Germany has long shown far greater foresight than the United States in the investment into science, infrastructure, and alternative energy — investments that are now giving the country huge returns as a leading economic system. With a decision of Lower Saxony, the German have now shown precisely how serious they are about keeping the country as one of the most educated in the world: they have eliminated all college and university tuition. The Germans view education as not just a right, but an essential component for continued growth.
There are critics to educational subsidies who raise some good-faith issues of how such payments can eliminate pressure to make efficient choices and actually drive up costs. I actually see value to students paying some tuition. However, with tuition sky rocking in the United States and falling enrollment numbers, the United States is heading to a reckoning in the future for our lack of investment in our workforce. While we have spent trillions of dollars on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (and just renewed our commitment to the later to keep forces in the country), we have continued to cut environmental, scientific, educational, and infrastructure investments. The inevitable result is that we will continue to drop in our competitiveness in the world market and the future economy. Every other country is investing heavily in education while the United States continues to be distracted by shiny objects with more immediate political benefits for politicians.
What is striking is that it is not just third world countries that are investing heavily education, but economic leaders like Germany.
Notably, tuition was only introduced in Germany in 2006 after the German Constitutional Court ruled that limited fees do not violate the country’s commitment to universal education. However, the tuition rates proved unpopular and the country is now tuition free. Of course, there is no such thing as free tuition. The taxpayers are footing the bill. Moreover, such government subsidies can have a negative impact on not just the choices of students (who feel less pressure to make efficient choices) but on schools which are dependent on the government.
Nevertheless, the contrast could not be greater with the United States in terms of the commitment to education as not just a right (as it is in Germany) but as a real national security priority.
The article below has an interesting discussion of how England rejected the free tuition approach but has lost more money due to the higher student default rate on tuition. Yet, the English students face a maximum debt load of $14,550 per year where U.S. tuition rates and debt are soaring. Student loan debt in our country now stands at $1.2 trillion.
Of course, that is less than a third of the costs for the wars, but no one is making such comparisons.
http://thinkprogress.org/education/2014/10/01/3574551/germany-free-college-tuition/
Olly, I have reread your comment and I apologize for getting what you said, incorrectly. Mea culpa.
Fascinating to me that people can sit here, enjoying everything a stable, safe, prosperous, well structured (all relative) society affords them and still complain to have succeeded against the government and pretending the government never did anything for them. Try doing business somewhere where the structure is nonexistent, or where a skeleton of a structure exists, that is is corrupts beyond anything. Born into a safe hospital, protected by a generally reliable police force, attending public schools, collecting unemployment…etc.
I suspect their issue with government is less about the government per se but more about those whom they feel benefit from the government’s “largesses”. Who do you think of when you speak of the government? The general bureaucratic entity? The president? The republicans? The democrats? The same welfare queen meme under Clinton is still paying dividends in some quarters, and those are usually the ones to claim Jesus as the inspiration. The bitching gets to be a bit much, considering that the government you dismiss is the one you elected to power. Government is not an entity independent of you, as Dredd says. It is either you directly, or you still through he people you put in power. If their focus in turn is to help the big guys and leave you in the lurch, do something about it.
momdemom wrote: “Try doing business somewhere where the structure is nonexistent.”
Corporations and businesses have built the structure. All the money government has comes from business.
momdemom wrote: “Government is not an entity independent of you…”
Of course government is an entity is independent of me. I did not tell government to create burdensome regulations and take my money. My single vote cannot counteract the millions of votes of people not working, collecting unemployment, social security, etc.
po – your view of the government and mine are quite different. I did not vote for Obama. I take no responsibilty for any errors or mistakes he has made or will make. I will complain to high heavens about those who elected him.
Here is my feeling about getting help from the government. If the government is handing it out, you are an idiot not to take it, unless there are strings attached. That is just being smart. A smart business man finds the ways that sets up his business to make it the most successful (assuming it is going to be a success),
Look at yourself Nick, they have you defending yourself against a compliment. I never said you “feel” shame; my point is they WANT you to feel that way and you should “humbly” be proud that you’ve accomplished something despite the many obstacles our government has added into the process.
Olly, Everything we small biz owners have expressed is pride. Where is the “shame” of which you speak?
STOP defending your self-reliance!!! I have no doubt you’re proud of the success you’ve made of your business and the fact you’ve done that in the age of the bureaucratic state is to be applauded.
