Is a degree the answer to reducing poverty?

@SW-User
Going to college just for the sake of going to college IS a good thing. Being educated is valuable on its own.

But that does not mean it is a profitable thing. Too many people conflate value with profit these days.

Unfortunately, a lot of the most valuable things people do are the ones they don't get paid for or get underpaid for. Or in the case of college, end up paying for.

@ViciDraco Absolutely and even with degrees people like exotic might deem useless you can get good or at least decent jobs.

@ViciDraco
omg lol

Do you really think you need to go to college to be educated? Why, exactly?

When you study for a degree, you are *only* learning about THAT subject, and it is *only* what the curricula has set out and specified as appropriate for you to learn. Universities *only* provide you with a very limited education, if we are to consider how much and what kind of knowledge is truly useful in the world. It may be valuable if you're trying to enter a particular field, but that value is less if you truly want to "learn", and learn about a lot of things.

@SW-User you read too much into my sentiment. I said there is value in college education, I did not say it was necessary. It would be better for society if everyone COULD go to college who wanted to. Even for arts degrees. It is not necessary for society to have everyone actually do so.

You also seem to undervalue education in general the way you speak of it. There is more to education than getting a job. Getting a job may be the most profitable part of college and university, but it is also the least valuable part of the experience.

@ViciDraco oh god

You aren't very bright, are you?

It wouldn't be "better for society if everyone could go to college who wanted to." But, if you really think it would be, I suggest you provide a good explanation for that. For instance, how do I benefit from some idiot learning media studies? Especially if they don't go on to get a job in media studies, or use that degree to talk total_shit. Similarly, how do I benefit from someone studying gender studies? Seriously, tell me how I and other people benefit from that?!

I DON'T undervalue education...I value people learning about *everything* that is necessary or interesting to learn about. Studying for a degree with a limited set of subjects in an even more limited curricula is not "getting an education".

@SW-User you seem to attach importance to someone's value as a laborer, rather than someone's self-enrichment and happiness. I think that is where we have our disagreement.

I think we should be working to automate away as much labor as possible. We should be working to increase the quality of lives and people base happiness without them having to work a job at all. Those who choose to work get extra luxury, but it should be an option. We're essentially there technologically. We just can't escape our primitive economic systems and perception that work is good for people.

@ViciDraco "self-enrichment" is subjective.

Most people would say that they don't feel particularly enriched by half (or probably most) of university graduates, especially when they study such shitty degrees.

If people don't want to work for a living, they don't have to. I'm just curious about what kind of alternatives you propose though? If some people refuse to work, for example, should we subsidize them?

@SW-User yes. We have the resources to provide basic housing, food, Healthcare, and education to all citizens. We should start there and improve what is made free as we automate more and more of the workforce and need fewer and fewer people to work to keep society running.

@ViciDraco 🤭