Out of Touch Congressman Tells Homeless, Educated Debtor That He Supports Higher Education

On March 30th, I wrote a brief post about Tagean Goddard's coverage on mounting defaults. A growing number of economists and policy analysts are finally acknowledging that student loan debt, and the alarming number of people who are defaulting on their loans, is having an adverse effect upon the health of the economy. Indeed, younger people with degrees, who should have disposable income and the ability to buy homes, cars, etc., are unable to make these sorts of purchases. Even worse, some of these individuals, and we're not just talking about young, educated Americans, are barely surviving. (Incidentally, I wrote an article titled, "Young, Educated, Indebted Americans Unable to Purchase Homes," over a year ago about this very topic. In that piece, I interviewed Rick Palacios, Jr., a senior research analyst, at John Burns Real Estate Consulting (JBREC), who discussed the problem of young people being unable to buy homes and who are finding that they have to move back home with their parents after graduating from college).

Some aren't even fortunate enough to have the option of moving home. For instance, on my Taegan Goddard post, one individual recently explained:

I wrote my congressman. I told him how I am a master's degree holding homeless person who lives out of my car because my payments are over 80% of my income. I explained that at no point throughout my education did I ever qualify for grants. His reply? "I support education. See if you can get a grant." .........um........ Clearly he didn't read my message, doesn't care and is completely out of touch with the common person. I have to rely on this individual to represent my interests and it scares me to death.

Cryn, you mentioned having hope for our cause after speaking with key people on the hill [sic]. I certainly hope your feedback was better than mine. We're dying out here. Literally.

These notes are beyond infuriating. Who in this office decided to send out a form letter about the Congressman supporting higher education? How is that, in any way, related to a person who is homeless with a master's degree, and has student loan payments that are over 80% of his/her income?!? This response illustrates how sorely out of touch most policymakers and politicians are in D.C. In the very least, the staffer in this office could have sent a letter expressing regret about this debtor's predicament. But I guess that's expecting too much, isn't it?

That said, I do believe it is critical to hold onto hope. After all, this crisis could easily be solved. In my view, it is critical to remain focused on the solutions, rather than going on over-drive on the critiques. Of course, the critiques should continue, but they should be followed with a set of viable solutions. On that note, shortly after the elections in November of 2012, when strong leaders like Elizabeth Warren won, I wrote - yet again - a short, policy-oriented piece over at Spare Change News that offered sensible solutions for student loan reform. I'd like to know if any offices on the Hill are considering these approaches. After all, there are several that I know for a fact care about the student lending crisis. Surely, the topic is no longer too hot to handle, as it was several years ago when I made some of my first visits to the Hill. But perhaps I am mistaken . . . 

One thing is certain, the focus on solutions is something you'll find in my forthcoming book, Higher Ed, Greater Debt.

How do you think we can solve the student loan debt crisis? What other plans could be implemented to help struggling borrowers?
 

Moral Fables: Keeping the Hope Alive through Trauma

As many know, I have started a series, Moral Fables, on various topics at Spare Change News. This latest piece is about maintaining hope through trauma. This particular subject, that of hope, relates directly to those of you who are struggling or unable to pay off your student loan debt. (Admittedly, this is a moral fable about loving in a way that almost led to the entire annihilation of a woman's sense of self). Thus, it's really crucial - don't let go of your hope. Nothing, absolutely nothing should lead you to give up your own personal hope. I know that it's hard. There are millions and millions and millions of us who are trapped by debt, but the problem - as we all know - can no longer be ignored. Rest assured, the foot soldiers continue to wage a battle on behalf of the indentured educated class. Hang in there, comrades. 

The following series of essays have been written while teaching ESL classes to adult students from all corners of the world (this writing exercise began in late January, and continues to be a part of my classes). Each morning, I required the first class – which was what inspired this project – to answer one of two questions. At first, I was the one to ask the questions, but I quickly turned it over to the students. Their questions ranged from simple, everyday things, like “Why are you studying English?” to complex philosophical questions, such as “What are the limits to freedom?” The class would write for an hour, and I would join them. We would listen to the Gypsy Kings, U2, Coldplay, Tango, and much more. Once we were through, we would read our responses aloud, and then have a conversation about each person’s analysis. It was humbling to hear from people from Saudi Arabia, Korea, Thailand, Turkey, and elsewhere. All our answers were motivated by a desire to convey an honest, open response, and everyone had an earnest desire to share with the others. A mentioned already, I continue to carry out this exercise with my new classes. It is a thrilling experience, and when I am away from the classroom during the weekend, all I can think about is this: “I can’t wait to be back at work on Monday, so that I can write with all of my students, and then share!”

