I intentionally left the prompt a bit vague, to allow for different interpretations and responses. There seems to be a strong "personal responsibility" vibe here, which I understand and to large degree agree with. But I often feel like my interpretation of it differs from some others' here. From an ethical perspective, I would for example hold a person who invests in companies that are causing climate change much more culpable than a person who chooses to participate in a student loan forgiveness program. But I digress.
I guess my larger concern is the effect that large student debt (and other large debts in general) is having on our society as a whole. When people go into debt at a young age, at the beginning of their career, their options immediately become limited. Yes, in some sense their options increase because they have an education, but they also decrease because now they are required to have an income that covers not just their living expenses, but also their loan payments, which stretch out to the horizon as far as they can see. They become risk averse, because they have more to lose.
We seem to have a societal presumption that it is normal for a young person to go into debt. Going into debt through credit cards and student loans and one day perhaps through a mortgage, is effectively a rite of passage to becoming to an adult in our culture. Indebtedness is thus baked into us during the time of our lives when we are forming our adult identities. I don't think this is a coincidence. I also don't think it is part of some grand scheme by a nefarious cabal. But I do think it is a cultural pattern that has evolved to keep the preponderance of our citizens docile and beholden to the status quo. I think debt kills our dreams, both for our own lives and for larger societal change.
I wished I'd realized this before grad school. So, I guess I see student loan forgiveness as a potential opportunity, for both me and many others, to revive our dreams. Going into debt is still an individual's choice, to be sure. But it's like a form where you have to check the box to opt out. If, as a young person, you don't read the "form of life" closely enough, you're not going to know to check the "opt out of debt" box. I'd be interested to hear others' thoughts on this. Thanks for reading.