2009-09-17T04:35:36Z opencongress.org tag:opencongress.org,2007:/bill/comments/59147 2009-09-17T04:35:36Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-17:/comment/127186 Cryn_Johannsen I am the promotional writer and marketer for Robert Applebaum's Forgive Student Loan Debt Movement (we have nearly 229,000 members). This bill is not doing enough! We need Congress to attend to the MILLIONS of Americans who are drowning in student loan debt. 2009-11-13T02:16:24Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-11-13:/comment/167601 VoteNoDem2010 "History shows that the greater threat to prosperity is not too little government involvement, but too much," This is true in more ways than one allowing government control of our private sectors reduces our freedoms more and more. This is not about republicans or democrats this is about our freedoms and our children s freedoms to have the right to choose. Many have died to protect our freedoms. The FFELP program has been working for over 27 years so take the time to know it's value. This is not about saving money as the government claims, even that is questionable based on how they are coming up with these numbers. But again that is not the issue here. Fight for our freedom of choice Vote "NO" on this bill...... 2009-09-18T07:22:48Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-18:/comment/127712 Su100TD WoW, the socialist/communist of Barrack Hussein Obama owns not only home loans (90%), Chysler, GM, Banks and now loans for college. If they get their way they will own the energy market via cap and Trade (TAX) and Health Care. We will not be capitlist socieity, but a welfare state like Europe who has no economy and wards of the state. We will have no more freedom, but serfdom. Just like Feddie Mae and Freddie Mac, where they gave cheap loans to people who did not deserve it; through the Community reinvestment act. Now with the student loans, this will drive up the cost of college (like the housing market) and on top of it, the government will have sole control (IE you can not get out from the government). Heaven forbide if you are a conservative and trying to get a loan from Barrack Hessein Obama. YOU HAVE BEEN DECLINE. Free market ideas are being replaced by nanny state control..... 2009-09-19T11:32:56Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-19:/comment/127964 blkbutrflyz I think the bill is a first step forward to fixing the problems surrounding aid for higher learning. Taking away subsidies to financial institutions is a no-brainer for me and I appreciate my representative voting for this bill! I feel sorry for those who cannot see the removal of the middle-leverage of administering student loans will overall be a benefit to us all in the long run! 2009-11-10T06:47:28Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-11-10:/comment/166341 jeremiahgollon This is an FYI: HR 3221 eliminates the FFELP program for Direct Lending only. By doing this, we eliminate the consumers RIGHT to choose a financial institution to do their student loans. This eliminates competition, and as everyone knows, creates a monopolized system, and interest rates go up-thus not favoring the consumer. Everyone needs to educate themselves better on this bill, and understand that it may save the government money as they will control ALL student loans, but we as consumers will be footing the bill to do so. I have read through a lot of these comments, and hope that our legislators have better information and are not swayed by inaccurate views of HR 3221 and what it can do. 2009-09-22T04:02:15Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-22:/comment/128501 LibertyGirl_2009 No more failed government-run programs! Especially those that will pave the way for mandatory service for our children. Don't think so, then consider this. What happens when a student owes thousands of dollars to the goverment and is offered repayment in exchange for a few years of SERVICE? Technically speaking, it's not required service, but you do the math. Send a message that the people are still in charge and not our corrupt politicians. Vote them all out in the next election. http://www.1andDone.org 2009-11-29T17:08:14Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-11-29:/comment/173111 TerryinGA Are these people totally crazy? DANIEL FAULKNER IS A HERO, a police officer MURDERED in COLD BLOOD -- EXECUTION STYLE. If you put this man's honored name on a bill in congress, I demand that it be to a worthy cause!! If this bill were to assist children of fallen heroes to continue with their educations (as the title fraudulently suggests) it may be a different story. Somebody in Washington needs to learn how to comprehend what it is they are reading -- and when you sign obligating ME to be bound by legislation, you better darn well make sure it represents a common sense, conservative approach -- AND WITH FULL REVERENCE AND HONOR FOR THOSE WHO HAVE GIVEN THEIR LIVES PRESERVING AND PROTECTING THE LIBERTIES AND JUSTICE I SO ENJOY!!!! This pitiful excuse for legislation is nothing more than a pile of waste soaked in pork grease labeled as a memorial to an assassinated officer of the laws of this country. Terry W. Gilmour Georgia Voter 2009-11-12T14:32:20Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-11-12:/comment/167512 mad27 Source? 2009-10-23T16:54:38Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-10-23:/comment/150370 SiBonther I agree that students, schools and parents should have a choice. Some of these providers are non-profit organizations within their states and better serve their community through the services and events they provide. Losing local support and services I do not agree with.... 2009-09-17T16:10:48Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-17:/comment/127614 ditch77837 This bill concerns me just like HR 1388 (AmeriCorps), which unfortunately is already law. Google AmeriCorps. Please review HR 1388, all 352 pages as it has some questionable parts about elementary and secondary school and religious activities. 