Tax The Super Rich NOW, Or Pay The Price

I'd say this article makes some pretty good arguments about why the super rich in this country NEED to be taxed (as if this should even be up for debate. Alas, we live in delusional times and our country is being run by - mostly - delusional people). I'd say a lot of the people who read my blog are part of a young group of highly educated and pissed off individuals who can't apply their talents and hard work to ANYTHING. Plus, they are drowning in student loan debt, and for what fucking reason? So, they can send half their paycheck to Sallie Mae each month? Yeah, I don't think so. This is not how the story was supposed to play out for people here. Institutional inefficiencies can be fixed. But who has the guts to regulate them? Tell me? Who has the guts? If people on the Hill, with all their ueber-rich donors and corps, don't listen up, they will have a revolution here. I don't know what it will look like, or when it will happen, but the super-rich are destroying the country. We are violent people, so who knows what this will look like.

Oh, and on a final note. Outstanding student loan debt has surpassed $900 BILLION. You think those people with all that debt are happy? Do you think they're getting by? Maybe they are, but not with relish!

Gidget Gein's "Capitalist Pig"

Tax Breaks For Employers Who Help Employees Pay Back Student Loans

Rhode Island Legislator Chris Blazejewski has proposed something quite intriguing in RI. Why not offer something like this nationwide? I know that there are so many small business owners who have probably had potential employees turn down their job offer because the pay was simply not enough - in fact, I know of several cases like that. Why not offer employers tax breaks who help pay off an employer's student loans?

The IRS does offer Employer Provided Educational Assistance (section 127 of the IRS code), but there does not seem to be any thing directly related to an individual's debt.

Mailing

Thanks again for your generous donations. As you all know, the content at AEM is entirely free, but it obviously takes a lot of time and effort to research and provide vital analysis about the student loan debt crisis. Lobbying costs money as well. I've been invited to a few congressional offices, so I will be raising money for a future trip to D.C. If you can match my $10 (or send more), that will enable AEM to continue advocating for student loan debtors. I'm headed to the post office now, and each donor has received a note from me that includes a symbol of the indentured educated class too. 

Keep your eye out for those stickers. If you haven't donated yet, please do so, and receive a free sticker!

Mixture Of Happiness And Dread: "My son just got accepted into UC-Santa Cruz, but . . ."

A woman wrote to me last night and let me know that she has mixed feelings about her son's acceptance letter from UC-Santa Cruz. I think her note speaks volumes about the fears that many parents are now having about their kids going off to school, especially when they are aware of the student loan debt crisis. Perhaps I am being presumptuous, but I think it is safe to assume that the kids who are currently sitting with me in this great coffee shop, that's a few blocks from Brown, aren't too concerned about student loan debt. (Although, I will say that I overheard a young woman complaining about her debt - it sounds like she's in med school at Brown. Graduate students are a different crew of people).

For most parents, I am sure many of them are fretting about sending their kids to school, and wondering how they'll be able to help them manage tuition (which continues to go up and up and up - oh, well, as long as no one asks why), the cost of living, and so forth. On another note, a friend of mine, who is leaving Korea soon, just let me know that he's going to grad school in the fall. When I inquired about the school's whereabouts, he said, "it's in the U.K. It's much more affordable than the U.S." I am glad to hear that he is going to pursue further education but at a much more reasonable price than most schools in the U.S. Any knowledge of the current situation points to how crippled the system has become, at least for student borrowers.

As for the mother I mentioned already, here's what she had to say in her email that was entitled, "A mixture of happiness and dread:"

Hi Cryn, well my son was just accepted to UC Santa Cruz, his second choice to UC Berkeley. He is an extremely brilliant kid, 19 and a Chem major .  .  . I am excited yet I am fearful about his future debts to this backwards educational system (future indentured educated citizen). . . Sometimes I wish we would have stayed in Finland where the Universities are virtually free. Anyway, thanks for all your insight and your writings. 


I exchanged several emails with this mother, and first replied, "Have you read my piece about ways to minimize student loan debt? I am happy to help you brainstorm on how to avoid accruing too much debt. Obviously, you are aware of the situation, and really that is winning half the battle at this moment. Any awareness is a great thing, because so many are not, and that is what pains me for those who are soon-to-be-students."

