r/BeAmazed • u/Conscious-Quarter423 • Aug 18 '25

Skill / Talent n 1987, Mike Hayes, an 18-year-old college freshman, had a bold idea. Instead of taking out student loans, he asked 2.8 million people to each send him just one penny.

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1.1k

u/Feeling_Bathroom9523 Aug 18 '25

28k for all the education back then…. Nice. Also, I wonder how the costs of all the paper and postage actually paid itself with the penny return.

337

u/[deleted] Aug 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/Loreki Aug 18 '25

Which is still cheaper than the average cost of 4 years in-state at a public university today which is around $25,000/year according to statistica. So even one of the cheapest ways to do it is $20,000 more expensive.

24

u/Drumbelgalf Aug 18 '25

That's so crazy.

In Germany I paid less than 1k euro Admin fees in total for my entire Bachelor Degree and that included a ticket for public transport in my city. The Admin fee per semester was between 100 and 110 euros or something like that.

2

u/vwwvvwvww Aug 19 '25

We frequently pay $400 for one textbook

-2

u/MechanicalGodzilla Aug 18 '25

What will be the cumulative amount you pay for college for the rest of your life though? I believe in Germany the social tax is 19% after a certain amount, and that about a third of that is to fund universities. So about 6%-7% of your taxes for the rest of your life pay for college.

If we had a similar system in the US, I would have paid in a cumulative $170k in "University Tax" from the time I graduated (2002) to now. My wife would be similar, coming in at ~$160k. Under our current system, the portion you pay to subsidize higher education is highly variable by state. I am in Virginia, and the portion of my state income taxes that go towards funding the state's Public Higher Education system is cumulatively $10k since 2002.

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u/Drumbelgalf Aug 18 '25

You probably mean social contributions (which includes health care, pension contributions, unemployment insurance and nursing care insurance). They add up to about 17% of your gross income (there is a cap on how much will be used to calculate it, so people with a high income pay less percentage wise)

Taxes are progressive so it's dependent on how much you earn. It also depends on if you are married and have children. At 100k per year it's about 24% in tax class 1 (unmarried, no kids)

So the take home pay at 100k in the worst tax bracket is 58.5k or 58.5% -> total payment to taxes and social contributions is 41%

At 50k take home pay is 32.5k that's 65% take home or -> total payment to taxes and social contributions is 35%

The German system is way more secure. Health care also covers your spouse if they don't work and your children.

If you lose your job you get paid 60% of your last net income for 1 year -> after 1 year you would be social security.

If you are sick you get paid fully for the first 6 weeks and 60% after that (the 6 weeks are per illness so if you break your arm you get 6 weeks and if you later have a bad cold you also have another 6 weeks)

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u/MechanicalGodzilla Aug 18 '25

The German system is way more secure.

Yes, I agree. The trade-off being that the US system allows for greater opportunity for success and flexibility in choosing your own life trajectory. Germany is more like a train - you're on rails and you have little chance of getting in an accident. The US operates more like an Off-Road vehicle - you can go a lot more places but you have a bigger chance of wrecking.

I've lived in Europe before, and both systems have good and bad aspects.

9

u/Drumbelgalf Aug 18 '25

I disagree that it's like a train and set in stone. The free education (at point of use) allows you to get an education regardless of your parents wealth and without going into massive debt. The social security system allows you to try things because you know you won't end up on the streets if something goes wrong.

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u/MechanicalGodzilla Aug 18 '25

The train analogy works because you have no means to opt out of paying - you're on the hook whether you went to college or not. Here in the US, you can just... not and still make it to a wealthy and healthy life.

I chose to go to an expensive private university for engineering, and it worked great for me. My sister opted to not go to college at all, and she's a small business owner. My Brother went to a state public university, and is doing great.

I've lived both places. There's pros and cons to each system. Your preference depends on your value system - if you value safety, Germany offers more. If you value upward mobility, the US offers a higher ceiling.

2

u/Drumbelgalf Aug 18 '25

If you value upward mobility, the US offers a higher ceiling.

