We hear that all the pundits and the public are going wild over the Quebec student protests and their demands for free post-secondary education. Apparently it’s a crazy socialistic dream world to expect free education or anything else in a user-pay based capitalist society.
But there’s a problem here no one mentions. The first twelve years are free. Years one through twelve of anyone’s education in Canada is free. It’s years 13 through 15, 16 etc that carry user fees. Why? Why are the first twelve years free if it’s crazy socialism to have free education? Why such an arbitrary cut-off point where everything’s perfectly within the ordinary to have a ‘freebie’ education but then all of a sudden at year 13 it’s shock and horror time to expect a free ride? Why not just make it all cost a fortune to attain? Price even Grade 1 out of families ability to pay?
Could it be because ensuring our youth are properly educated is important to society as a whole, we can not as part of a global society all be illiterates and when push comes to shove we’re all actually closet socialists who believe that certain aspects of our society should be available freely to everyone?
Maybe it's time we stopped listening to the brain-dead One percenters worried about hoarding their billions and started listening to our youth. It's time for a fundamental change in how we do things. For everyone's sake.
