Student loan mayhem!

[bae]

Get off my piazza? I don't think they had lawns...

I don't think Plato got outside much...

[LDAHL]

I tried to substantiate my claim, but all I found was:

"I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words... When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly wise [disrespectful] and impatient of restraint".
(Hesiod, 8th century BC)

and

They [Young People] have exalted notions, because they have not been humbled by life or learned its necessary limitations; moreover, their hopeful disposition makes them think themselves equal to great things -- and that means having exalted notions. They would always rather do noble deeds than useful ones: Their lives are regulated more by moral feeling than by reasoning -- all their mistakes are in the direction of doing things excessively and vehemently. They overdo everything -- they love too much, hate too much, and the same with everything else.
(Aristotle)

[iris lilies]

I tried to substantiate my claim, but all I found was:

"I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words... When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly wise [disrespectful] and impatient of restraint".
(Hesiod, 8th century BC)

and

They [Young People] have exalted notions, because they have not been humbled by life or learned its necessary limitations; moreover, their hopeful disposition makes them think themselves equal to great things -- and that means having exalted notions. They would always rather do noble deeds than useful ones: Their lives are regulated more by moral feeling than by reasoning -- all their mistakes are in the direction of doing things excessively and vehemently. They overdo everything -- they love too much, hate too much, and the same with everything else.
(Aristotle)

Ah, it was probably Ari you were thinkng of.

[LDAHL]

Ah, it was probably Ari you were thinkng of.

I always mix those two up. Probably because we were all in the same geometry class back in high school.

[LDAHL]

Or at least a different way of how we require repayment such as a flat percentage of income until paid off, regardless of what that income is.

I've seen proposals for securitizing student loans in just that way. Some have claimed the administrative costs would make it infeasible. Some have criticized it as a form of sharecropping. Others have asked if they could short philosophy majors.

I think the idea has merit myself.

[Alan]

I tried to substantiate my claim, but all I found was:

"I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words... When I was young, we were taught to be discreet and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly wise [disrespectful] and impatient of restraint".
(Hesiod, 8th century BC)

and

They [Young People] have exalted notions, because they have not been humbled by life or learned its necessary limitations; moreover, their hopeful disposition makes them think themselves equal to great things -- and that means having exalted notions. They would always rather do noble deeds than useful ones: Their lives are regulated more by moral feeling than by reasoning -- all their mistakes are in the direction of doing things excessively and vehemently. They overdo everything -- they love too much, hate too much, and the same with everything else.
(Aristotle)

For some reason, I thought you were referencing:
"He was a wise man who invented beer" ~ Plato

[jp1]

I've seen proposals for securitizing student loans in just that way. Some have claimed the administrative costs would make it infeasible. Some have criticized it as a form of sharecropping. Others have asked if they could short philosophy majors.

I think the idea has merit myself.

Run it as a government program instead of bank profit center and then require employers to document whether one has a student loan at the time of hire and if yes withhold the requisite percentage the same as they do taxes and social security. I realize there are people (bankers primarily who would flip out at the lost revenue stream), but this would seem to solve the share cropping and administrative difficulty issues. And it would solve the issue of people getting behind on their payments.

[LDAHL]

Run it as a government program instead of bank profit center and then require employers to document whether one has a student loan at the time of hire and if yes withhold the requisite percentage the same as they do taxes and social security. I realize there are people (bankers primarily who would flip out at the lost revenue stream), but this would seem to solve the share cropping and administrative difficulty issues. And it would solve the issue of people getting behind on their payments.

I'd reject creating more bureaucracy in favor of a market solution. I'd like to see it more as a a sort of preferred stock arrangement with some similarities to a reverse mortgage. Investors could buy and sell equity stakes in the borrowers' earnings. One benefit of that approach would be information. Over time, you'd be able to see the objective market value of various schools and degrees. If a BU accounting major traded at a discount to a BC accounting major, that might be more useful to prospective students than some US News & World Report survey. University administrators might eventually be forced to consider how their students would fare post-graduation.

[pinkytoe]

Here's an article about some librarians using their research skills in a business environment:
http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/ne...or-players.htm

[jp1]

I'd reject creating more bureaucracy in favor of a market solution. I'd like to see it more as a a sort of preferred stock arrangement with some similarities to a reverse mortgage. Investors could buy and sell equity stakes in the borrowers' earnings. One benefit of that approach would be information. Over time, you'd be able to see the objective market value of various schools and degrees. If a BU accounting major traded at a discount to a BC accounting major, that might be more useful to prospective students than some US News & World Report survey. University administrators might eventually be forced to consider how their students would fare post-graduation.

And this is where you and I differ. I read your proposal and to me it screams 'subprime loan crisis v 2.0, how to let the banks screw over lots of financially ignorant students with crappy termed student loan agreements'. IMHO a government program doesn't need to also include lots of beauracracy. At least not if it's kept simple. i.e., don't make the repayment plan as complicated as income taxes, keep it simple like SS withholding.