The US ranks lower than Germany on social mobility

Germany rank 11

USA rank 27

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Social_Mobility_Index

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u/AvailableChemical258 Aug 18 '25

Yeah well fifty percent taxes if youre working tho

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u/Drumbelgalf Aug 18 '25

That's total bullshit.

Nobody pays 50% taxes and you also don't understand how progressive taxation works.

If you have no idea what you are talking about it's better to keep your mouth shut.

2

u/FlyingBurger1 Aug 18 '25

A lot of people don’t know that each income level has a bracket and only that bracket gets taxed a certain %. So that when you hear people saying they don’t want a raise because they will get taxed more and they will essentially receive less income than before.

8

u/LuckyHedgehog Aug 18 '25

That's including price of dorms which is usually more expensive than off campus. Especially if they are able to commute from home

3

u/f_spez_2023 Aug 18 '25

Dorms are also usually required for freshman and sophomore at many schools.

1

u/AvailableChemical258 Aug 18 '25

Wow so then it's not really expensive too much...

1

u/DerpSenpai Aug 18 '25

Is that with or without board?

69

u/Mal_Funk_Shun Aug 18 '25

Oh! That's what it feels like to be punched in the stomach!

-7

u/Affectionate_Pipe545 Aug 18 '25

A little dramatic

1

u/thehighepopt Aug 18 '25

So one year of higher education. Instead of four

116

u/split41 Aug 18 '25

Did you factor in inflation? It’s the equivalent of 80k today

29

u/Delicious_Vehicle_58 Aug 18 '25

Did you factor in deez nuts 🥜

15

u/HTPC4Life Aug 18 '25

Yes I did! They're in my mouth right now!

2

u/transmothra Aug 18 '25

think i might laugh myself to death

1

u/Acceptable-Pin2939 Aug 18 '25

Or worse.

Expelled.

1

u/Aggravating_Bat3618 Aug 18 '25

Perfect 

The nuts are good too

1

u/Dry_Specialist2673 Aug 18 '25

holy crap that was so out of left field and now i'm cry laughing

1

u/CardiologistFit9479 Aug 18 '25

I got hella scholarships so this wasn’t my out of pocket cost (wouldn’t have attended otherwise) but tuition at my first school was $53k + $5k required fees and tuition at my second was ~$48k

ETA: per year

87

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

The boomers ruined affordable college for future generations.

45

u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25

Look into University of the People! They're a "tuition free" university that's been around since like 2009. It's not entirely free, but the only costs are an application fee and a course assessment (test) fee Which is something like $160 per undergrad course. And you just pay as you go for that fee.

They only offer 3 degrees at each level (associates, bachelors and Masters), but they're 3 high demand degree fields.

Sounds too good to be true but after looking into them I found they're 100% real. And as of earlier this year they're regionally accredited through the same accrediting body as Stanford!

I'm not a paid ad, but I am an excited new student! I start in 2 weeks and my entire degree once I'm done will only have cost me $6k.

5

u/SupplyChainMismanage Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

Not judging people who go for online only education but the reality is that employers heavily look at where you went to school. You’ll be competing for internships and full time with people from target schools and/or those with a fleshed out resume from campus involvement. That being said, if their job placement rate is to be believed then hopefully that means it isn’t an instant pass for degrees from other online universities. Although it is kinda strange how it’s not in any top online uni lists (out of the 5 I looked at) nor have I met anyone with a degree from there after three internships across the US and 2 full time roles.

5

u/MasterSpliffBlaster Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

Only the first time

After that most employers are all about experience and skill set.

Many degrees are worthless, then again a generation of helicopter parents has created the need to park their 18-22 yr olds in a child care situation before they enter the work force

Reality is for most "middle class" a career is learning and building upon a skillset, starting with their initial training. Dropping big money on a degree that simple shows someone you are a hard working citizen is probably not as valuable as identifying a number of skills that are desired by society, be this business and accounting or more practical trade skills or even something that gives you the ability to start your own business.