Are you preparing to see your child leave for school? If so, are you concerned about the amount of debt s/he is going to accrue while in school? Are you fearful, like this mother, that your son or daughter will become part of the indentured educated class?

"Yes, darling! That's wonderful news! It's simply wonderful that you are going to school  . . . but what about the cost? Oh, darling! Yes! Yes! I am so happy, but . . . I fear . . . I fear that you will become an  indentured educated citizen, my dear."

Donate To AEM And Get A Sticker With Our New Logo By Paul Ramirez!

Donate to AEM and receive a sticker with our logo that was designed by graphic artist Paul Ramirez. You have a choice of two colors: orange or black.

Please indicate the color that you would like on either your check or on your PayPal order. Please don't forget! I'd hate to send you the wrong color.

Thanks so much again for your continued support. Your generous donations keep AEM alive, strong, and growing.

UPDATE: I have matched the first donor's $10. Will you do the same? 

Politicians! Listen Up . . .Student Debtors . . .

are not the same as prospective/current debtors.

Again, current student loan debtors are not the same thing. That's right. Indentured educated citizens - yikes! That's an ole fashioned word, because nowadays we're all just a bunch o' consumers - continue to be ignored when you talk about that other group of potential and current borrowers. Of all people in society, you should be sensitive to rhetoric. Get it straight. Oh, wait . . . maybe you haven't gotten it 'straight' for a reason . . . 

I'd tell you to seek that direction, but that doesn't exist for student loan debtors anymore. Thanks to Buuusch! 

Quick Question: Net Price Calculators - Used it? If so, any success?

It's that terrifying and exciting time of year for parents and prospective students. The applications for college admission have been sent off, and now it's time to wait, agonizingly so. Tremendous changes are around the corner for soon-to-be college students and their families.

Around the time all those new students have settled into their routines on campuses across the country, there will be a new feature on college websites. By October 2011, all colleges will be required to post net price calculators (NPCs) to their sites.

These calculators have been implemented already at a few institutions - 16 schools offered them by January 2011 - so I'm wondering if any of have you used them, and if so, how did you feel about the results and so forth? Also, did you find that the NPC results matched your financial aid award letters?

Related Link

Early Look At College Net Price Calculators Finds Mixed Results

Quick Quote

"True progress quietly and persistently moves along without notice." - St. Francis of Assisi 

Part I: A More Formal Critique

Apparently critiques of President Obama are not popular among some of my readers. In previous posts about the President, here's what a few people stated:

Anonymous, "I don't understand Cryn's harsh treatment of Obama. No one to the left of Obama is electable and even he must move to the center for purposes of reelection. If he somehow loses in 2012, the Repubs will run wild."

Liz, "I am just done with hearing all the complaining from Progressives . . .  You ran against your own party. YOU LOST."

Before I list the10 explicit reasons why I criticize the President and believe it is patriotic to do so, I think it is worth mentioning that I've been thinking a lot about the whole cockamamie saying about voting or supporting the "lesser of two evils." I despise this idea. Max Lerner added a good twist to that adage, "When you choose the lesser of two evils, always remember that it is still an evil.” That's just one reason why I hate it and am fed up with people suggesting that my criticism and stances are dangerous or wrong. As for Liz's remarks, she is quite wrong about the way I voted in the last election (we've already discussed it, too). I went out on the streets for President Obama. I called people and urged them to vote for him. I was there in Manassas on the eve before his election. Not only that, I was part of the actual Inaugural events. My name was drawn out of a hat that was filled with thousands and thousands of others, and chosen to be part of the day he was sworn in. On that day, I stood a few feet from the White House, and when the limousines came by us (I was standing with just two other women), soon-to-be President Obama waved at me. That's right. He waved and he smiled. The power of that face-to-face moment still blows me away. But when I think about that profoundly moving moment, as well as the hope I felt in Manassas, those feelings are now coupled with deep anguish. The sense of betrayal keeps me up at night.

