G.O.P. Succumbs To Rare Outbreak Of Sanity

Oh god, I'm going to engage with the retard...

Why not? What is the purpose of high school if not to prepare young adults for entry into either the workplace or higher education? And don't give me some ***about it only being for college because higher education is demonstrably worse since the myth that everyone should go to it got propagated.

What logical reason is there for putting someone through 12 years of a very strictly defined curriculum only to dump them out into the real world and say, "Guess what, ***; you're going to starve or suck *** now"? No one graduates high school without skills or knowledge (no one should, anyhow -- our education system is kinda *** by things like No Child Left Behind and similar quality-diminishing initiatives), but you're so attached to your delusions that you have to pretend an 18-year-old is the same as a 5-year-old.

Then again, you've stated on several occasions that in spite of having a white collar job, you're living hand-to-mouth just at the edge of poverty. You don't put it in those exact words, but it's definitely the picture conveyed. Your life story has been one of struggle and misery despite trying to bootstrap yourself out of it and I guess you really need to believe that you can drag yourself out of it. Based on what you've written and not even attempted to backpedal on, though, I think your failure actually might be inherent to you, which only props up your beliefs. Ironic, really.

There are professions out there that will train you up to work in the field, those that are hard, with a lot of physical labor, where all you have to do is whatever is needed to do. If you find one, good for you! Minimum wage jobs flipping burgers, waiting tables, or checking people out at registers are not designed to support you. Oil-rigs, Truck Drivers, and other professions that require a minimum, if any, additional training that would last less than a year are out there, but also require effort. If college isn't for you, then that's another option for you to succeed. But these "beyond minimum wage" jobs do require skills and knowledge, and you can get those with drive and ambition, instead of laying on your back and poping another baby out.

With the quality of education as it is today, an 18 year old has just as much drive as a 5 year old. There are things out there that are not taught in schools, neither public nor private, that require the youngster to learn on their own, or by their parents. We used to teach responsibility in school, but then parents kept complaining at why their kids kept on getting held back when they don't even pay attention to their own kids.

Most of these posters here are a prime example as why I think that their education is sub-par. I would like you to counter THAT argument.

I have never said that. I have a great job that pays well, my only issue is student loans, but that is my responsibility and I am taking care of it myself. I don't go around demanding that you support me because I have student loans, I take personal responsibility in my own actions and have it under control.

So, what failure are you referring to? Having student loans? Oh noes, I took out debt to better myself on! Shame on me, I should have done with you would have done and sit back and collect off of the government!

No, seriously, what failure do you assume I have done with my life?

1: I never disagreed here. I just pointed out that people will continue to remain ignorant even if you offer better schooling.

2: Is it impossible for you to have a decent conversation without trying to talk down to someone?

Yeah, I'm sure the working poor can SAVE for college when they have a net loss of money every year driving them further into debt.

So tell me, how is some 18-24 year old on full time at minimum wage in say Arkansas going to save for college dumbass?

The short answer is, they can't.

Even going to extremes in utilities, food, vehicles/transportation, health care, etc, you're losing money every year.

Why not? That's literally the point of minimum wage: it's just enough to keep you alive.

Moreover, that used to be how minimum wage jobs worked, too. You wouldn't have big screen TVs, fancy cars, and two-week vacations in Bermuda on a minimum wage, but working full-time at that rate should be enough to pay rent, buy food, and cover the other necessities of life. Back in the '70s before wages stagnated for all but the top 1%, that's how it worked, too. You literally could graduate high school, get a job at McDonald's, move out into your own place, and live your life.

***. Millennials are some of the most proactive and cooperative workers in the job market. I work with them all the time (I technically am one, too) and they put in far more effort than their GenX and Boomer co-workers. Given a choice between working with a 20-year-old and working with a 40-year-old, there's no contest in my mind.