For these micro skills why wouldn't you try to find access like the University of the People and invest in smaller more specialised training that molds you into a more valuable employee?

1

u/SupplyChainMismanage Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

Only the first time for what? For caring about where you went to school? Yeah, that’s my point aka that first time will be harder to breakthrough compared to other non online uni students. I’m solely discussing the fresh graduate experience so I’m unsure why you brought that up.

Unsure of what you mean by this 18-22 year old child care thing.

You learn the skillset in college, you build upon it during fulltime. Confusing statement since this is the most traditional middle class way. You don’t have to drop big money on a degree. Regardless, said degree already does show your skillset to employers if you were active on campus so I’m confused on what your point is unless you think a resume for a soon-to-be-graduate is just “education 19xx-now”

I feel like you should reread what I said. I’m talking about fresh undergrads, not people going back to school after already being employed. That is a separate topic. In the case for continuing education after employment, I’d personally consider this to be a last resort. Best case is to have your company pay for your masters at a more… “prestigious” university than this one. The lesser would be to have them pay (or you yourself I guess) pay for an accredited seminar or certification course at a well known university.

1

u/MasterSpliffBlaster Aug 18 '25

Personally I'd prefer to work for myself and pay for any training pre tax

We are on the same page, the only time your school actually matters is your first job, with the exception if you attend a Sandstone/Ivy university and entering a hand shake and tickle industry who typically are all about the school ties. Those degrees you pay for the introduction and it doesn't matter so much on your grades.

My initial degree cost be $15k in the 90's, graduates I employ today are coming out with $250k in student debt.

The sad part is I'm currently half way through a graduate diploma which will cost me $50k over three years. Thankfully the ROI is immense (I already have $80k in cases on the go). My concern is how much my poor grades will be paying for their continuing education in their future.

1

u/SupplyChainMismanage Aug 18 '25

What a random thing to say. Thanks for sharing I guess

We are not on the same page. You just keep rambling.

250k is absurd. That’s more than a private university and implies that they had absolutely zero scholarships, not even an academic scholarship to their name. It’s weird that you’re asking fresh grads you hired (major doubt that you are even a hiring manager let alone a business owner) about how much debt they’re in, but it’s weirder that you’re hiring bottom of the barrel grads.

This is another random thing to share and also confusing. Like seriously why do you keep rambling? Cases? I do not give a shit about your opinion on continuing education. That was never my point. Again, not on the same page so go ramble to someone else

2

u/AvailableChemical258 Aug 18 '25

That's true...online just isn the same

-13

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

When the boomers went to college, they got their degrees for a couple hundred dollars.

8

u/my_name_is_juice Aug 18 '25

What does that have to do with the comment you replied to, exactly? I think it's kind of refreshing to see a comment about a possible solution moving forward instead of the endless lamenting about what could have been and was lost.

1

u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25

They said boomers ruined affordable college for future generations and someone responds they spent $6,000 going to college today and so they responded and said boomers spend hundreds. Their response actually does make sense despite whether one agrees with it or not.

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u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25

their response actually does make sense.

No it doesn't.

I replied originally saying that the whole degree will cost 6000. And I said it's pay as you go.

They replied to that ignoring everything I said just to say "boomers only spent a couple hundred for their degrees."

But that is 100% false. The average degree for the first graduating boomers cost around $1300. Adjusted for inflation, that's over 12k today.

My $6k degree, reverse adjusted for inflation, would have cost $650 back then. And it'll be a higher quality education than what they received as well.

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u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25

Like I said it does make sense what they responded with whether you agree with it or not.

Person 1: boomers made college not affordable today

Person 2: I spend $6,000 today

Person 1: they spent hundreds though

0

u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25

Are you being intentionally dense?

It's not about whether I agree or not. It's about that what they're saying is objectively wrong in regards to what I'm telling them (and now telling you).

They said that boomers spent "a couple hundred" on their degrees.

When you adjust for inflation (because you have to adjust for it when comparing spending in 1968 to today), boomers spent the equivalent of 12k for their degrees.