Government should never be something that deserves credit for anything other than providing a secure environment for ALL of its citizens to freely pursue whatever their American Dream is. (when they don’t FIRE them!) If you find yourself having to acknowledge THEM…EVER, tells me they have exceeded their role and have inserted themselves WITHIN your pursuit of happiness.
NEVER allow those that have ignorantly accepted government as a step in their “happiness” process to make you feel ashamed that you reject including them as a necessary step towards your success.
Will Darren be manipulated by people like you Mr. Spinelli? My hubby seems quite wonderful by comparison. Now I must go and make him what he calls a ham n egger for breakfast. He’s so clever with words, I love him with all my heart, my groom!
I believe Darren will step up to the plate on this one, Karen.
Karen, Thanks much, but I have chosen to ignore the taunts from the person we all know. You have a good heart. The woman who taunts, a very angry one, We have a great discussion going about successful small businesses, something you know a lot about, running one w/ your husband. Why don’t you tell the govt. lovers here just how much Obamacare has “helped” your business and family!
Miss Karen…
I’m sorry you feel that way.
Totally creeped out.
Miss Karen…
My name isn’t the same as Mr. Spinelli. I’m not his wife, although my husband resembles him a teeny bit.
OK, I am completely creeped out by a poster creating another handle, Mrs Spindelli, pretending to be the wife of another poster. The obvious intention is to get a reaction out of the husband. And all this while Professor Turley is on vacation. How embarrassing that he will read, not an interesting and lively discussion of opposing ideas, but this. Is he really going to have to put adults in a time out from Italy, one of the best vacation destinations in the world? Seriously? This would ruin my gelato, if it were me.
That is exactly why I don’t use my full last name. It’s frightening to think what someone could do if he or she disagreed with my opinion on the internet. Show up at my house? Interfere with my personal life? Pose as my spouse and mock me on the internet?
What a sad waste of time.
Loose words sink ships … of state.
The U.S. Constitution is the supreme government.
Send it a check?
“We the people” established the Constitution.
Send them a check?
davidm2575
… The federal government has been the single greatest hindrance to me living the American Dream. I succeed in spite of government, not because of government. My single largest monetary obligation has been to the government. My biggest check every month goes to government. And as she has opined, I see very little return from it.
…
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The word “government” has different meaning to different folks.
Do you send your check to all of the branches?
Do you send a check to the Legislative Branch?
Do you send a check to the Administrative Branch?
Do you send a check to the Judicial Branch?
You may get it, but most folks do not get it, to the point of not even knowing that there are three branches of government:
David, I KNOW you, DBQ, and myself have operated our own successful businesses. And, we are all sympatico on the truth of the American Dream and the fact that we are the reason we were successful, and the govt. is a liability, not an asset, in running a small business. The Dem meme is that govt. helps businesses. LMAO. Small businesses are successful in spite of the govt. Big business have lobbyists and do indeed get special treatment and sweetheart deals. But, small businesses get picked on because we don’t pay the “protection” just like the Mafia collects, via lobbyists. When you pay protection to the Mob it is to protect your business FROM THEM. Same w/ lobbying the govt. Except w/ the Mob, you just have to pay one mobster. The govt. has many layers, from Federal, State, County and Local.
Nick Spinelli
The European economy is tanking, and starting to effect our meager recovery here.
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Sacred opinion is fine.
Don’t run away and pout just because others disagree with your economic perspective.
You are not alone in your views.
New figures on the European economy:
“The EU’s economy — measured in terms of the goods and services it produces (GDP) — is now bigger than the US’s: EU GDP in 2012: €12 945 402 million
…
Trade has been hit by the global recession, but the EU remains the world’s largest player accounting for 16.4% of global imports in 2011. The EU is followed by the United States with 15.5% of all imports, and China with 11.9%. The EU was also the biggest exporter, accounting for 15.4% of all exports – compared with 13.4% for China and the 10.5% for the United States.”
(EU economy).
Germany is the most economically powerful within the EU.
They stay out of the resource wars and use economic methods to prosper instead, rather than invasion and occupation, which is a loser, warmonger strategy that produces feudalism (American Feudalism – 6).
It is not a matter of being smarter, it is a matter of being more accurate, less faithful – more factual because of investigating outside propaganda circles.
I wish my hubby was smart like Dredd. Sigh.
Mrs Spindelli – you wish you HAD a husband.
Thanks for the Noam Chomski video, Dredd. Been a while since I heard that great man. Too bad the administration never asked HIM before attacking Iraq in 2003.
The comment at 12:08 is rude and uncivil. Will there be equal justice?