Here are the 10 reasons why I criticize President Obama (mind you, it is not just the man  - that is naïve - but the administration behind the man):

(1) Pfc. Bradley Manning. Manning has neither been tried nor convicted, and yet he is being held in solitary confinement 23 hours a day. He has also been forced to sleep naked and stand outside of his cell naked. Check out the Geneva conventions and see how they describe torture and inhumane treatment. Manning is on OUR land. He is in Quantico, VA.

- "PJ Crowley Resigns After Bradley Manning Comments,", Washington Post, March 13, 2011
- "PJ Crowley: Bradley Manning Treatment 'Counterproductive and Stupid,' Huffington Post, March 11, 2011
- "WH Forces Crowley To Resign For Condemning Abuse Of Manning," Salon, March 13, 2011
-"With Crowley's Ouster, Obama Fully Owns The Torture Of Bradley Manning,"  FDL, March 13, 2011

(2) Ah, yes. Change we could all believe in. Change like . . . the continued surveillance on American citizens? But when it comes to national security policy, I am clearly just a nincompoop. Ethics? Pish-posh! As Tony Soprano would say: "Forgettaboutit, Cryn . . . pass me some prosutt and capacol." (Then he'd take his two paws and wrap them around the back of my neck).

(3) Obama's New Executive Order On Guantanamo - Huh. This kinda reminds me of the guy he replaced. What was his name? Oh, yeah . . . Buuuuusch. But I'm probably just thinkin' like some nincompoop again.

(4) Higher Education - In President Obama's first State of the Union Address, he mentioned the issue of student loan debt and the problems we're facing as a country when it comes to financing higher education at least 5-6 times. I credit the continued work of people and organizations like NCLC (Deanne Loonin, et al.), New America Foundation (specifically Higher Education Watch - Steve Burd has and continues to do superb work), SponsorChange.org, EduLender, All Education Matters, the Scambloggers (such as Third Tier Reality, First Tier Toilet, But I Did Everything Right! , Subprime JD, Esquire Painting, Fluster Cucked, The Law School Tuition Bubble, and so forth), etc., etc. for pressuring the administration about helping current borrowers, and raising questions about the absurd nature of why so many graduates are drowning in student loan debt. These efforts come from the ground up, and I have no doubt that all of our hard work - and that includes all the volunteers who help me on a consistent basis - were a reason for the President's remarks. My favorite one? "In the United States of America, no one should go broke because they chose to go to college."

Now did President Obama make any mention of student loans or those struggling with student loan debt in his latest SOTU? Nope. He made not a peep. NOT. ONE. WORD. Instead, we still hear the same old tired policy claims, exemplified by Heather Higginbottom's remarks when a woman wrote to her about having a lot of student loan debt. I have news for her and the administration: you cannot use current debtors interchangeably with prospective and current students. Those groups of people ARE NOT THE SAME. Plus, I have yet to hear from Roberto Rodriguez. AEM has carried out countless letter writing campaigns to him. At least 40-70 people have sent letters to him, expressing their concern about the student loan debt crisis. We have implored him to listen to our side of the story. Hell, I've even spoken to Mr. Rodriguez on the phone. That was a year ago, and he failed to respond to my question about how the administration plans to help current debtors. But I know that addressing the issue is toxic, because the administration is filled with people who continually talk about the whole 'moral hazard' issue. You owe it to us, Mr. Rodriguez. We deserve a spot at the table.

(5) Entrenched interests vs. the promise to 'clean up Washington.' In 2007, Obama promised to clean up Washington. Criticizing Presidential opponent Hilary Rodham Clinton, he said she didn't understand the problem. He added, "My argument is not that we're perfect [i.e. politicians of any kind]. I suffer from the same original sin of all politicians, which is we've got to raise money . . . But my argument has been and will continue to be that the disproportionate influence of lobbyists and special interest is a problem in Washington (and) in state capitals." He then promised, "The argument is not that I'm pristine, because I'm swimming in the same muddy water . . . The argument is that I know it's muddy and I want to clean it up." How's the clean up going, Mr. President?


To Be Continued . . . 

