by Robert M. Traxler
The President and Fellows of Harvard College (the full official name of Harvard University) has some 23 thousand students with $53 billion in endowments that is around $2.3 million per student, and yet you are subsidizing them. What is wrong with this picture?
The rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer is the mantra of the progressive movement. Apparently, it is fitting and proper for the politically correct to get richer. Some Harvard professors make in excess of $2 million per year, and you are subsidizing their salaries. As you struggle to make do, you involuntary pay the salaries of professors who are multimillionaires?
In the new economy, one that is moving toward a manufacturing economy and away from a service economy, we need to ask questions of the government, like why you are subsidizing with tax dollars dozens of colleges and universities with billions on hand, and why are you subsidizing millionaires who work a few hours a day eight to nine months a year with all weekends and holidays off?
We also need to “reimagine” why we go to college. If you or a child attend college and go into debt for an education, why do you get a degree in a discipline that has no marketability? Gender Studies, Philosophy, Art History, Theater, Religious Studies, General Liberal Arts, Culinary Arts, Archaeology and Music are but a few. The odds of well-paid employment after receiving a degree and spending tens of thousands, to hundreds of thousands of dollars in those disciplines are very limited.
We cannot blame institutions of higher education, as they are the ultimate capitalists, all the while claiming to be anti-capitalist. If folks are ignorant enough (ignorant as in not informed) to attend college with no plan for what is employment reality afterward, it is not their fault. If we condone making truly stupid courses mandatory, wasting time and money then, in the spirit of capitalism, they will require them.
Withholding tax money from institutions run by millionaires is about due, but the progressive movement is fighting it hammer and sickle, because institutes of higher learning are cash cows for the left, and you are paying for it. Withholding tax dollars from the top Ivy league colleges and universities is called by the politically correct an attack on free speech. This from a group of people who say you do not have the right to use “incorrect or hateful speech.” Speech like saying that we have two sexes, not five plus categories as the progressive movement maintains (LBTGQ+).
To be antisemitic on our college campuses is not hate speech, why? Because it is accepted by the administration, calling Jewish folks Nazis (as historically industrial strength stupid that is) and many other names; calling for the elimination of a group of minority people based on religion is not hate speech in the alternate universe we call elite colleges.
Indeed, the need to reassess the allocation of tax revenues has arrived. Instead of funneling billions into institutions that already possess significant financial reserves, those funds could be redirected to support vocational training, apprenticeships, and community colleges that cater to the real-world demands of the new labor market. Education should be about equipping individuals with the skills and knowledge that will enable them to thrive in their chosen careers. However, many graduates find themselves burdened with debt, holding degrees that offer little to no return on investment.
The progressive movement’s reluctance to scrutinize these practices reveals a deeper hypocrisy within their philosophy. While championing the cause of equality, they unknowingly perpetuate a system where wealth and privilege are concentrated at elite educational institutions. This unfairness is further amplified by the restriction of free speech on campuses. How can true intellectual growth occur in such a controlled, closed atmosphere?
Reforming higher education funding would not only alleviate the financial pressure on students and taxpayers, but also foster a more practical approach to learning. By prioritizing fields of study that align with market needs and encouraging entrepreneurial actions, society can ensure that graduates are not just educated, but equipped to contribute meaningfully to the new President Donald Trump manufacturing-based economy.
The debate over subsidizing elite colleges touches upon the broader issues of equity, freedom, and the role of education in society. It is a call to action for policymakers to reimagine how educational resources are distributed and to advocate for a system that truly serves the public good. My opinion.
“There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.”
—Isaac Asimov