Student Loan Interest Rankles College Grads 1259
theodp writes "Like many recent college grads, Steven Lee finds himself unemployed in one of the roughest job markets in decades and saddled with a big pile of debt — he owes about $84,000 in student loans for undergrad and grad school. But what's really got Lee angry are the high interest rates on his government-backed student loans. 'The rate for a 30-year mortgage is around 5%,' Lee said. 'Why should anyone have to pay 8.5%? The government has bailed out homeowners. It's bailed out big businesses. Why can't it also help students?' Not only that, federal student loans are the only loans in the nation that are largely non-dischargeable in bankruptcy, have no statutes of limitations, and can't be refinanced after consolidation, so Lee can forget about pulling a move out of the GM playbook. And unlike mortgages on million-dollar vacation homes, student loans have very limited tax deductability. A spokeswoman for the Department of Education blamed Congress for the rates which she conceded 'may seem high today,' but suggested that students are a credit-unworthy lot who should thank their lucky stars that rates aren't 12% or higher. Makes one long for the good-old-days of 3% student loans, doesn't it?"
Re:Student Loan Forgiveness Plan (Score:5, Funny)
You are one what? You are a federal government? Or you are a loan forgiveness program?
Re:Nothing like starting life $100K in the hole (Score:3, Funny)
Right, so we should sacrifice the quality of our education for a cheaper one by going to Buttfuck State. Gotcha.
Thing I Notice About Most Recent Graduates (Score:4, Funny)
Re:All mine were cheap! (Score:3, Funny)
Unless you're Thrawn, I doubt an art history degree is going to be useful.
Re:outrage noted :-) (Score:3, Funny)
Physics and maths are just theory, they have no economic value at face value and anyone who thinks otherwise is a moronic anti-intellectual who has no idea what either of those is or does. Also, someone who doesn't understand the meaning of economic value.
Re:default rates by degree (Score:2, Funny)
I sense a contradiction here.
Re:All mine were cheap! (Score:5, Funny)
It wasn't Lennon, it was McCarthy.
Re:default rates by degree (Score:3, Funny)
Should be sterilized until repayment is complete? Hold on to children as collateral?
Three more payments and this baby is mine!
Re:All mine were cheap! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:All mine were cheap! (Score:3, Funny)
Another lesser known factoid: the cost of ammunition always increases with the frequency of zombie outbreaks:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Cost+of+ammunition+increases+with+frequency+of+zombie+outbreaks [google.com]