What The Protests In Wisconsin, Ohio, And Indiana Mean For The Indentured Educated Class

Class Warfare And Exposing Lies

If you decide to declare class warfare on the poor and the ever-shrinking middle class (soon to be extinct, or so it seems), and yet insist that austerity measures are the best for everyone, you will end up paying a heavy price. Take a look at this chart that shows class warfare. What a perfect display of how unjust and inequitable our society has become. I have news for those of you who think that we all believe that tax cuts, and budget cuts, and all other kinds of what-what cuts are for the common good. A large majority of Americans know those claims are bullshit. We're onto your lies, and that is because so many of us have worked our asses off to help our communities, to help ourselves, and to be a part of the democratic process, and yet we're slipping of the societal grid. We're disappearing.

We're not able to pay our student loans and have money left over. We are not able to pay our mortgages and have money left over. We are not able to pay for good health care and have money left over. We are not able to pay our grocery bills and have money left over. That is because there is no money left over. Even worse, our most vulnerable - children - are suffering. So what about this winning the future, Mr. President, when there are more children in poverty now than there were in 2000? Some of my readers will accuse me of placing too much blame on your shoulders. I understand the history of deregulation well enough to know that you, Mr. President, did not start the process of disassembling the federal government and undermining our most sacred democratic institutions. However, you have been in office long enough to be culpable, and I am particularly disgusted by your outright refusal to acknowledge the student loan debt crisis. People may think that the crisis only affects student debtors. But they are wrong.

Higher education is under assault, and it has been for a long time. It has adopted the worst models from the corporate world (so the institutions themselves are also to blame for the crisis). There are things that ought not be a part of the market or the private sector. Of course, you, Mr. President, wouldn't agree with that. That is because you are a victim of neoliberalism. It's shocking to think that at one point you were a community organizer. Does your old self ever come to you in dreams and ask you why you betrayed the people who put you into office, and why you betrayed your previous values? (Perhaps you are merely a political animal, so your old self, even if he does ask you such questions, means nothing to you).

The Awakening 

These last few weeks have been astonishing. Wisconsin is not the only place where people are raising hell, and we stood and watched in awe at what happened in Egypt and elsewhere in the Middle East. You see, we're tired of seeing our future and country (as well as countries) being stolen from us. The youth are especially angry. You have no right to take our futures away. No right.

So what do these protests mean for the indentured educated class?

It is perhaps too early to know, but something dramatic is happening. Never in my life could I have anticipated a revolutionary spirit like this one - it is something I hoped for in my early 20s, and now I think it is finally happening. We are realizing that our America is being taken from us, and people aren't going to stand by and let it unravel. It is exhilarating to know that so many Americans want something better - they desire equity. Sadly, the desire for things to be fairer for all is regarded nowadays as radical and threatening. Well, we're going to change that attitude. Welcome back, working-class America! I sure have missed you.

On that note, I want to give a special shout out to the farmers of Wisconsin who rolled in on their tractors today to support their teachers, police officers, fire fighters, and other union workers. 

In Your Words: Seeking Testimonials

Do you want to share your story about being an indentured educated citizen? We want to hear from you. Your stories help other debtors know that they are not alone. Please reach out (ccrynjohannsen@gmail.com).

Related Links


"A former law school confesses: 'I think about jumping from the 27th floor of my office building every day.'"

"An angry mother vents"

"Mr. J.'s Testimonial: 'It's like I bought a house, but never moved in.'"

"In your words: A grandson's anguish"

"Taking her musical talent elsewhere"

Quick Post: Congratulations EduLender!

EduLender raises $1 million for student loan comparison engine. 

To Hell With Bitterness. Here's To Collaboration And Groups Who Count - Celebrating SponsorChange.org

Your generous contributions help keep AEM, Inc. alive and well. It also allows us to expose the truth about the student lending crisis. Without your support, our voices would disappear. So instead of simply being a reader, become a reader-contributor. Make a difference today and donate (you can contribute via Paypal or send checks/money orders toAll Education Matters, P.O. Box 170232 Arlington, Texas 76003). Thanks to those of you who continue to donate on a regular basis! 




Collaboration Matters

I have been SponsorChange.org's online brand advocate for well over a year. We have had a long-lasting partnership for 2+ years. They continue to support my work and efforts, and I have done the same for them - it is a wonderful testament to the non-profit world, i.e, you find great people doing wonderful things.

Of course, we are all adults here, and we also know that the non-profit world, just like the business world, can be ugly and mean. People can be, in my view, unusually jealous in the non-profit sector, and petty. But people in general can be like that.