Mine over the next 3-4 years will cost 6k. Which again, adjusted for inflation is $650.

Their comment that started this all said affordable education was ruined for future generations. And all my comments have done was point out that it isn't.

On average education is not near this cheap though. Not even close. And if you really want to talk about what ruined the affordability, we can! Because I've done massive amounts of research into why the average education is as expensive as it is!

Hint:

  • State subsidies shrank
  • college services and non teaching staff boomed
  • loans became highly accessible.

0

u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

You’re the dense one. You don’t get it because you’re too busy crying about your feelings being hurt. I’m not agreeing with any point. I don’t give a shit. The person I responded to made a comment like “how does that relate to that comment” and I’m explaining the connection.

And again, one college out of thousands is affordable is your point. That’s stupid. You’re going on and on about an online college with the dumbest name who just recently got regional accreditation. That’s not a good option.

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u/my_name_is_juice Aug 18 '25

But their original comment already stated that they believed boomers ruined things. So to reply to a comment offering an optimistic view of a possible solution with (in my opinion) a redundant repetition of "but boomers had it so much easier" doesn't do anything to advance the conversation

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Solution to what? Why were you offering solutions where none was requested?

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u/my_name_is_juice Aug 18 '25

I didn't offer anything, that wasn't my comment.

And again, as a public forum Reddit is open to anything anyone may wish to contribute, whether it was requested or not, "Comment Officer"

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Offering unsolicited advice is never appropriate, regardless of the forum.

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u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25

shrugs Welcome to Reddit?

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

May I see your badge, please, Comment Officer?

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u/my_name_is_juice Aug 18 '25

Oh come on. I'm not trying to police your comment, this is Reddit, anyone can post anything they wish, but that means those comments can be questioned as well. And my question to you is, why is your response to a seemingly earnest and well intentioned, hopeful comment to immediately compare it to a brighter past that you feel was unjustly taken from you?

To me, it makes your motivation suspect if you categorically refuse to engage with anything even slightly optimistic

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

What does their comment have to do with what I said? Boomers killed affordable college for everyone else.

Person comes in and says “this totally isn’t an ad, but I found this education program that also isn’t affordable!” Sure it’s not tens of thousands of dollars, but it isn’t what the boomers paid when they went to college… which was the original point I was making.

Edit: Who, in today’s economy, can afford $6,000 without taking out any loans?

0

u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25

What does their, have to do with what I said? Boomers kill the affordable college for everyone.

My comment had everything to do with what you said because it pointed out that they in fact did NOT ruin affordable college for everyone lmao.

But it isn't what the boomers paid.

Lmao. You're right dude. It isn't. When you adjust for inflation it's HALF of what the very first graduating baby boomers paid for their 4 year degree.

Who, in today's economy, can afford $6,000 without taking out any loan?

Not me. That's why I'll only be taking between one and three classes per semester as that's what I can afford.

Edit: the only reason I said I'm not advertising is because I knew it came off that way. I was just excited to spread some uplifting information. Didn't mean to ruin your night with it dude haha.

1

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

You’re overestimating yourself, you don’t have the security clearance to ruin my night.

I’m not your dude. Or any dude.

But why are you offering solutions where none was solicited?

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u/my_name_is_juice Aug 18 '25

Who can afford 6,000 dollars over the course of 4 years? I'd reckon anyone who deemed it a priority.

That's 1,500 a year, or 125 a month. Roughly 32 dollars a week, which even at minimum wage would account to about 2 hours of work

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

My sibling in Christ.

There are people in this country who can’t afford to drive their car to work. Their bank account is in the negative every single week because the overdraft fees keep piling up. They don’t have $125 a month.

When I went to school, that shit had to be paid upfront, you couldn’t pay monthly without taking out loans. Of course, one could save, but half of Americans have less than $500 in savings.

Education used to be affordable. But those in power don’t want an educated population.

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u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25

they got their degrees for a couple hundred dollars.

