Some of us that support this petition had no student loans to begin with.
It can't be a coincidence that the vast MINORITY of just the voters here (I'm sure it applies in a larger sense) fit into the "all paid off" category. Something really needs to be done. I didn't even accrue as much debt as many of my friends, yet I can't begin to imagine a future where I'll be free of the burdon that having gone to college has become.
This issue is something that I have struggled greatly with since my payments came out of educational deferment. In graduate school I took a course on Socioeconomic Status in the US. For reasons no other than my education level, I am considered "Upper-Middle Class". How does having a master's degree equate to upper-middle class if I do not make enough money to make ends meet even with working two jobs? I struggle with that everyday. I am **extremely** lucky to have a family that assists me with my student loan payments because they see the extreme amount of stress that I am under trying to make ends meet. The stress associated with trying to pay my student loans has caused me several, significant, health issues. This has only increased my monthly expenditures for co-payments for doctors appointments and medications. It seems to be quite the cycle that cannot be escaped: Work two jobs (stress) -- Still not be able to make ends meet (anxiety) -- Work more to make up the difference (stress) -- Develop multiple stress related health issues (more stress) -- Work more to try and pay health bills (more stress).... It's extremely frustrating to be able to identify what your stressors are and have no way of eliminating them. If I didn't have to worry about student loan repayment, I wouldn't have the added stresses of working multiple jobs and I imagine my health issues would melt away. It's almost infuriating to have your health care provider have you "identify your stressors" and then ask you, "now, what can you eliminate from that list"...NOTHING, I can't eliminate ANY of my stressors. It is incredibly difficult for me to comprehend why I worked all through college, why I then worked full-time while going to graduate school full time to come out being 26, not even making enough to live paycheck-to-paycheck without the support of my family. It's humiliating, it's embarrassing. If I knew ahead of time that going to college and graduate school would have caused this much distress as the outcome, perhaps I would have taken advantage of a vocational education through my high school. Perhaps then I would know what a life feels like without a student loan debt to income ratio of 3:1. If I didn't have student loan debt, I would be able to work one job, make ends meet and still have $200/month left over to put into the economy... and if all of us with student loan debt had this much to contribute to spending... imagine what the economy would look like...