2009-09-21T16:16:29Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-21:/comment/128394 rj32 (Continued) The premise that we need to increase availability of aid to attend college is also because most jobs now require some form of higher education. If high school in America was anything like decades ago then it wouldn't be worth hiring college graduates. Now many bottom tier colleges are also nothing more than scams to take people's money. So with even less clarity as to what a high school, associates, or ba/bs degree is we can only expect more chaos as employers try to find candidates. More should probably be done to show students costs and benefits of attending a particular school or pursuing a career in a trade. It's still not something you can say with a large degree of certainty. 2009-10-29T11:59:44Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-10-29:/comment/156196 nmreyes Dear Kitty, You may want to gain a little knowledge about the student loan industry you seem to think college access is not a priority which is wrong. Many of these organizations provide a tremendous amount of college access outreach programs that help students, parents and schools. The recent statement on the floor yesterday by Senator Lamar Alexander should give you some insight. http://alexander.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Speeches.Detail&Speech_Id=83b64015-a74e-433d-9276-9faa9badf51c 2009-09-02T19:01:37Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-02:/comment/122959 Sharonema No more spending! Quit throwing money at education and think that will work. 2009-09-16T05:27:39Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-16:/comment/126703 politicalfilter Actually it's not spending so much as cutting costs and using the savings to finance the bill. 2009-09-16T12:42:52Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-16:/comment/126909 SingleKM Cutting out the middleman in the student loan process will cut costs overall. However, something like this should not be rushed. More debate and consideration is needed, but it helps to provide a better PSEO opportunity to more students. 2009-09-17T14:50:45Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-17:/comment/127567 rdmoulton If this bill is supposed to make college more affordable for students, why does this bill drastically reform the Perkins Loan Program? This bill will mandate Perkins Loans to accrue interest while a student is enrolled, which isn't the case right now. It eliminates the public service cancellation benefits currently available to Perkins Loans. Jobs like special education teachers, law enforcement officers, firefighters,nurses, soldiers in a hostile area and child/family services that help high risk children in low income areas. Perkins Loans with a fixed 5% rate would be given only after the loans bearing a higher rate have been maxed out, how does that lower cost to the student? These loans are currently granted by the University from a revolving fund, I fail to see how the evil bankers are are hurting students with the Perkins Loan program. School officials are more willing to work with their alumni for the successful repayment of the loan than a faceless Washington bureaucrat. 2009-09-17T20:28:36Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-17:/comment/127652 sassafrass This bill provides nothing for students but it sure provides a lot for construction firms possibly building new schools, which should be left to the states and communities. It also incorporates Early Childhood Learning, which has no place in this bill. Leave my kids alone!! How much volunteering (Americorps-taking advantage of the not so- rich -families) is going to be mandated with this? It's really too bad we citizens can't trust what we read. 2009-09-18T10:15:36Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-18:/comment/127751 lac73 The problem is we don't need more of us going to college for four or more years. We need people to learn trades and skills that are the backbone of our economy - but we forgot about that. If they're so worried about student debt, why are they extending credit and artificially lowering the cost of education to stimulate demand? If everyone goes to college and gets into debt because loans are so easily available, it distorts economic decisions and artificially inflates the price of school as they have throughout the past decade or two. Forgiving loans for those who become police, nurses, or teachers augments people's natural behavioral choices. As we see inflationary trends in education increase, college will become prohibitively expensive and more and more students will be in high debt with no benefit when they try to go out into the workforce. Look at all the kids today that have their degrees that are barely worth the paper they're printed on - they'll be waiting on tables for years. 2009-09-18T15:19:17Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-18:/comment/127829 waterse Hows this bill help the middle class? The cap of net assests of no more $150,000 eliminates almost the entire middle class. If you own a home your net assests will be close if not over the $150,000 cap. I guess it doesn't matter about the middle class we have less than 5 years till we are poor people as well. 2009-09-21T16:15:55Z tag:opencongress.org,2009-09-21:/comment/128393 rj32 I would agree with you. I think the part of the bill which provides aid to community colleges is probably intended for more vocational/trade opportunities. My best guess is that you never know who your denying the ability to attend college. It could be someone simply told by their parents to attend or someone who has seriously evaluated their options for the future. Perhaps this is a failure or hesitance of guidance counselors and pressure by parents. Really, either way you limit options by not getting a college degree and several years later you will probably not have similar support systems available to you.