HOWEVER, you wanna know what demotivates someone? When knowing that even with a college degree they'll be stuck in a ***job that doesn't pay their bills. Baby Boomers graduated high school with an array of skills (fewer skills than kids learn today, I might add) in the '70s, got a job at McDonald's or a steel mill or whatever, moved out on their own (their parents literally kicked them out), and the wage system was such that they could not only survive but actually do fairly well. Today, even with job experience and a degree, the job market is such a shambles and the wage system is so ruined that people who look at it logically give up.

You whine and *** constantly about government welfare without grasping the essential reason why people would opt to live on hand-outs: it's because the alternative is as bad or worse. The less we pay people at the bottom of the totem pole, the more of them will stop trying. It's really that simple. Want to cut government assistance? Raise the minimum wage. Yeah, it'll have a little bit of a trickle down effect by raising the prices at Wal-Mart and McDonald's, but not the 1:1 that people like you claim. Not even close.

I wasn't trying, but I'll accept that you perceived it as that.

I'm still trying to understand why America has the fascination with removing children from the home when they turn 18, obviously our economy can't continue to support that method.

I agree with that statement. However privacy becomes a big issue from 18-30. Most people are out having sex, doing things that are not in the norm of the families view, etc.

If more people were taught to stay at home and save money and put down bigger chunks of the money they saved on their new homes, they would pay less to the banks and retain more of their money.

I have a guy that lives with his parents that works for me. He makes about 35k a year at 20 years old. I told him 2 years ago to save all he could and try to buy his house outright. It would save him a lot of money. Not sure if he listened but he has a great opportunity to get a great head start on life.

Even when you do everything right, you can crash and burn pretty hard. My business basically died the minute the housing bubble burst. In hindsight, it wasn't a good idea to build a business off the dollars that the mortgage brokers and realtors were throwing into motor-sports as a hobby, but in a niche market, you latch onto people with disposable income. I was able to sell assets and my product rights to associated companies that weathered it better than a 5 man operation could, but I was then in my mid 20's with 5 years of work literally evaporated. I can't imagine how a young person today could survive anything remotely like that without having to file bankruptcy.

No kidding. I "neeeded" to be out of my parents' house when I was 18. Now that I'm in my 30s and struggling financially, I would move back in with them in a second if we lived in the same city.

However, the paradigm has shifted in the 10+ years since I got out of high school. Even before the Great Recession, people were opting to stay at home more. Now, it's a commonplace.

Moreover, the idea of getting a place to yourself immediately after high school is actually very new. The Baby Boomers started the trend because... well, because they were being paid well enough to be able to do so. Then those same people screwed over the economy, ruined wages, did their best to destroy the environment, and have brainwashed lunatics like Kingnobody into thinking that nothing has changed since 1971.

There's really nothing wrong with kicking around at home... assuming you can kill off that Victorian nonsense regarding sex and substances. Though, I say that as a total hypocrite because I did have sex while my parents were less than 20' away in the next room once, so it's more a matter of discretion and not giving a damn, but it'd be nice if we'd get over our cultural hangups about people of all ages giving each other one.

The middle class is no longer the middle class. The value of the American dollar has decreased in the sense that people making a good middle class wage could buy a home, 2 cars and their children's education for example. Totally agree on this.

Don't agree with bumpin' uglies with the parents next door. Don't think I could do that. While it's human nature, there are certain things I don't want my parents seeing or hearing about me....

But you are right, nowadays it is best to stay at home and save an purchase property and try to cut banks out. They make almost double the amount in value that you purchased the house for.... (I'll edit this part since I was just angry about the economy and talking out my *** lol. On a 200k loan @ 4.28% avrg. you'll pay 99k in interest.

I do want to point out that owning a home is not always the best investment nor guaranteed to pan out well. You keep mentioning it but it's kinda dodgy. Even without the real estate bubbles that occur every 10-20 years, at best you simply never lose money. But it is rare verging on impossible to gain money by owning the property you reside in. Renting is a lot more sensible for most people. Property ownership works better if you're flipping or acting as a landlord, and both of those come with considerable risks, too.

Done.