Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Part of the Problem is Borrowing $250,000 to Receive a Degree in Druid Dance Studies Instead of Something That Makes One Employable. In the Long Run, Student Loans are Massively Damaging to One's Earnings.

This argument is all too familiar. In recent times, pensioners have been attacked for living too long and becoming a healthcare burden; they have been blamed for high house prices and rent inflation, with their critics even calling for the downsizing of pensioners’ homes; and they have been slammed in general for consuming more than is their rightful share. A 2015 report by the Intergenerational Foundation concluded: ‘While increasing longevity is to be welcomed, our changing national demographic and expectations of entitlement are placing increasingly heavy burdens on younger and future generations.’
Pensioner = Senior Citizen, for those who don't speak English English.  We hear this nonsense in our country, too, of course.  While my case may be anecdotal, I still financially support members of the next two generations of my family, mainly because I've saved over the course of a lifetime, not because being a clergyman is so lucrative.  A liberal arts degree only cost $16,000 in my day, mainly because we didn't need more administrators than faculty.  We also didn't need luxury dormitories.
This demonisation of old people has got to stop. For a start, the idea that pensioners are thwarting younger generations’ chances at a good life is simply untrue. The Resolution Foundation report makes clear that pensioners’ income is higher than those of a working-age only after household costs. Before household costs, those of working age actually have a higher average income than pensioners. This is hardly surprising – pensioners have had the time to save and pay off mortgages while people of working age continue to spend money on housing costs.