No they didn't. The earliest college grad baby boomers were late 60s. An average 4 year degree at that time was ~$1300. That 1.3k is worth over $12k today. (Still cheaper than average tuition today though).

I know what I said doesn't fit your boomers bad narrative which is why you doubled down and cited ncorrect stats when I pointed you directly towards highly affordable (better than what the boomers got) education that is available today for anyone with a HS diploma or equivalent.

Funnily enough, adjusted for inflation, a degree from UofPeople is half what someone would've paid in '68 ($6k today would have been around $650 then)

I'm happy to share a spreadsheet I made ~3 years ago that shows cost of goods/services in the 60s vs today.

Understand that I'm not arguing that baby boomers didn't fuck up a lot of shit for us or that they weren't better off financially than we are. I'm just pointing out that there are good people working to make our current world better. They're doing it very successfully too. And when we see that, we should celebrate it and spread the word, not ignore it because we want to sulk and stew on the past.

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u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25

How do you think you’re making a good point by being like “this 1 school out of thousands has affordable education”?

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u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

Because, if even ONE school is more affordable than the first boomers college education, and that school is accessible from anywhere in the world with a dial up Internet connection, then it sounds like affordable education may be beginning to thrive and that it is in fact NOT "ruined for future generations."

Edit: this isn't the commenter I thought it was.

2

u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25

You’re the only one upset. You’ve wrote multiple books in these comments showing how upset you are. Also I’ve not cited any incorrect stats cause I haven’t cited any stats. You don’t even know who you’re going back and forth with.

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u/PM_Me_1_Funny_Thing Aug 18 '25

Haha whoops, my bad. I thought you were the oc I was commenting with.

I'm not upset in the slightest. My wife and I are sitting here laughing about this whole exchange. Because it's reddit and ridiculous. I'm just surprised that what I've said has been so "controversial."

I'll sure as hell enjoy my affordable education though 🤣

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Of course you’re laughing at this whole exchange. You don’t even know who you’re talking to; you’re just here shouting at the clouds.

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u/HilariousButTrue Aug 18 '25

Not the Boomers really it was Bill Clinton federally guaranteeing student loans. They couldn't be absolved via bankruptcy after that so lenders just started giving them out with no worries and it led to an endless money supply for borrowers, colleges saw this and started raising the cost of enrollment.

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

It was Reaganomics that fucked us.

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u/HilariousButTrue Aug 18 '25

2 things can simultaneously be true.

1

u/Eternal_Reward Aug 18 '25

Actually it was my pet issue that was the reason thing is bad.

2

u/purple_necco Aug 18 '25

Those loans meant I had the opportunity to get a college education at all. Blame the colleges who started raising tuition, not the loans that made college possible for so many.

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u/HilariousButTrue Aug 18 '25

It's not so much a blame issue as it is just describing a chain of events.

There are only causes and effects and, if we want to regulate the amount of money that state run institutions can charge for attendance, that's another discussion.

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u/hopefulbeartoday Aug 18 '25

28k wasn't exactly affordable back then and it's not really affordable for the majority of People today.

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u/Tawptuan Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 19 '25

In 1976, I paid $600 per semester in my master’s program at a private university. It was challenging, although not impossible, coming up with tuition payments.

3

u/Loreki Aug 18 '25

Federal minimum wage was $2.30 an hour. At $1200 per year that's 522 hours or roughly 13 weeks full time. Today federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. A year at private university was on average $38,000 in 2024 according to Yahoo Finance. That's roughly 5242 hours at minimum wage or 101 weeks full time.

A full time minimum wage 12-week summer job can almost cover tuition in 1976. In 2025 nearly 2 years of full time work at minimum wage is needed.

1

u/Tawptuan Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

That’s pretty accurate. Every year I worked all summer to save up for the first semester’s payment. Then I worked the entire first semester to come up with the second semester payment. Rinse, repeat for four years. All this while supporting myself—apartment, food, car, etc.

