Billionaire Pays Student Loans

[Teacher Terry]

So a billionaire that was asked to speak at a college commencement ceremony paid off everyone’s student loans. What a wonderful person! He asked the kids to pay it forward and some in the class are brainstorming how the class can do that.

[Gardnr]

I love this story. Nearly 400 grads with zero debt. And I found this clip about his wife and her passion:

His wife, Hope Dworaczyk, 34, whom he married in 2015 advocates for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through an organization called Best Buddies.

[Teacher Terry]

Think what good could be accomplished if more people were like them.

[Gardnr]

Think what good could be accomplished if more people were like them.

Philanthropy at all levels. Our foodbank says they can buy 5X the food the consumer $ gets. Every $ counts! Before school, after school, backpack program for weekend supplies and the summer in the park programs. A kid that isn't hungry learns better. This is where we invest heavily.

[razz]

Robert F Smith's address at Morehouse College https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-P1CcRphVnM&feature=youtu.be

I would have been impressed to hear such a speech at my convocation address and so much of what he advises is applicable to all.

[Simplemind]

I loved watching this story this morning on the news. The looks on those kids faces...… what a gift. Amazing.

[Yppej]

This is a much better idea than lower and lower middle income Americans paying taxes for loan forgiveness programs for people who outearn them.

[JaneV2.0]

This was a wonderful gesture that wouldn't have been necessary if we had reasonably priced (or free) college educations in this country.

[pinkytoe]

Makes me wonder what Bezos could do...or does he even do philanthropy?

[ApatheticNoMore]

Makes me wonder what Bezos could do...or does he even do philanthropy?

He does some, but I'd rather he just pay and treat his workers decently. I mean supposedly he's involved with some homeless stuff, but some of those who work for Amazon are homeless ...

[jp1]

He does some, but I'd rather he just pay and treat his workers decently. I mean supposedly he's involved with some homeless stuff, but some of those who work for Amazon are homeless ...

Even upper income amazon workers are not treated particularly nicely. Shortly after the NY Times article about this came out a few years ago I asked my sister how accurate it was. Apparently when our father was in the hospital for the last six months of his life she got a crappy annual review for taking too much personal time during the year... It was bad enough that she left after 3 years even though she wouldn't be fully vested in her stock options for another year.

[catherine]

I think loan forgiveness is great. I saw a similar situation on 60 Minutes (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/tuition-free-medical-school-how-the-nyu-school-of-medicine-is-going-tuition-free-60-minutes/).

In a way, I hate to say it, but who is this benefiting? In many cases, people who have financial support already.

Jeffrey Sachs has thrown out a number that would eradicate world poverty, and frankly, it's not that much:


Jeffrey Sachs, as one of the world’s leading experts on economic development and the fight against poverty, stated that the cost to end poverty is $175 billion per year for 20 years. This yearly amount is less than 1 percent of the combined income of the richest countries in the world, and only four times the United States’ military budget for one year.

Ending poverty is possible and at a low cost. Now we just need ordinary citizens as well as multinational corporations to start meeting their responsibilities to help the poor and the left behind. Source (https://borgenproject.org/how-much-does-it-cost-to-end-poverty/)

I am not criticizing people who pay off student loans, by any means. But a piece of me wonders why a billionaire paying off the loans of medical students warrants a 60 Minutes segment, whereas the sacrifice of many people who live simply so that they can give to the poor and destitute goes unnoticed. I was going to provide one example, but there are so many examples of selfless people working to better the lives of the poor in every city and town. They are my heroes.

[Gardnr]

Ending poverty is possible and at a low cost. Now we just need ordinary citizens as well as multinational corporations to start meeting their responsibilities to help the poor and the left behind.
Source (https://borgenproject.org/how-much-does-it-cost-to-end-poverty/)


There is an additional challenge to solving poverty: many are in poverty because of poor financial decisions and/or poor education. That too must be solved. Paying off their debt is only 1 small part of their equation.

[Teacher Terry]

Also if you look at the bell curve some people will never be smart enough to do anything but very low paying jobs.

[Alan]

Also if you look at the bell curve some people will never be smart enough to do anything but very low paying jobs.And if we artificially inflate the return on not being smart enough, the number of people you describe will increase exponentially.

[ApatheticNoMore]

Also if you look at the bell curve some people will never be smart enough to do anything but very low paying jobs.

well the majority of the jobs will always be low paying as well (I mean yes one can change minimum wage etc. but just being realistic about what jobs are actually out there). The world in which everyone would have a good job if only they were "smart enough" is not the U.S. job market.

And even if all low paying jobs were automated, the number of good paying jobs is not particularly likely to increase, though the unemployment rate might.