The New York Times: Republicans in the House of Representatives have just passed a tax bill that would devastate graduate research in the United States. Hidden in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is a repeal of Section 117(d)(5) of the current tax code, a provision that is vital to all students who pursue master’s degrees or doctorates and are not independently wealthy.
4 comments:
If there were any question that the GOP served anyone other than the rich, it has been answered. The only citizens that benefit from the House Republicans' new tax plan are the richest top percent of earners in this country. Not only does the tax plan cut out this provision that stops grads and PhD candidates from going broke, it also contains multitudes of other provisions and changes (Reduction of the number of tax brackets, changes to "Obamacare", elimination of the estate tax, etc.). It makes me so angry that lawmakers think they can hide their plans to financially ruin their constituents because they think their constituents will not notice or care. What makes me angrier are the people who do not care, or have the means to not care. It shows a level of ignorance and privilege that we, in this age of a GOP controlled congress and trigger happy cheeto in the White House, cannot condone.
This tax reform seems like a way to systematically separate classes. If only the wealthy can go to school to become the top paying professions, the classes will never intermingle and it will be harder and harder to escape your cast you were born into. If only wealthy families can afford the schooling to become lawyers, those wealthy will be the ones enacting laws that will affect everyone, but they will not have the understanding of how the rest of the population lives. I think that is one of the main problems: there is a total lack of understanding of other parts of the country/ other classes/ other systems of thought. I read a really interesting article about how the country is split into ideological regions and when you do not like the ideology of the place you live, you move to a place where everyone thinks more like you do. So, as generations of people move to places that they feel at home, the ideology gets stronger and there are not the opposing views to bring balance to the regions.
http://www.businessinsider.com/the-11-nations-of-the-united-states-2015-7
This is a tough one for me. I cannot even begin to understand the logic behind this section of the bill. As a graduate student who is completely dependent upon the support I get from the school to even be here and pursuing a further education it is sickening to think that a country that is so devoted to the American dream and the pursuit if happiness and success could move to destroy that dream for so many people. If this bill is to pass the educations and well-being of many will be effected negatively. The taxes that most graduate students would have to pay on their tuition waivers would be staggering and harmful. This is just another instance where the voice of the people needs to be heard and the lawmakers petitioned. In a world where a college degree has become the near equivalent of a high school diploma the need for graduate programs and degrees is ever increasing and necessary. This move would magnify class oppression and cause a huge division allowing from only those who derive from wealth to be succeed in the future.
The tax reform is truly a way to create a even deeper divide between economic classes and keep the rich rich and the poor poor. In the workforce the value of simply getting a Bachelor’s degree is declining, and it is almost necessary to have a graduate degree to be competitive in the applicant pool for jobs, which now only the already wealthy will be able to receive. This reform is absolutely outrageous in the way that it prevents people from being able to do something as simplistic and basic as learn and find new ways to better themselves and their communities. A reoccurring theme that is seen, especially in this current presidency with a Republican dominated house, is systematic oppression from all directions; and this tax reform and the way it was covertly hidden and showcased as something different, is one of many ways this is happening and will continue to happen. This country prides itself on its education, but then takes it away from students trying to get one with such ease? I truly don’t understand the logic. It is infuriating to watch things like this happen and see a government send their citizens into a downward spiral of financial burden without caring what will happen next.
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