Education (at an institution) is NOT a right. Knowledge/self-education is a right, but not education. You have the right to educate yourself (on the internet, books etc), given that the tools you used were acquired legally. You have the right to pay for your education, given that the funds were acquired with consent from all parties.
Note: I live in Canada where we have a mix of government grants (money you don't have to pay back) and loans. Trudeau is also giving out $1200/month for free (at $9 billion cost to taxpayers) to students for the next 4 months.
I use capital, labour and money interchangeably, as they are essentially the same.
1. Education at an institution involves others' labour and capital: Education has a cost. It involves capital to build a school, operate it and hire people for it. Teachers/professors sacrificed a lot of capital for their education and capital. They deserve to be compensated for their capital.
2. Unfairness due to lack of consent and unequal access to government tuition programs: Government funded tuition programs (and any other social programs) are not fair to everyone. It involves redistribution of wealth. It forces the wealthier people to give up their money to fund the education of the lower class, without consent. At least where I live, there is no option to opt out of funding this program. The program isn't available to everyone either. The taxpayer laboured for the money, than had it forcibly taken from them to fund your education. This lacks consent, or is forced consent at best.
Now, yes i know that some here will say that it is unfair that some are wealthier. While I accept that crony capitalism exists, I also have to note that most rich individuals (doctors, lawyers, businessmen etc) got there with hard work. Is it fair to force them to fund your education? No.
3. Unfairness due to lack of exchange of labour and capital for government grants. Every capital/money that you receive should have been paid for by labour (either by you or others with consent). That is why its ok for parents to pay for tuition (your parents laboured for the money and consented to giving you their capital). This is why loans are ok, because you will labour to pay back the loan at a later date.
As mentioned above, in the case of government grants/taxpayer money, it was the taxpayers who laboured for the money. They did not consent, or were forced to consent, to funding your education. This isn't right.
4. Unreasonableness: Its completely unreasonable for MOST parents not to save for their children's education. Average tuition for children in Canada is $8000-10000 per year. Financial planners estimate setting aside $210 per month per child (since birth) for education. This is completely doable. It's also logical for parents to save for their child's education.
I shouldn't have to pay because your parents are not willing/able to fund your education, as that's not my fault. You have a reason to pay for your education, as you will be receiving the education.
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Who paid for the education the doctors, lawyers, etc. got in the first place? I bet at least 13 years was at the public expense. Unless you are going to live out in the boonies and use no roads, trains, airports, public services, then quit bitching about paying taxes. And if you do live there you aren't paying taxes anyway.
i paid all of my own education thank you.
Really? K-12?
yup.
And besides, k-12 is free for everyone, while university isn't.
Low income earners: Free K-12, free or low cost university/college
Higher income earners that pay more tax: K-12 free, but pay for university, loans for professional degrees
Higher income earners pay more and get less out. Therefore, the unfairness still exists.
K-12 isn't free, it's just paid by someone else. High earners derive more benefit from the social order, so they should pay more. Like I said, if you want zero taxes, go live off the grid somewhere. Canada has millions of square miles of wilderness.
"High earners derive more benefit from the social order, so they should pay more"
I strongly disagree with this. Amount paid should not be related to the social order. It should be related to how much of the social services they use. High income earners usually send kids to private school and do not use the services.
They are getting much more of the benefit from spending on infrastructure, military, government institutions etc. If you live under an overpass, you're not a lot better off than some farmer in Somalia, so protecting the social order is largely useless for you. On the other hand, if you're a billionaire, then you have a very strong interest in protecting what provides the real worth of your wealth.
Wealthy Jews in 1930's Germany found that out when the government just confiscated their wealth. And then killed them.
This is about education, not military,. infrastructure etc. I'm not paying someone else's tuition.
So only the wealthy should be doctors?
No. As I said, I'm ok with loans or saving up for education. You only need to save 200 per month to save up for a BA and about 1000 for a professional degree, which is doable. I also know a girl who was poor, chose a cheap college, worked and saved up for university and graduated with no debt. Govt/taxpayers should not have to pay for their education.