I dont think college or pouring money into funding peoples education is the issue. Someone who really wants to pursue their degree in something will make it work one way or another, state college are relatively cheap and anyone who wants to learn can afford the first four years easily.

In my humble opinion people are the issue, not the government, not the schools but the individuals themselves. For example if someone has a degree in a low demand field, they cant be too surprised when it's hard to find work, and thats perfectly fine as long as you are willing to accept the fact that you are going to school for something you want to learn about, not something that will feed you big money.

Another issue I think is society itself, I think most of us are bred to get quick and easy answers, that same kind of mentality will start seeping into your personality and work habits, and the prospect of getting a degree in a more mentally intensive field such as engineering or medicine becomes less and less desirable for the many that don't understand the importance of hard work and dedication


At the end of the day, a big paycheck does not equal happiness, and when we stop blaming other people or entities for our misfortunes then we will probably start seeing some change, until then it is what it is.

What we need is an internet democracy where all individuals have a hand in shaping their future.

Yes, because this wouldn't at all resulting in mass hacking and general trolling of votes at all... no sir, not in the slightest...

Also I think you massively under-estimate the lack of understanding the average person has when it comes to matters they would be voting on. Most people do it wrong in a paper ballot (prime example from the UK; allowing national policies to affect local elections and local policys to affect national ones, well done people, well done...) so an internet one would just make matters worse.

many don't understand the importance of hard work and dedication

At the end of the day, a big paycheck does not equal happiness[/quote]
I feel like you may be conflating a couple of philosophies here.

I dont think college or pouring money into funding peoples education is the issue. Someone who really wants to pursue their degree in something will make it work one way or another, state college are relatively cheap and anyone who wants to learn can afford the first four years easily.

In my humble opinion people are the issue, not the government, not the schools but the individuals themselves. For example if someone has a degree in a low demand field, they cant be too surprised when it's hard to find work, and thats perfectly fine as long as you are willing to accept the fact that you are going to school for something you want to learn about, not something that will feed you big money.

Another issue I think is society itself, I think most of us are bred to get quick and easy answers, that same kind of mentality will start seeping into your personality and work habits, and the prospect of getting a degree in a more mentally intensive field such as engineering or medicine becomes less and less desirable for the many that don't understand the importance of hard work and dedication


At the end of the day, a big paycheck does not equal happiness, and when we stop blaming other people or entities for our misfortunes then we will probably start seeing some change, until then it is what it is.

You are entirely right but there is no way to change the nature of man. All we can do is create systems to work around the flaws in human nature. This is the exact reason we need police officers and teachers.

[quote name='The_Neverending_Loop' timestamp='1328289040' post='4909216']
many don't understand the importance of hard work and dedication

At the end of the day, a big paycheck does not equal happiness[/quote]
I feel like you may be conflating a couple of philosophies here.
[/quote]

I didn't mean to, they are suppose to be interpreted separately

You are entirely right but there is no way to change the nature of man. All we can do is create systems to work around the flaws in human nature. This is the exact reason we need police officers and teachers.

The nature of man is to want a lot for very little, we cant create a system to work around that.

[quote name='SteveDeFacto' timestamp='1328287063' post='4909212']
What we need is an internet democracy where all individuals have a hand in shaping their future.

Yes, because this wouldn't at all resulting in mass hacking and general trolling of votes at all... no sir, not in the slightest...

Also I think you massively under-estimate the lack of understanding the average person has when it comes to matters they would be voting on. Most people do it wrong in a paper ballot (prime example from the UK; allowing national policies to affect local elections and local policys to affect national ones, well done people, well done...) so an internet one would just make matters worse.
[/quote]

You really don't think a hack proof system can exist? When you register to vote you are also given a read only flash drive with a micro OS on it to act as a hack proof platform for voting. I see no way that can be hacked. Also I am fully aware of the lack of understanding the average person has but there are systems that can be put in place to weed out the dummies. One could simply create a short test to gauge the level of understanding the individual has about the matters they are voting on. Test questions can be submitted and checked to see if the sources are reliable.

[quote name='SteveDeFacto' timestamp='1328289600' post='4909220']
You are entirely right but there is no way to change the nature of man. All we can do is create systems to work around the flaws in human nature. This is the exact reason we need police officers and teachers.

The nature of man is to want a lot for very little, we cant create a system to work around that.
[/quote]

We already have systems put in place to work around that... Have you heard of capitalism?

Problem with original proposal of this thread is implied assumption that "degree => career => money".

Correlation vs. causation.

University degree is correlated with career success. Career success is correlated with money.

But neither of those cause the other.


If you want to get rich - go where the money is.


A considerably more important issue is unrelated to degrees, it's the overall changes of global economy. Companies, being the most profitable, even if not the largest employers, have transcended country boundaries. They sell on rich market, they purchase from cheap suppliers.

While that is Smith 101, today's economy framework wasn't designed for such relation. This really is breaking society and future prospects, but also isn't trivial to solve using existing mechanisms.

Intra-country economy is stable and self-regulating. If you drive prices too high up, or wages fall too low, people can't buy anymore and company loses money. Today's version is - take from the rich, don't give to the poor.


Unfortunately, outside of complete lockdown of international trade and draconian protectionist policies, I don't see this changing soon. That will however happen should Western economies succumb. But that outcome won't be good for workers either. Either way, companies come out on top, they transcend governments and country borders.

You really don't think a hack proof system can exist? When you register to vote you are also given a read only flash drive with a micro OS on it to act as a hack proof platform for voting. I see no way that can be hacked.

Copy the contents to your harddrive, hack, write to a fresh flash drive. Where were we again?
[sup][sub]*There is no such thing as infallible security. That's just a fact.[/sub][/sup]

We already have systems put in place to work around that... Have you heard of capitalism?

Perhaps you haven't noticed that capitalism hasn't created utopia yet. But you know, it's only a matter of time till the free market works it all out, right?

Copy the contents to your harddrive, hack, write to a fresh flash drive. Where were we again?
[sup][sub]*There is no such thing as infallible security. That's just a fact.[/sub][/sup]

Why does it matter if you made a hacked flash drive? How are you going to get anyone to use it?

[quote name='SteveDeFacto' timestamp='1328291066' post='4909232']
We already have systems put in place to work around that... Have you heard of capitalism?

Perhaps you haven't noticed that capitalism hasn't created utopia yet. But you know, it's only a matter of time till the free market works it all out, right?
[/quote]
No, capitalism does not create utopia but it does force the majority to get off their asses and go to work.