Agreed. We have tuition fees of about £3000 a year here, which are usually covered by student loans. Expensive enough. Damn, how are you supposed to pay back $25000 odd a year?
It is very important for the future of a nation that students are able to afford going to university, and do not have to pay back massive loans. It is tragic that university fees are so expensive in the US. It can exclude even middle-class students. Loans? Hah. Still a LOT of money to pay back.

Pfft, don't be silly. Education isn't important when you can just give people guns and invade middle eastern countries!!!

Everyone knows all the smart countries are spending all their money on guns and not the future!!!

For the record, US military budget - $440billion, Education budget - $67 billion (only 10 of which is mandatory, the rest is discretionary)

Note to any other economic powerhouses - if you spent 8 times more on blowing shit up, than teaching your kids how to be smart, you're economy will DIE. Someone should tell McCain ^.^

EDIT: few more interesting stats./ Military spending has been increasing, education spending has been decreasing (quite significantly, an estimated 10 billion between 2007-2008. Take your already shitty budget and cut it by 15%, genius!)

Best part is, someone look at the figures and realised, oh shit, we're spending a shitload more than we're making!, what do we blame it on!? Wait, ourselves for starting wars? pfft, can't do that! I know, lets blame it on our healthcare and social security!! So guess what, americas (already 3rd-worldesque) Healthcare is going to get cut even more. Social security is next on the "big fuckin axe" agenda ^.^

Oh, come on. Whereas the UK healthcare budget is increasing to twice, even three times that, a huge superpower is cutting its budget? A load of tripe. The US has the world's biggest military budget by far. It doesn't need such a huge military now that the Soviet Union has fallen. To defend itself against its enemies? Hah. World police, more like. It could do with 200,000 fewer soldiers, half its carrier fleet, a reduction in aircraft, etc. It's insane. To increase its spending? I thought that more high-tech weapons and armour, etc, were going to be introduced. Those would act as further force multipliers, and reduce the amount of soldiers and aircraft the US military really needs.

Don't get me wrong, armed forces are very important, and the UK probably needs to spend £5-10 billion more a year on its own, to ensure that it is properly equipped and supplied, and to add some more ships and aircraft to its fleet. Or perhaps the proposed EU military force will amount to something. However, the UK also needs to rethink its budget for other things. Not spending enough on scientific research, and there needs to be a slight increase in NHS funding. We have enough money, it's just not going to the right places.

Placebo, those jobs are good for the american PEOPLE short term, but horrible for the american economy. America doesn't export a whole lot of anything military to anyone. Yes it provides some jobs for americans, but the amount it contributes to the GDP/NFP is *nothing* compared to the drain.

A good economy is very reliant on having a large export market and a low import market. On controlled spending and minimised borrowing. The US economy just now is clinging on to China for dear life. If the chinese were to remove their support, the US would go into the worst recession in its history, they have been keeping you guys afloat for a LONG time now. You want to know why the US is so gun-shy about the tibet issue? thats why right there

Also bear in mind that the military do NOT build their own equpiment - the equipment you say they sell to japan etc. That is outsourced to MANUFACTURING companies. Often international companies and not US companies (For instance, a lot of US Aircraft Carrier parts are manufactured in the UK) Seriously. Militaries just plain eat money, they are a massive drain on any economy, check your history books for proof.

It's why no empire could afford to stop conquering - it had to pay its massive army

Actually, no major europeon country uses F-16s. The Russians and chinese use MiGs and YU's, Europe uses the Rafales and eurofighter typhoons. The middle east is split between Migs and f16s sure, but thats about the extent of it.

Your claims are, eh, specious at best. The american economy is *horrible* just now, it's certainly not the strongest in the world. Not by quite a long way. Also remember, just because an industry provides jobs does NOT make it good for the economy - look at any country with a lot of beaurocrats. Manufacturing is still where the most money is to be made.

America has been borrowing heavily for a long time now and it has NOT been used to boost growth, thats the issue.

Can i please request you do some time studying economic indicators and the global Forex market? You have demonstrated very clearly that your understanding of the global econmy is poor at best.

Could you also try backing your posts up in future, isntead of stating your opinion as fact? "being in trade defecit is great" is, well, horseshit. Being in a trade defecit is a disadvantage in any situation, and it's usually a last resort. You go into trade deficit when your country has no other choice but to do so to *attempt* to stimulate growth.

Just because America loves having a big army politically, does NOT have *anything* to do with econmics.

As far as the american dollar going up - that would be a good thing, because right now it is TERRIBLE. I mean we're talking half the value of the GBP/EUR. *HALF*

Also, please back up your claims that selling technology/military equipment to other countries makes any sort of dent in the American economy, so far you've just said "Oh, those guys use F-16s, so it must make us rich!" Sorry, but just because you think, oh that must make us lots of money! Doesn't make it true Figures please.

I'm not going to argue against the fact that the amount of money spent on military-issues is outrageous, because, it is. But, the topic of this thread is about education, and it's importance, not where all of the government's money is going, instead of to education.

The only thing I'm going to mention about the military, is the fact that it covers all college costs for it's soldiers that wish for an education later on. Of course, that money still doesn't justify the amount of money being spent on these fruitless wars, but for a lot of people that are struggling with the costs of paying for college, joining the military isn't always such a bad alternative. My father did that, because there was no way he could afford to go to college with what his family made, and my father didn't even have to go to combat, he did a lot of accounting and instructing work when he was in the army.

Now, to get back on track, education is extremely important. Although there isn't a lot of federal spending on education, the state governments actually make up for that in the US. Now, this may not be true for all states, but I do know that Florida, for one, relies on the profit from The Lottery in order to fund education. I've always thought that The Lottery was a brilliant idea for the government to make a lot of money in a fair manner, considering the fact that no one is forced to buy lottery tickets, and all of the money they spend goes to government funding. From the numbers I've seen, the Lottery has contributed more than 18 billion dollars to Florida education, which is a pretty nice amount from a gambling program.

I also know that in my state, we have 'Bright Futures Scholarships,' which pay for virtually all of college so long as you make the grades, and you don't have to pay anything ba