[king_jester]

I love this post for how wrong it is:

* Acting like regular college students don't have classes that are super simple to game and pass

* Saying life moments like dating/flirting aren't important (what exactly are students supposed to do between classes anyway!?!)

* Saying being an actor does not require intellectual or academic ability (hint: it does)

* Has no idea what FAFSA is like or what it's like to navigate that mess

* Pretending that they aren't already indirectly paying for people to "get easy As, ogle girls, and pursue unintellectual careers"

[morgante]

I love your comment for how misguided it is.

> Acting like regular college students don't have classes that are super simple to game and pass

Oh, I know they exist. I just wouldn't write about them in the admissions brochure or an op-ed touting their supposed value.

> Saying life moments like dating/flirting aren't important (what exactly are students supposed to do between classes anyway!?!)

I suppose some people consider them important (I don't), but that doesn't mean the taxpayer should be footing the bill.

> Saying being an actor does not require intellectual or academic ability (hint: it does)

Maybe for better actors it requires some intellectual ability, but I'm unconvinced that most of Hanks's community college classes had any impact on his career.

> Has no idea what FAFSA is like or what it's like to navigate that mess

I'm in college right now, on financial aid. I'm well aware of the complexities of the FAFSA and probably filed one much more recently than you. But it's nowhere near challenging enough that a bright, motivated student would find it a hindrance.

> Pretending that they aren't already indirectly paying for people to "get easy As, ogle girls, and pursue unintellectual careers"

Oh, I know we are. I'd just prefer to not pay for more of it.

[king_jester]

The point I'm making is that we expect people to continue living their lives while going to school, that doesn't change. Getting financial aid isn't a contract to live a strict monastic life nor should it be. Also, the fact that not every single person who gets aid goes on to use it for some optimal standard doesn't mean that it is a waste or that we as a society shouldn't do it.

> I'm in college right now, on financial aid. I'm well aware of the complexities of the FAFSA and probably filed one much more recently than you. But it's nowhere near challenging enough that a bright, motivated student would find it a hindrance.

It wasn't very long ago when I did FAFSA and I knew quite a few bright people who struggled with the process. FAFSA is not a perfect process and leaves a lot to be desired as I'm sure you are aware of.

> Maybe for better actors it requires some intellectual ability, but I'm unconvinced that most of Hanks's community college classes had any impact on his career.

This is an arbitrary thing to say, as clearly to Hanks some of the things he's recalling were significant to his life and his career. We don't get to make decisions for what is important to someone's development, that is up to individual people. There were many experiences that I've had that make me how am I today as a person and professional and I'm sure some folks may want to write that off.