No one who lights a lamp hides it away or places it [under a bushel basket], but on a lampstand so that those who enter might see the light. The lamp of the body is your eye. When your eye is sound, then your whole body is filled with light, but when it is bad, then your body is in darkness. Take care, then, that the light in you not become darkness. If your whole body is full of light, and no part of it is in darkness, then it will be as full of light as a lamp illuminating you with its brightness.
—Luke 12: 33 - 35

She used to believe that total self-sacrifice and the absolute commitment to another person was the right way to live. She did her best every day to hold up others, and as a result, she stopped tending to her own needs. She loved people so much, but she began losing herself. Day by day, it worsened. It was subtle, so it was hard for her to truly perceive the self-destructive path that she had determined—for complicated reasons—to traverse. Even worse, the person she tried to care for the most didn’t even see how much effort she put into tending to him. This lack of attention, and willful ignorance, made her very frustrated. In attempting to win his affection, she even became aggressive and had angry outbursts. These types of reactions were befuddling, and the more often they occurred, the further she got away from her true identity. Although he didn’t deserve her love, she clung hard to the idea that she needed to simply care for him even more, at the expense of everything else. As the path became bloodier, and her mind and body more battered, she had lost almost everything. Any semblance of self-respect and dignity were nearly eviscerated. She lost the world, and all of its loving inhabitants. Even though she loved all people deeply – as already mentioned – she found it increasingly difficult to do things for them, because she was devoting all of her energy and time to a person who did not notice her care. Sadly, this person couldn’t love himself properly, so her efforts to tend to him made him even sicker. She found herself trapped in bed a lot, too. Her life, once wide open and filled with endless possibilities, became enclosed. A small room became her only world – it smelled of animal urine and feces, and was infested constantly with tiny ants (they crawled all over her bed and her pillows), spiders (they clung to the corners of the poorly repainted room), and large roaches (they lived in the floorboards and registers). The only gifts she received were actually for him, from another woman. She foolishly thought that the plants this woman sent to her were a gesture of goodwill. Unfortunately, she would later learn that that was not the case. In any event, she thought that, since the person she cared for the most was there by her side, she should be content. So, even though she was trapped in this room, which she later realized was an actual prison (the only place of her own was her car, where she would often go to cry and ask God for help), she told herself that she should be grateful.

The rest of this piece can be read here. 

Taegan Goddard's Coverage on Mounting Defaults

This subject, that of an increase in student loan defaults, has been covered for several years on AEM. So, this won't come as a surprise to most of my readers, but student loan defaults are worsening.

Over at Political Wire, Taegan Goddard provided a short brief about the increase in student loan defaults. 

Here's a snippet:

The Department’s Office of Inspector General… blames a system installed in 2011 by Xerox that is supposed to transfer defaulted loan accounts from servicing companies to private collection agencies… The Inspector General’s office says the collection problem led to a ‘material weakness’ in the department’s financial controls last fiscal year, according to CNBC.

While this post paints a decent picture of the problem at the macro level, it does not offer insights into the emotional and financial turmoil that is occurring in millions of homes across the country. Alas, it is 2013, and I have high hopes for this year, high hopes for actual solutions. Who knows? Maybe those solutions don't have to come out of legislation or policy changes in D.C. After all, Congress is - once again (sigh) - at yet another impasse, because of the high level of dysfunction in D.C. One should really say they have created multiple stalemates or dead ends, instead of suggesting it is merely one impasse.  (And for the critics out there, who will quickly point out that this is "business as usual," here's what I have to say: D.C. hasn't always been this dysfunctional. This is a well-known fact inside the Beltway). In any event, it pains me to read these figures, as I can't help but think about the letters I've received, and continue to receive, that are filled with anguish, dread, and fear from overwhelmed, educated, and indebted Americans. 

Moral Fables: The Freedom of Love

These pieces are not related to student loan debt, but I still wanted to share them with my readers here. While I am working on my book, Higher Ed, Great Debt, which I just sold to Seven Stories Press, I have begun to explore, in writing, bigger philosophical and religious topics that I've discussed and contemplated for years.

Here is a snippet of the second essay from a new series over at Spare Change News. I am covering new terrain, and exploring big themes, such as lies and truth, love and hate, betrayal and trust, forgiveness and revenge, etc. (The first piece, which was about free will versus destiny, can be read here).

The following series of essays have been written while teaching ESL (English as a second Language) classes to adult students from all corners of the world (this writing exercise began last month, and continues to be a part of my classes). Each morning, the first class – that began this project – was required to answer one of two questions. At first, I was the one to ask the questions, but I quickly turned it over to the students. Their questions ranged from simple, everyday life things, like, “Why are you studying English?,” to complex, philosophical questions, such as, “What are the limits to freedom?” The class would write for an hour, and I would join them. We would listen to the Gypsy Kings, U2, Coldplay, Tango, and much more. Once we were through, we would read our responses aloud, and then have a conversation about each person’s analysis. It was humbling to hear from people from Saudi Arabia, Korea, Thailand, Turkey, and elsewhere. All our answers were motivated by a desire to convey an honest, open response, and everyone had an earnest desire to share with the others. As mentioned already, I continue to carry out this exercise with my new classes. It is a thrilling experience, and when I am away from the classroom during the weekend, all I can think about is this: “I can’t wait to be back at work on Monday, so that I can write with all of my students, and then share!”

