Diplomas of Deprivation: Higher Education in the U.S. *

(Click to Expand)

Presidents Biden and Trump both have the same “brilliant” plan for the taxpayers to fork over hundreds of billions of dollars to pay off student loan debts.  As an RFK Jr. supporter, allow me to make my own “brilliant” suggestion: let’s put a think tank together and solve this frightening problem.

Our youth are being conned into paying outrageous tuition for an education with no workforce to support them.  Let’s look at a few of the reasons our youth are exiting universities with giant debts and few job prospects.

1) A 1200% increase in cost of tuition and fees since 1980 compared to a 236% inflation rate;

2) Tenured professors cannot be fired;

3) Many universities use students as chattel:

•     Student athletes;
•     Graduate students teaching classes;
•     Graduate students’ brains under intellectual property of universities;
•     Universities are bed partners with greedy corporations: Pharmaceutical—Petroleum—Energy  —Chemical—“nonprofit” Healthcare.

4) Universities expect their researchers to obtain grant funding:

•     Universities take 40-60% of the grant funds any researcher obtains;
•     Universities maintain and own all intellectual property rights of the researcher;
•     Universities receive federal taxpayer support and tax breaks.

5) Universities receive federal taxpayer support and tax breaks: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2023/nov/15/harvard-top-private-universities-pocket-7-billion-/Openthebooks.com (see editor note)

In his book, The Real Anthony Fauci (https://www.amazon.com/Real-Anthony-Fauci-Democracy-Childrens/dp/1510766804), Bobby Kennedy makes numerous references to our declining educational systems and increasing student debt, while the “Ivory Tower Universities reap the benefits of soaring tuition and the exploitation of college athletes, engineers, scientists, and taxpayers.”  The unbridled greed of universities nationwide has left us with a generation of under-employed graduates and a nation deeply in debt.  A prosperous future depends on the innovations and passions of future generations. Currently, the corruption and greed infiltrating governments worldwide are leaving a legacy of disease, pollution, global warming, poverty, and the eradication of the middle class. 

The educational system in the United States has continually chosen greed and corruption, while ignoring integrity and honor.  One only needs to look at the chart of rising cost of college in the US, demonstrating a 1200% increase in tuition compared to a 236% inflation rate, to comprehend why student loan debt is in crisis mode. Our “Ivory Tower” institutions once representing promising futures for our youth have evolved into a cesspool of deceit and exploitation.  What percent of college graduates are currently graduating with degrees capable of raising them out of this debt and poverty?  What are students obtaining by investing in their futures and racking up enormous student loan debt? 

Students are being educated by tenured professors who cannot be fired.  Let’s face it, some individuals are just bad apples.  When job security is not certain, there is at least some motivation to improve upon their work. Once you take away the fear of losing their employment — no matter how lazy and incompetent they are, you invite a rotting education system.  Most of the excellent professors who are passionate, hard working, and who care about educating their students are overworked and underappreciated. 

Currently, taxpayers are paying for research “supposedly” to benefit our future.  These funds are granted to universities through National Science Foundation (NSF) or the National Institute of Health (NIH).  The university maintains 40-60% of the money, while researchers and graduate students, working with about half the money required to do the research, are then tasked with solving a problem, such as designing/improving algae fuels or curing cancer.  If the researchers are successful, the university owns the patents, not the researchers—nor the taxpayers who have footed the bill.  The universities will then sell off the technologies to the highest bidder.  Petroleum and pharmaceutical giants like Phillips 66 or Pfizer will purchase patents they fear will harm their profit margins, with the intent to quash the technology.  The taxpayers who paid for the research never receive the benefits.  The researchers/graduate students have no say over their designs and innovations.  Their passion projects are sold and they have no recourse.  Furthermore, researchers are under strict intellectual property contracts prohibiting them from repeating the work elsewhere.  

All of this leads to a stagnant economy, a lack of forward progression in innovations, and an archaic and rusting job market unsuited for our over-educated youth.  Trained to solve problems the elites do not want solved, our youth cannot find jobs because innovations within the industries they are qualified to benefit never manifest.  

We must face the hard truth; our educational institutions we have upheld to high standards of integrity and honor are no longer viable.  We the people must choose to rise from the ashes and rebuild a new system of “hands-on vocational training” utilizing the currently underemployed and benefiting taxpayers, students, communities, and the future of our country.  A system charged with properly educating our youth, providing futures of financial freedom, and careers proudly striving forward to rebuild our middle class.

As a supporter of Robert Kennedy, here are my thoughts on what it will take to return this country to the people.  First, we must all be willing to make sacrifices and be open to experiencing growing pains for the required changes.  We need to put a tourniquet on the bleeding arteries sliced by corruption and stop providing tax monies to the universities exploiting our youth for their own gains.  Universities in the upcoming “Bobby era” will have to survive with their 1200% increase in tuition, alumni contributions, along with their athletic and patent windfalls.

WE THE PEOPLE demand to allocate taxpayer funding, previously earmarked for universities and student loan forgiveness, into creating a new workforce, lessening economic hardships, utilizing the underemployed, educating the youth, and increasing the middle class, while simultaneously solving worldwide problems.  Tax dollars will go toward creating novel franchised industries encompassing specialized vocational research schools in each and every walk of life.  For example, biofuel and high surface area wind energy research centers will use tax dollars to build on 21st century innovations, while freeing the restrictions on our scientists, and thus improving these technologies.  Free speech journalism and media franchises will provide unbiased reporting.  Business school franchises will be tasked with successful oversight and recovery of any franchise entities not turning a profit.  Students studying constitutional law in this novel educational system will be our government watchdogs.  Our veterans will once again be called upon for their expertise in logistics, organization, and security.  Building from the ashes of a country repeatedly burned and torched by corruption, we the people will rise.

Instead of just throwing tax dollars at a problem, we will be solving the problem, providing employment and future education to our youth.  We will be simultaneously creating both the workforce and the industries.  Jobs freeing/supporting scientists, engineers, lawyers, farmers, and healthcare workers to solve environmental, economic, and health crises worldwide using 21st century science.  

In his interview on Fox news (https://www.amazon.com/Real-Anthony-Fauci-Democracy-Childrens/dp/1510766804) RFK Jr. states “Nobody wants to live on the government’s dole, but we don’t have free market capitalism in this country.  We have Corporate Crony Capitalism.  We have a system of cushy socialism for the super rich, and this brutal, savage, merciless, capitalism for the poor.  And it is all designed to strip mine the middle class in this country of all their equity, of all their assets and move it to the upper echelons!”

Robert Kennedy Jr. is calling on the people to join his peaceful revolution.  Please consider recruiting more friends, co-workers, and family members to join RFK Jr’s volunteer grassroots movement at www.people4kennedy.com.  We proudly welcome more to join our Passion Warriors for Peace, Prosperity, and Health and to cry loudly and proudly from every street corner, “Kennedy for President!   

The Time Is NOW!

– editor note: there appears to be a strong and growing correlation between the size of the student loan debt burden and the size of university endowment funds, which are now estimated to be worth north of $800 billion.