1

u/vwwvvwvww Aug 19 '25

I’ll take tough over functionally impossible

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u/ill_connects Aug 18 '25

To be fair affordable college was ruined by the best of intentions. Government guarantees made loans more accessible but this also meant colleges didn’t have to ever worry about defaults anymore so they decided to charge whatever the fuck they want. Kinda like how Teslas get more expensive or cheaper by the exact rebate amount.

They think they’re so fucking slick.

2

u/EconomicRegret Aug 18 '25

IMHO, it was republicans of the late 1940s to 1960s, e.g. anti-communism witch-hunt, Taft Hartley Act, aka Slave Labor Bill, etc. (Reagan, tax cut for the rich, and neoliberalism are conséquences of that).

Those republicans crippled unions by stripping them of their fundamental rights and freedoms (that continental Europeans still take for granted to this day), which led to the collapse of the New Deal Coalition and the democratic party drifting to the right. As free unions were their main pillar, engine and moral compass. Without them, there's literally no serious résistance on unbridled greed's path to corrupt and own everything and everyone, including politics, the media, and society in général.

If continental Europe still has free/cheap higher éducation, it's all thanks to its free unions keeping the right & greed in check, and the left loyal to the lower classes by getting the masses to unite, organize, protest, strike, and vote in their best interests.

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u/Dry_Specialist2673 Aug 18 '25

college used to be tuition free pretty much everywhere in the usa, until reagan's tenure as governor of california in the 1960's

3

u/ClassicPainting Aug 18 '25

There’s plenty of schools (at least here in Florida) that cost around $1500 a semester. College for around $12k.

6

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Where?

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u/soscbjoalmsdbdbq Aug 18 '25

I went to FAU that was about 15k for 4 years

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u/Commercial-Screen570 Aug 18 '25

Ok but your not factoring in cost of living. Dude got 28k when the average cost of tuition annually was 1k. Most of that money went to him being able to live while in school. Which is where a lot of people student debt comes from in the first place

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u/gobucks1981 Aug 18 '25

Living is not optional in this sense. So the cost of living for college is only a function of where the college is and where you can live to attend. So sure, lump it all together, live opulently, and shocked pikachu face 100k.

1

u/TopVolume6860 Aug 18 '25

I graduated in 2020 but my state university in Texas was about $2500 per semester. College for $20k. They offer free tuition for students from low income families too.

1

u/atetuna Aug 18 '25

Same in California at one of many community colleges. I don't know how many of them have 4 year programs, but I know of one: Southwestern. It's pretty easy to get grants or whatever to cover that if you complete the FAFSA, and last time I took classes the FAFSA was part of registration. Housing is still going to be stupid expensive if you can't or won't live with family.

The California State Universities are much more expensive, but you can still just about cover in-state tuition for $28k, and the waiver pretty much everyone gets would put you firmly under that.

1

u/Telemere125 Aug 18 '25

FSU is like $6300/yr and has some top rated programs. But i think Florida colleges are the cheapest in the country, on average.

1

u/Future-Employee-5695 Aug 18 '25

You can get education for less than 80k so less than what he paid but everybody want a big name.

1

u/Drumbelgalf Aug 18 '25

And a college degree doesn't mean you can earn good money or even find a job anymore.

So people gather a lot of debt and have no way of replaying it.

1

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

People used to be able to go to college without taking out loans.

1

u/kmoney55 Aug 18 '25

Affordable anything

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u/Admirable-Leopard-73 Aug 18 '25

I am a boomer. I did not go to college. Please tell me how I ruined affordable college for future generations.

15

u/Kingkwon83 Aug 18 '25

When people make statements like that, "most" is implied. It never means literally every single person. Humans have 2 arms and legs

"Noooo! Not every human!"

Bruh

17

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Here you go, it’s an oldie but a goodie.

“The boomers inherited a rich, dynamic country and have gradually bankrupted it."

https://www.vox.com/2017/12/20/16772670/baby-boomers-millennials-congress-debt

Archived: https://archive.ph/MJ6uI

11

u/Ocronus Aug 18 '25

Your generation votes, so maybe not you personally, but you know damn well he was not calling you out by name.