As mentioned already, I continue to carry out this exercise with my new classes. It is a thrilling experience, and when I am away from the classroom during the weekend, all I can think about is this: “I can’t wait to be back at work on Monday, so that I can write with all of my students, and then share!”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only can light do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

What is love? This question has been asked throughout the ages by essentially every civilization. Indeed, philosophers have spent decades dissecting the idea.

Now, even scientists concern themselves with the question: what is love? Not only do scientists trouble themselves – doctors and engineers, teachers and students, peasants and farmers – ask the same question: what is love? All of them are anxious to know.

When it comes to the scientists, they remain puzzled. Despite our advancements in technology and science, as well as our hyper-modernism, the question remains hidden, a riddle that only jesters and those filled with laughter understand. This very fact, that it can’t seem to be understood, except by the jesters and jokers (not the most brilliant minds), makes it all the more powerful. Of course, most of us can understand romantic love, and I presume many of you in the classroom have experienced the sensation of falling in love. Perhaps some of you have even fallen in love at first sight. And, yes, this is possible, because our beloved scientists have been able to explain the chemical reasons behind falling in love at first sight. Based upon their findings, instant love is like a cocaine addict getting a fix. But instead of a foreign substance, a harmful one at that, love is caused by the immediate release of oxytocin, vasopressin, and dopamine into the brain. These chemicals are associated with centers of pleasure in our mind. While our dear scientists have done a superb job in providing the causal evidence behind falling in love, they still fail to truly pinpoint the profound mystery that causes one individual to fall madly in love with another.

Just as our beloved scientists have difficulty unpacking the mystery, they also fail to tell us how and why people fall out of love. People, over time – as we know – fall out of love. It collapses just like that. This can be particularly painful if one person remains in love, but the person has, for whatever reason, turned off his heart. It can be a sad occurrence, and I hope that none of you ever go through that sort of heartbreak. It can be so severe, that you might find yourself convinced that you will die. But even if you have or will – and my sincerest condolences if this happens – experience heartbreak, love is so powerful that human beings can overcome the loss, move on, and fine new love.

Read the entire piece here.  

Gustav Klimt, The Kiss (1907 - 1908)

Moral Fables: Free Will Vs. Destiny

These pieces are not related to student loan debt, but I still wanted to share them with my readers here. While I am working on my book, Higher Ed, Great Debt, which I just sold to Seven Stories Press, I have begun to explore, in writing, bigger philosophical and religious topics that I've discussed and contemplated for years.

Here is the first of a new series on important, life themes, such as lies and truth, love and hate, forgiveness and revenge, etc.

Below is a snippet. The piece can be read in its entirety here.

The following series of essays have been written while teaching ESL (English as a second Language) classes to adult students from all corners of the world (this writing exercise began last month, and continues to be a part of my classes). Each morning, the first class – that began this project – was required to answer one of two questions. At first, I was the one to ask the questions, but I quickly turned it over to the students. Their questions ranged from simple, everyday life things, like, “Why are you studying English?,” to complex, philosophical questions, such as, “What are the limits to freedom?” The class would write for an hour, and I would join them. We would listen to the Gypsy Kings, U2, Coldplay, Tango, and much more. Once we were through, we would read our responses aloud, and then have a conversation about each person’s analysis. It was humbling to hear from people from Saudi Arabia, Korea, Thailand, Turkey, and elsewhere. All our answers were motivated by a desire to convey an honest, open response, and everyone had an earnest desire to share with the others. As mentioned already, I continue to carry out this exercise with my new classes. It is a thrilling experience, and when I am away from the classroom during the weekend, all I can think about is this: “I can’t wait to be back at work on Monday, so that I can write with all of my students, and then share!”

Like so many complex, philosophical ideas, these two concepts – free will versus destiny – have been explained tirelessly by the greatest minds. (Mind you, when I refer to great minds, I don’t just mean sagely philosophers). Regardless of a person’s station in life, human beings think about, debate, and question how or even if there are intersecting points between free will and destiny.

Each human mind conceives of these two things in a peculiar way. In addition, a person’s cultural background and – most importantly – the particular moment in time (what historians call historical context) in which she finds herself, informs her understanding of free will versus destiny.

So, the peasant from, say, Peru might think about free will versus destiny differently than a surgeon who sews up bodies in Los Angeles, California. However, both individuals might just consider it in such a way that intersects with a teacher who works in Denver, Colorado. In a word, perhaps at heart, all three of these people think about free will versus destiny in the exact same way.

Jan Havicksz's Twelfth Night Feast (1662)