Me defaulting on a mortgage loan is a little different than the U.S. defaulting on its loans/debt. You're not even mixing apples and oranges....it's more like apples and hammers.

Besides, I haven't borrowed more than I can pay back, nor is my debt placing a stranglehold on my ability to utilize my funds for other activities. Can the same be said of the United States?

If I default on my mortgage, the bank gains ownership of my house.

If the US defaults on loans from China, does China gain ownership of Hawaii and Alaska?

Sam's point re vocational skills is a really good one. Not everyone can/should go to college - many people end up with crushing debt when they're not truly interested in higher education, but instead getting a good job.

Skilled trade workers make great money and don't have student loans for a decade plus holding them back.

If I had it to do over, I'd seriously consider being a full-time firefighter.

Living near as many shipyards as I do, there are a variety of apprenticeships that are available and place many people in welding, electrical, maintenance careers, etc. It's the basic equivalent of a 4-year degree in a vocational sense.

In my business, I have seen a great increase in construction/renovations of schools that provide technical training on both the High School and Community College level.

I guess my point is that vocational schools haven't died. I think the public gets the standard ration of "you need a 4-year degree to succeed" and a vocational school is basically an afterthought. But I think vocational skills are alive and well, especially technical schools such as ECPI and ITT Tech. There's a bunch of those in my region.

Post secondary votech education is readily available. The problem isn't that, the problem is you can identify who should be ditch diggers around 10-12 and you shouldn't have to wait until 18-19, or 21-22 barring the typical youthful transgressions the lands these people in jail for a couple years, to get a shovel in their hands and teach them the value of hard work and the money that can be made there. Most of these kids know they aren't going to college so why waste their time, the teachers time and the other students time forcing these kids through college prep work classes.

That's the most I've ever agreed with you Sam. : )

thraxle "If the US defaults on loans from China, does China gain ownership of Hawaii and Alaska?"


thats how they used to do it in europe, when land were just something the nobility owned, nationality had little to do with it.

I'm still waiting for 06 to respond to see if he really thinks the only people that should own homes are those than can buy them outright.