Congress has actually made progress on reforming the student loan crisis in this country. The House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday reforming federal student loan policies, which has a very similar version up for vote in the Senate. From The New York Times:
"It halves the interest rate on federally backed loans gradually over the next five years, to 3.4 percent from 6.8 percent, and would limit monthly payments to 15 percent of the borrower’s discretionary income.
The bill raises the maximum Pell grants by $500 over the next four years, to a total of $5,200 by 2011. It also grants $5,000 in loan forgiveness for police, firefighters, prosecutors and other public servants, and a complete release from student loans for public servants after 10 years. It would also provide for complete forgiveness of federal student loans after 20 years for economic hardship."
The two versions are expected to be reconciled and approved in the next term.
I think this is a huuuuuuuuuuuge step in the right direction. Bush has, of course, threatened to line veto the complete forgiveness aspects of the bills, calling them "welfare" programs. Hey Fuckwit -- last time I checked, most people who were going to college and paying off their loans for 20 years weren't exactly jobless. It's gonna take me close to that time to pay off my loans, and if this administration can really look at me and tell me I'm not busting my ass -- fuck them. Fortunately, I agree with the NYT reporter in thinking that if the two bills are reconciled with those items still intact (which I'd be very excited about), then Bush will back off and sign the bill as is.
On another note, I know I've been a shit blogger recently. I haven't really been motivated to write, because, well, I haven't really been too inspired and feel that my blog had become borderline trite in the past few months. Truth be told, I'm finding it a bit hard to write about my relationship -- because really, how many times can I write that things are going well and I'm happy and in love, etc., etc. I'm trying to overhaul my writing into something a bit more interesting and in-depth, but I'm not quite sure how to do it yet -- what angle to go for. So expect lots of different types of writing over the coming months.