Luckily, there are so many groups out there, like SponsorChange and my new company, EduLender, who are committed to making a difference. (EduLender is doing it in the private sector, which continues to amaze me, as does the CEO of the company). That is why I always appreciate it when Raymar Hampshire, SponsorChange's CEO and Co-Founder, gives me a quick thumb's up on my FB page when I've written a piece he likes. For instance, when he learned that I had an article published by USAToday, he wanted to have it posted on SponsorChange's great blog, the Philanthroteer (I've been a top contributing writer for them, too).

I am so excited to see that CNN covered their org today. Raymar had mentioned the filming and interviewing with CNN a few weeks ago by phone (when I was up meeting the great gang at EduLender in Chicago). It wasn't a done deal, so he told me then.

I don't normally get choked up by people's stories. That's a lie. I do get choked up a lot, but that is usually when the story is heartbreaking, like the recent conversation I had with a mother whose daughter is now a quadriplegic. The daughter was in a devastating car wreck that broke her body. Even worse, her daughter also owes $80,000 in student loans, and they're being terrorized by their lender. That got me really choked up, especially when she told me that she recently listened to her husband cry on the phone to some nasty collector. I  nearly lost it. It reminded me of my own father. I adore him, and when he cries, I lose it.

In the clip that features SponsorChange.org, the young woman they feature isn't suffering from a health problem. Nothing of the sort. But when she starts talking about how her friends are struggling to pay back their loans, just like she is, it makes me feel heartbroken for these 'kids.' They aren't the only ones for whom I feel heartbroken. In her case, I was struck by how sad it is to think that these kids have their whole lives in front of them, and yet so many of them are despondent and hopeless because of their student loan debt. It's devastating, and it angers me to think that President Obama keeps going on and on about 'winning the future.' I think, 'oh really? For whom, President Obama? For whom?' Not us. Not these kids.

People like her shouldn't be struggling to such a degree. Student loan debt is cruel.

That is why a team of people, people who care, like SponsorChange, EduLender, AEM, etc., make all the difference. We're all acting. There's no in-fighting. There's no jealousy. We're all just trying to do something about the situation. And so, I applaud you, this evening, SponsorChange. Job well done. 

AEM Logo - Thank you, Paul Ramirez

Thanks to Paul Ramirez, AEM now has a sleek, new logo. Check it out.

Paul, thank you so much again for designing this logo for us!

Quick Post: Latest Piece - Published By USA TODAY

My latest piece, "What The Government Should Be Doing To Ease Student Loan Debt," has been published by USA Today. Let me know what you think about my suggestions.

Conversations That Matter: Alan Nasser (Part IV)

The ruined Spanish-Gothic interior of the United Artists theater in Detroit. C. Howard Crane built the cinema in 1928. Photograph from the collection, "The Ruins In Detroit," by Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre. Special thanks to Mr. Marchand and Mr. Meffre for agreeing to let me use their photography for this important conversation with Alan. 

If you have not read the other parts of this interview, please do so! Alan is an engaging and insightful conversationalist. I hope he will join us again at AEM's blog! For those of you who are now reading-contributors, I want to thank you for your continued support and donations. If you haven't become a reading-contributor, please donate today, and help us build on AEM's strength. You can either donate via PayPal or by check/money order. 

Part I

Part II

Part III

CCJ: I agree entirely with this point you mentioned earlier about the student loan crisis being a ‘whole new kind of misery.’ That’s why AEM continues to advocate for the indentured educated class.

AN: It's exploitation and people are being ripped off. These stories speak real cruelty. The idea that government should be a predator in the ways these hideous for-profits are . . . it's dispiriting. 

CCJ: I am actively discussing and promoting the $1 trillion 'magic number.' In 2012, outstanding student loan debt (federal and private) will be at $1 trillion. How does that bode for the health of the U.S. (both economically and culturally)?

AN: It really doesn't bode well. It is a factor that will depress real income for generations of working people, whose incomes will be depressed anyway, and that has to do with the decline of American capitalism. We’re anticipating a low-wage country, where most workers will be paying in interest payments on their outstanding debts what they used to pay in taxes, because so many public services will become privatized. It's going to add insult to already existing economic injury. You’re adding debt to a population already indebted on so many fronts, and who have to take on even more debt. 

