Oh, shit. Talk about full circle. The first editorial of this semester discussed the importance of fighting SOPA, the Stop Online Piracy Act, a bill which would have severely limited Internet freedoms. (It’s back, by the way, in the form of the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, or CISPA, which is Something we Have to Immediately Take down, or SHIT.)
This is the last editorial of the semester, and here I am, once more discussing a need to hit up Congress and let them know what you think. This time, not doing so will do more than cost you your freedom: it will cost you your dollars.
Which, granted, are not as important as your freedom (shut the hell up, pessimists!). But they’re important. Because the dollars that could be potentially sucked up relate to college students paying for their education. College students with less dollars can’t pay for their education. Uneducated people vote in the likes of George W. Bush, and we’re right back in SOPA territory, with freedom about to be caged and shocked with a cattle prod.
Here are the facts. The current interest rate on federal student Stafford loans is 3.4 percent. The interest rate is scheduled to double to 6.8 percent on July 1, unless Congress votes otherwise.
Democrats are trying to shoot down the bill. Republicans say they also want to shoot down the bill, but that they don’t support President Obama’s proposal to make up the difference for another year of reduced interest rates. Could be another political stalemate, and we could literally pay for it.
The good news is the issue has gone viral. People are rallying for Congress to take action across a variety of Internet social mediums, especially Twitter.
If you’re not inclined to take the call of arms to Congress, by which I mean looking up your reps and emailing them, or even – bless you – giving them a call, get the word out online. Spread it across Twitter, post and re-post statuses on Facebook, make YouTube videos, put up signs!
And while you’re at it, stop CISPA, too. ‘Cause that one just sucks.