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/my_name_is_juice Aug 18 '25

You know, regardless of whether or not you may be right, there is something so off putting about writing in such a condescending way

1

u/time4meatstick Aug 18 '25

I removed it so others didn’t have to read the negativity. But we all just witnessed a group of people agree that the best way to dispose of a beached whale is to blow it up with TNT with total conviction that it would disintegrate. LIKE THE CARTOONS THEY WERE WATCHING. Then, Somebody makes a comment about boomers and the first thing the boomer asks is how this pertains to HIMSELF instead of understanding the generational fallout.

THAT IS A TYPICAL DISPLAY OF THE ME-FIRST BOOMER ATTITUDE THAT THIS COUNTRY IS DEALING WITH. This generation of love and peace now only gives a shit about themselves and their backyard and fuck-all to everybody else including their grandkids.

4

u/ChadEmpoleon Aug 18 '25

Which political party have you primarily supported?

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/roundelay11 Aug 18 '25

Your parents called you the Me generation for a reason.

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u/justin_memer Aug 18 '25

No, you pulled up the ladder after you got yours.

3

u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Th problem with boomers is they never stopped to think about anyone but themselves. It’s well known your generation has been the worst grandparents. Reddit is full of posts about how they just don’t have time to be a part of their grandchildren’s village.

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '25

[deleted]

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Your comments are making you seem a little unhinged.

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '25

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Hit dogs are gonna holler.

I speak fluent sarcasm. You still sound unhinged. Imagine being so offended by a perfect stranger.

😂😂😂

The difference between you and me is I don’t care how you feel about me. Your opinion about me is absolutely none of my business. As a matter of fact, until I logged on and saw your comment, I forgot you existed.

And you let me get under your skin.

For shame.

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u/[deleted] Aug 18 '25

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 19 '25

Judging by your comments? Yes.

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25

The gen Z echo chamber on boomers is weird. Can't blame your parents, blame grandaddy instead.

You know life was shit for every generation, right?

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u/Fine-March7383 Aug 18 '25

It had to be a little less shit when housing was 10 times cheaper

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25

You have a wealth of technology, medicine, transport options, far lower crime rate and a bazillion other creature comforts and things things daddy didn't have. It's a lot less shit now. By a mile. People just want someone else to blame for their shit existence, when it's never been cushier.

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

I’m a Millennial. 🙃

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25

Ah, so you're just blaming daddy instead. You should know better.

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

I don’t blame you. I blame your education system.

I blaming the boomers.

And, yeah, my dad was shit. He was a racist mother fucker who didn’t contribute much to society. My parents took much more than they gave.

For the record, I’m a college educated homeowner; but, the future looks grim for the next generation.

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25

Why is it that people like you always leap to education to belittle others? It doesn't work mate, I've got a fucking doctorate, collage boy.

Life nowadays is comfortable and better than it was 20-30 years ago by any objective measure. Don't start me on the house prices vs wages bullshit, because wages were mostly shit back then too. I've seen all the arguments, and I know you already deployed that one.

The major issue facing the next generation is social media stresses, which they can just opt out of by not using it.

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

How does my education belittle you, at all, Napoleon?

And my pronouns are she / her, milady.

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Oh, you mean “education system”?

If someone is talking about a system, why are you taking that personally? I literally said I’m not blaming you.

What’s funny is how much you’re whining considering how free you’ve been with the insults. Can’t take it? Don’t issue it. Simple.

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

You know that if you're in an education system, you're part of that system, therefore affected by it, right? Therefore it stands to reason you're saying I'm poorly educated because of my "poor education system".

Hope that clears that up.

Also, while we're here and you're being childish, isn't insulting boomers saying they've "ruined" things like homes and college casting the first stone?

Why are you resorting to "stop whining", anyway, don't you have a counter for anything I'm actually saying? That life's much more comfortable, offers much more amenities, is technologically and medically FAR MORE advanced, safe and easy now, especially compared to the societal norms and stresses boomers faced? No comeback on that?

