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450 points pseudolus | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.321s | source
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sequoia ◴[] No.43569673[source]
A lot of Americans support these attacks on universities. Why do people harbour this much animosity towards these institutions? Is there anything they could have done differently in the past decade or two to have broader sympathy now, or is people's ambivalence towards elite universities 100% irrational?
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lr4444lr ◴[] No.43570075[source]
There are some reasons that I think you probably know, which don't receive enough time and attention

1) Despite an appearance of being "left leaning" (according to polls of faculty political sentiment) they continue to gatekeep education behind prohibitively expensive tuition that is out of reach of lower economic strata without crippling debt, and have simultaneously struggled to produce graduates whose economic differential easily makes up for that expense and lost work time.

2) They enjoy a tax free status while receiving significant tax money despite many failing to grow their student bodies in tandem with the growth of the US population, leading to people questioning whether they deserve those benefits as institutions that serve the public.

3) There is a sentiment that basic literacy and numeracy of graduates has dropped over the last decades outside of a narrow area of studies, because of a shift to a model where students are customers buying a credential instead of getting an education.

(These are all interrelated, of course.)

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justonceokay ◴[] No.43576752[source]
I have multiple family members that are frustrated with higher learning because their children came out of the system more liberal-minded than when they entered. In this politically divided climate they feel like the university system “stole” their children from them.

In reality I don’t think people’s political opinions change very much and they are just mad that their children individuated.

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SoftTalker ◴[] No.43577115[source]
People's political opinions definitely change, especially with age and wealth.
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cosmic_cheese ◴[] No.43577344[source]
They do change to some degree, but I believe that age and wealth are not nearly as strong of factors as popular culture might have one think.
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SoftTalker ◴[] No.43577762[source]
I guess it depends. 40 years later, I vote completely opposite to what I did when I was 18-20 years old.
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1. eszed ◴[] No.43582393[source]
Just curious: in which direction on the political spectrum have your preferences moved?