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Post 24 Aug 2018, 2:37 pm

Ray Jay wrote: financial aid formulas have enabled universities to determine the wealth and income of all of their customers and price their product accordingly in cahoots with other universities and colleges who use the same formulas. Yet it is not considered price fixing.


Yeah, this is so true. You place too much blame on the government though. It's a complicated story, and while I think the government has a hand in this, they are not primarily to blame. If you really want to get into it: Read "Antitrust and Financial Aid in Higher Education" starting on page 12:

https://ticas.org/sites/default/files/pub_files/antitrust.pdf
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Post 24 Aug 2018, 4:08 pm

Amen and Amen...
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Post 25 Aug 2018, 12:11 pm

rayjay
I realize that higher education is a complicated market; but let's at least acknowledge that it is not the free market that has created this mess. Government has had a large and clumsy thumb on the scales.

You are talking about the US only.
University education is not a mess in countries that don't run Universities as a market. Its not nearly so complicated in France or Denmark or Germany.

The "thumbs on the scales" in the US include:
- The financial institutions that profit from student loans . Student loan debt is the second highest category of debt in the US. Who is going to be lobbying against things like free tuition, grants, etc?
Financial institutions take the place of insurers when looking at the cost of health care in the US.
- University administrations that are awarded higher compensation for increasing revenues. An offshoot of this is that Football coaches are often the highest paid staff members on universities.
-Another offshoot is that the student athletes are not truly compensated for their contributions to the revenue they generate, and often end up with life long health issues due to their sport. (football)
- For profit institutions...also drive cost and demand.

So although its not a free market, lets also acknowledge that there is an inelastic demand for higher education, Free markets really only function properly if there exists both inelastic demand and competition.
Like health care, Secondary education is not a truly optional choice.
- If a person wants to move ahead, they need that degree.
- If industry is going to continue to be competitive it needs the people coming out of universities with the required skills and knowledge and honed talents.

Like health care, education gets a lot less complicated if government gets a lot more involved, not less involved. Because the thumbs on the scale are just one and not several. And several pushing all in the same direction of adding cost to the student.
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Post 27 Nov 2018, 8:35 am

Deficit heading towards $1 trillion.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... g-forecast
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Post 27 Nov 2018, 10:03 am

danivon wrote:Deficit heading towards $1 trillion.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... g-forecast


Way too much... Need to cut everything until debt load is zero. Perhaps 10% across the board. I am even for 20%.

Great to hear from you again, Owen. Happy Holidays!
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Post 27 Nov 2018, 10:27 am

Across the board spending cuts are not sensible. They represent an inability on the part of Congress to prioritize spending.

Targeted cuts along with a repeal of some of those January tax cuts would be my solution. Those cuts sure didn't pay for themselves!
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Post 27 Nov 2018, 12:30 pm

SLOTerp wrote:Across the board spending cuts are not sensible. They represent an inability on the part of Congress to prioritize spending.

Targeted cuts along with a repeal of some of those January tax cuts would be my solution. Those cuts sure didn't pay for themselves!


I agree that it is not sensible. Unfortunately, if Congressional parties both act like children, then a childish response will come. If a workable solution cannot be achieved, then a much more difficult will come down the pike.

We all agree that the debt is at levels that are too high. Let's look at the yearly deficit and get corrected. (Balanced Budget Amendment)
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Post 27 Nov 2018, 12:33 pm

Cut 1% of federal employees per month until the unemployment rate hits 5%. We need them in the regular workforce, but targeted as Sloterp suggests.
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Post 04 Jan 2019, 12:27 am

How do you like Trumpanomics now, RJ?
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Post 05 Jan 2019, 9:02 am

freeman3 wrote:How do you like Trumpanomics now, RJ?


Hey … happy new year and all that!

I believe in free trade and more legal immigration (based on intelligent criteria) so I hate those 2 aspects of Trumpanomics. The trade war with China may be disastrous for China, the rest of the world, and the US, mostly in that order.

It seems to me that given the backdrop of the trade war, the fact that the US is growing employment at record rates is amazing. The trade war head winds appear to be less powerful than the tax rate cut tail winds. Imagine how good our economy could be if we allowed in the workers that we need and didn't disrupt our supply chains with the trade war.
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Post 06 Jan 2019, 12:27 am

Yes, Happy New Year! I am seeing 2-2.5% forecasts for growth in 2019. A drop in manufacturing orders is not a good sign.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/mobile.reu ... SKCN1OX10B

If all those tax cuts and cuts in regulations got us was a temporary one year jolt in growth...they werent worth it. Especially with a deficit nearing a trillion...
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Post 06 Jan 2019, 9:15 am

freeman3 wrote:Yes, Happy New Year! I am seeing 2-2.5% forecasts for growth in 2019. A drop in manufacturing orders is not a good sign.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/mobile.reu ... SKCN1OX10B

If all those tax cuts and cuts in regulations got us was a temporary one year jolt in growth...they werent worth it. Especially with a deficit nearing a trillion...

From your source:

Tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on steel and aluminum imports as well as a range of Chinese goods are hurting manufacturers. Transportation equipment manufacturers said “customer demand continues to decrease due to concerns about the economy and tariffs.”
Machinery makers complained that “the ongoing open issues with tariffs between U.S. and China are causing longer-term concerns about costs and sourcing strategies for our manufacturing operations.” Computer and electronic product manufacturers said “growth appears to have stopped.”


The problem is the trade war, not the tax cuts.

BTW, manufacturing job growth has been very good over the last 2 years. Trump's base's support is partially about that.
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Post 15 Jan 2019, 2:00 pm

Evening all, been a while since I darkened your doors. Thought I'd pop my head in to say hello since I'll be back here periodically while Steve's NWO game is running. It's kind of impressive that you guys have kept this place going tbh, who's still around ?
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Post 15 Jan 2019, 2:07 pm

The political forums just aren't the same since Doctor Fate hung it up. He popped by here just to post something on the GM killing the Volt and left again,but other than him most of the old timers are still limping along.
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Post 15 Jan 2019, 3:15 pm

He was the heart of this place I guess. Still, good to see the rest of you still clinging on in there.