A world without college tuition

At the outset of this post, I'll raise a question for us to contemplate.

Wesley, as South Carolina prepares to vote, do you think Ron Paul will score a youth trifecta in the first three primary or caucus contests? After decisive wins within the millennial demographic in New Hampshire and Iowa, will S.C.'s southern religious bent youngsters vote Paul? And if he wins, will it be by a similarly substantial margin?

In order to answer that question, we have to consult Paul's campaign rhetoric on religion. It is largely connected to his belief in personal freedom - the right to practice freely - rather than to particular Evangelical precepts.

The candidate who should be leading in S.C., by virtue of his radical and overly religious campaign,  has not pulled away from the remaining slate.

That is Rick Santorum, of course.

But I want to deviate from the political chatter to discuss something the former Pa. senator recently said. He accused President Obama of "elitist snobbery" (and, effectively, being out of touch) for declaring that every young person to go to college (and be "career-ready," in his words.

Now let me preface my analysis of Santorum's comment by first saying: In my reporting on young people, and in my observations about Obama's policy towards millennials, I have been critical. (Read this New York Times op-ed in the panel Wesley and I recently contributed to.)

But Santorum's criticism of Obama is, frankly, the most counter-productive thing for young people could have bore witness to on the campaign trail.

We know that Obama's ongoing remarks are a necessary commentary on the unaffordability of college tuition today. He correctly wants every 18-year-old to view college as a promising future. This is not just a matter of compassion (although that's a crucial extending hand to young people); it's also the American imperative to nurture more engineers and scientists.

Santorum's moralizing is bound only to disaffect more young people. Instead of appeasing the fringe of the right-wing, Santorum could have articulated a plan for reducing the cost of college (even while asserting that academia is not for everyone). But he seems rather intent on keeping higher education inaccessible.

So this is a challenge, now, for the other GOP candidates and President Obama: Can we envision a world - not with fewer college students - but with more determined financially-unstrapped undergraduates than ever before? Can we envisage a world without college tuition?

(Readers, Wes and company: I will elaborate on the viability of cost-free higher learning in my next post.)