EPIC Obama FAIL:

Last edited Tue Jan 24, 2012, 11:36 PM USA/ET - Edit history (1)

Education is critical for a democratic society.

This country needs to stop seeing education as a matter of a personal investment. It is not. Education is an investment in the country's future: for example, with an adequately educated populace, there would be no policy debate on whether global climate change is real.

This country needs to adopt a policy that allows all to go to school up through the Ph.D. level at virtually no cost.

This is the sort of competition that this country faces:

The iEconomy
How the U.S. Lost Out on iPhone Work
By CHARLES DUHIGG and KEITH BRADSHER
Published: January 21, 2012
...
Another critical advantage for Apple was that China provided engineers at a scale the United States could not match. Apple’s executives had estimated that about 8,700 industrial engineers were needed to oversee and guide the 200,000 assembly-line workers eventually involved in manufacturing iPhones. The company’s analysts had forecast it would take as long as nine months to find that many qualified engineers in the United States.

In China, it took 15 days.

Companies like Apple “say the challenge in setting up U.S. plants is finding a technical work force,” said Martin Schmidt, associate provost at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In particular, companies say they need engineers with more than high school, but not necessarily a bachelor’s degree. Americans at that skill level are hard to find, executives contend. “They’re good jobs, but the country doesn’t have enough to feed the demand,” Mr. Schmidt said.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/business/apple-america-and-a-squeezed-middle-class.html?pagewanted=4&_r=1&ref=general&src=me

Elaboration On Edit:

Work-study is a time drain. It takes away from study time. If a person is committed to his or her field of study, that is all that one is in school to do. The fundamental point is that education needs to be funded so that students can get in to universities, apply themselves fully to their various fields of study, get their degrees at whatever level they can accomplish, and get out without the burden of debt. Innovation seldom occurs without freedom, and debt is the antithesis of freedom.

It is possible to provide stipends that cover the cost of living to students: Germany, for example, provides money to students while they are in school to defray the cost of living. Their system while not totally free of loans (http://www.bmbf.de/en/892.php) would seem to provide an excellent example of what can be achieved, but, for whatever reason, our policies are continually misdirected. Unless someone in power (say...a president...maybe) has the vision to articulate and fight for a better policy, there will be no meaningful change. Sadly, the policy of calling for more work-study is not that far distant in spirit from turning teenage students into janitors.

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30 replies	Author	Time	Post
EPIC Obama FAIL: (Original post)	xocet	Jan 2012	OP
OBAMA BAAADDDD!! He can't develop the iPhone! HE BAD, BAD, BAD!!!	Liberal_Stalwart71	Jan 2012	#1
you COMPLETELY missed the point	Skittles	Jan 2012	#2
Honestly, I don't care. The point is valid. No more student loans. We need to reward excellence, not	riderinthestorm	Jan 2012	#6
Exactly. Grad school has put me closer to $130 in debt. It's NOT an epic fail.	Liberal_Stalwart71	Jan 2012	#25
No, I'm playing along with this tripe. I know exactly what's going on. Thanks, though. ;)	Liberal_Stalwart71	Jan 2012	#24
This message was self-deleted by its author	Indianademocrat91	Jan 2012	#3
Work study jobs are a good thing.	Bjorn Against	Jan 2012	#4
Looks like you found a flea on a Great Dane's coat!	FrenchieCat	Jan 2012	#5
This is hardly an epic fail	SaintPete	Jan 2012	#7
Work study is getting me through college	graywarrior	Jan 2012	#8
Same here.	ForgoTheConsequence	Jan 2012	#11
Me, too.	graywarrior	Jan 2012	#14
Hahaha. Nt	DevonRex	Jan 2012	#9
EPIC Op Fail Work Study helps	SunsetDreams	Jan 2012	#10
Work study programs arenot free labor	liberal N proud	Jan 2012	#12
Work study helps students get college educated at a lower cost so it is...bad?	uppityperson	Jan 2012	#13
Dude, you can't just go tossing EPIC FAILS around like that.	FarLeftFist	Jan 2012	#15
I would have killed for a work-study job	X_Digger	Jan 2012	#16
Not everybody can or should go to college or graduate school.	bluestateguy	Jan 2012	#17
Work study is for undergraduates. Got nothing to do with producing Ph.D's And providing work study	yellowcanine	Jan 2012	#23
Work study as a form of financial aid is what you choose to rail about?	frazzled	Jan 2012	#18
do you not understand?	Skittles	Jan 2012	#29
Work study is a great program. Many students can work in areas they are interested in related to	yellowcanine	Jan 2012	#19
This thread is so dumb I might Tweet it for a laugh.	FarLeftFist	Jan 2012	#20
Good idea!	DevonRex	Jan 2012	#21
this is nonsense.. there are plenty of skilled workers in this country at all levels.	ddeclue	Jan 2012	#22
If you read the rest of that article, it's mid-level engineers (not even degreed) that are needed...	Honeycombe8	Jan 2012	#26
sorry- I strongly disagree. Many people who deny the reality of climate change are college	Bluerthanblue	Jan 2012	#27
Huh?	EC	Jan 2012	#28
Work study is great.	ellisonz	Jan 2012	#30

Response to xocet (Original post)

Tue Jan 24, 2012, 10:12 PM

EPIC Obama FAIL:

1. OBAMA BAAADDDD!! He can't develop the iPhone! HE BAD, BAD, BAD!!!

2. you COMPLETELY missed the point

6. Honestly, I don't care. The point is valid. No more student loans. We need to reward excellence, not

25. Exactly. Grad school has put me closer to $130 in debt. It's NOT an epic fail.

24. No, I'm playing along with this tripe. I know exactly what's going on. Thanks, though. ;)

4. Work study jobs are a good thing.

5. Looks like you found a flea on a Great Dane's coat!

7. This is hardly an epic fail

8. Work study is getting me through college

11. Same here.

14. Me, too.

9. Hahaha. Nt

10. EPIC Op Fail Work Study helps

12. Work study programs arenot free labor

13. Work study helps students get college educated at a lower cost so it is...bad?

15. Dude, you can't just go tossing EPIC FAILS around like that.

16. I would have killed for a work-study job

17. Not everybody can or should go to college or graduate school.

23. Work study is for undergraduates. Got nothing to do with producing Ph.D's And providing work study

18. Work study as a form of financial aid is what you choose to rail about?

29. do you not understand?

19. Work study is a great program. Many students can work in areas they are interested in related to

20. This thread is so dumb I might Tweet it for a laugh.

21. Good idea!

22. this is nonsense.. there are plenty of skilled workers in this country at all levels.

26. If you read the rest of that article, it's mid-level engineers (not even degreed) that are needed...

27. sorry- I strongly disagree. Many people who deny the reality of climate change are college

28. Huh?

30. Work study is great.