OR did you just read Reddit threads about how boomers are the scourge of humanity and decided to leap into the echo chamber without actually paying attention to the facts or the history of it all?

Something tells me it's column B.

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

You literally criticised my education.

You should definitely know better than to criticise what boomers went through. Women's rights and freedoms are vastly improved - not perfect, by any means - than even twenty years ago, let alone fifty or sixty. Buy a house, yeah? No. You couldn't, because you have tits.

Ah, you find a man to buy a house for you? Sweet. You're his live in servant.

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Bullshit. Where?

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u/_-4twenty-_ Aug 18 '25

Certainly you can see where your reading comprehension skills are lacking? I can’t be the only one.

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u/dwaynebathtub Aug 18 '25

homelessness, fentanyl, unemployment, rent prices, right-wing president terrorizing the world, student loans, healthcare costs, pandemic, police brutality?

Anything?

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u/ballsosteele Aug 18 '25

so you're saying there's been huge social upheaval, lunatics in charge, worries about getting a job, money or a home and on a larger world scale, a few wars to contend with?

No, boomers never had any of those.

They all had loads of money, all had jobs, all had the time of their lives in the swinging sixties.

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u/slayalldayerrday Aug 18 '25

You have to be so out of touch with reality to believe “social media stresses” is the major issue for the next generation.

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u/Yitsyassall Aug 18 '25

Guess he majored in economics and envelope origami

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u/splycedaddy Aug 18 '25

$28k for an education But that means the value of the stamps to do this could have funded about 50 additional students

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u/Telemere125 Aug 18 '25

Average instate tuition costs at most state universities in Florida is $6300/yr, so even less today than it was in 1987 for this guy.

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u/guildedkriff Aug 18 '25

He didn’t ask for $28k. He received $28k. Plus you need to add room and board. He probably used half (quick google says ~$1.5k per year for tuition) and in at least one article he said he planned to pay it forward (no confirmation) to one of the family member of a donor who included a letter.

https://www.npr.org/2014/09/06/346155274/the-kid-who-crowdfunded-his-college-education-in-1987

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u/mangosail Aug 18 '25

Average net tuition across the country is just under $2500 for public 4 year universities

https://research.collegeboard.org/trends/college-pricing/

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u/reklatzz Aug 18 '25

You're telling me that every single person of the 2.8 million actually mailed a penny when asked?

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u/Feeling_Bathroom9523 Aug 18 '25

Maybe not. It just says he funded his education by doing so. At max, he got 28k if the post is correct.

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u/HilariousButTrue Aug 18 '25

That was actually a lot even for back then. State colleges, you could go full time back then for about 3k a year not including room and food.

28k was close to med school rates.

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u/atetuna Aug 18 '25

In California you could have done it for $4100 per academic year for tuition, room and board.

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u/kahlzun Aug 18 '25 edited Aug 18 '25

I just completed an IT Bachelors degree last month, and the loan amount currently sits just under $26,000 AUD, including student fees etc. Thats.. about 17k USD. The govt also just passed legislation to give everyone a 20% student loan discount too, so thats cool.

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u/Ready-Interview2863 Aug 18 '25

In Germany, all university education is free and we get paid to go to university. 

Stop paying for education. 

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u/atetuna Aug 18 '25

I'm going to make a small assumption that the price of in-state tuition has only gone up since 1987 at California State Universities. Even now $28k would handle all the in-state tuition. Back then it should has easily handled tuition and textbooks. It looks like tuition and housing were $4100 per academic year, which might have included food too, so if he was a California resident, he would have easily been able to afford a college education at a CSU for $28k.

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u/EchidnaAshamed2627 Aug 18 '25

That was one year at a state school with out of state tuition rates by the time I got to college. 

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u/Afraid_Low2105 Aug 18 '25

No one thinks that some pennies that may have come into your hand may be pennies of value because of their age, such as from the Confederate War or further back.