the same as Xasop’s, just give everyone free education.

Giving everyone 'free education' does nothing but incentivize already overpriced and overindulged universities to continue their track record of needless extravagance.

[Rama Set]

We are just operating under different definitions of wealthy I’ll concede the limit of 124k jumps up quite a lot. My solution would be the same as Xasop’s, just give everyone free education.

Giving everyone 'free education' does nothing but incentivize already overpriced and overindulged universities to continue their track record of needless extravagance.

Then regulate them. Many countries have figured this out, it’s not that hard.

[Rushy]

Then regulate them. Many countries have figured this out, it’s not that hard.

Who exactly wants to regulate them in America? If I vote for the Democrats, they give universities what amounts to free infinite money. If I vote for Republicans, they do literally nothing. Seems like two very bad options to me.

[rooster]

I don’t consider someone making 124k/a wealthy anymore. Upper Middle Class maybe.

Technically that is upper middle class, but upper middle class is fairly wealthy when compared to the majority of Americans.
"In 2020, about 90% of employed people made less than $125,000 in total income." https://flowingdata.com/2022/01/26/how-much-americans-make/

I also don’t consider kids that were told going to college was the only smart choice and then finding out it wasn’t to have made bad choices.

Well, it's still not. Most places still use a bachelor degree as a general requirement.

Anyway, higher education should be free. We need more doctors and teachers.

[xasop]

Who exactly wants to regulate them in America? If I vote for the Democrats, they give universities what amounts to free infinite money. If I vote for Republicans, they do literally nothing. Seems like two very bad options to me.

The fact that your current political system is too crippled to do anything useful does not prevent us from discussing what a good solution might look like.

[AATW]

Anyway, higher education should be free. We need more doctors and teachers.

I'm not sure about that. I mean, it was free in my day. Now it isn't and in the UK if you go to Uni you're coming out of the place with £30k or debt, which seems to me a ridiculous burden to put on kids who are just starting out in life. I think there's a middle ground. I don't think the principle of paying something for further education is bad - in principle it leads to higher salaries. But the debt burden in the UK is far too high right now.

[crutonius]

The limit of 125k might have been made for those who live in very large and expensive cities.

I don't really have a dog in this fight since I've never had a student loan.  I almost wonder if Biden should have done nothing here.  He's getting grief for spending money on non-millionaires from the conservatives who probably feel it would be better spent by tax cuts for the super rich.  And on the other side he's getting shit from lefties who think he should have cancelled all student debt.