The Fed puts out this Gray Book, and it was I think in 2003 that the quarterly report noted this striking change. More wage earners were using credit cards in ways they hadn't used them before, and that was for basic necessities.

CCJ: I am aware of the findings, and it’s troubling. 

AN: Yes. That means people are using credit cards for food and gas and other essentials. Increasingly people have to rely on debt. During the ‘Golden Age,’ credit cards were used to buy consumer durables, a car, a fridge . . .  Now, people are going into to debt to buy a Mounds bar, that is not a good thing, and I don’t think I’m exaggerating entirely! [Laughs]

CCJ: No [laughing], I don’t think that is really an exaggeration. That’s terrible, too. 

AN: So using credit cards in this way is adding to an already crushing burden. I talked earlier about standard Keyneisan progressive policy. If you look at history, from 1950 up to today, the effect of Keynesian policy on employment . . . his main priority was to address unemployment. Look at each economic downturn or recession since 1950. You find that each downturn had fewer short term unemployed numbers (14 months or less) than the previous one. The short-term unemployed have been declining as a percentage of the total number of people unemployed. If you look at long-term unemployment figures, those in that group have increased from recession to recession. In other words, long-term unemployment has been steadily increasing since 1950.  

That underscores how standard Keynesian macroeconomic fine-tuning has really failed in terms of addressing the employment issue. To repeat an earlier point, policy makers are misguided in wanting to stimulate output rather than jobs. In fact, the principal beneficiaries of current policy have been higher educated, higher paid people. My recommendation, that government directly provide employment to specific workers in specific areas, is a class policy. It aims to improve the condition of the working class. This is explicitly contrary to government policy since 1980, which primarily benefits the rich. I’m talking about progressives openly embracing class politics. 

In my view the composition of the unemployed population is a good indication of where things are going. Obama and the rest of the liberals believe in this bastardized form of Keynesianism. That is the regime that student loan debtors are going to be living under. 

When it comes down to it, the answer to your question has to be far reaching. 

CCJ: I realize, it’s not the best question.

AN: No, it’s a good question. It’s relevant to student debtors, because they are not just student debtors. They will figure into the unemployment statistics and will become the low wage earners. In that way, the future looks grim. So, it’s not a bad question. For you and me, the answer is obvious, but for readers, it suggests that there are implications for the future. 

CCJ: And, as I already said, you are probably aware that outstanding student loan debt – both federal and private – will hit $1 trillion by June of 2012. That’s why $1 trillion is my magic number, and not in a good way.

AN: Now you have this current default rate and then you add $1 trillion in outstanding debt. The implications for what these lives will look like, and we’re talking about past and current students, and what their children’s lives will look like . . .  They will not be a position to help their kids at all, because they will be in a much worse position. 

CCJ: I agree. It’s not good. That why AEM continues to fight on behalf of the indentured educated class. Thank you so much for having this conversation. It has been an honor and a privilege, Alan.

AN: Thank you for having me, and keep up the good work.

Related Link

"Cockeyed Economics," Counter Punch, Oct. 9, 2009

Biology Classroom at George W. Ferris School in the Detroit Suburb of Highland Park. Photograph from the collection, "The Ruins In Detroit," by Yves Marchand and Romain Meffre. 

The American Student – From Graduating Class to Debtor Class

Jerry Ashton, the host of "Down But Not Out - America's Revolt Against Being 'Written Off,'" recently interviewed me to discuss the student loan debt crisis and what it's like to be an indentured educated citizen in the U.S. You can tune in to listen here.

Thanks again, Jerry, for interviewing me and listening to our side of the story!

 Radio Host Jerry Ashton 

How do you understand your own disillusionment?

I understand my own deep feelings of disillusionment and hopelessness when it comes to the student lending crisis and how the problem fits into a broader context  - I am well-acquainted and even comfortable with these patterns of thoughts now. The frequency of these thoughts ebb and flow.  However, I'd like to hear from you. How do you understand your own disillusionment as an indentured educated servant? How does it crop up in your everyday life?