Taxes or Student Debt? US Chose Wrong Crackdown: Kathryn Edwards

The federal government restarted forced collections this week on student loans in default. Thus comes to an end a five-year experiment, started during the pandemic, to pause loan payments — and a squandered opportunity to reconsider the government’s role as a lender in postsecondary education.

After all, questions continue to swirl around both college and debt: Do 18-year-olds understand the financial risks they are taking on? Does tuition reflect the services provided? In short, is college still worth the investment?

The conclusion is that none of this matters. The government is a lender, and if you borrow from it, you ...