Student Strikes

So recently, I temporarily moved back in with my father (NEVER do that), after 6 years of being on my own, in order to save some money while I look for a better job. My dad is a college professor and today we have our annual "student protest" on campus. This is where a bunch of students gather together and block off the entrance of campus (aka my way back home) in order to fight the high rise of tuition fees they are forced to pay. These protests usually last a full day or two.


Let me just be straight up with this. I think these "protests" are dumb. VERY dumb. One day of blocking the entrance to a college doesn't prove anything to anyone except that you are annoying and unemployed (which could also describe me, but at least I'm not messing with people's livelihoods). It's a waste of everyone's time and it just serves to make wannabe hippies and bored cops feel better about themselves without actually changing anything. 


Now before you all start hating on me let me say this: I'm a very liberal guy. I'm also a recent college graduate, myself. I paid my own way through school, so I understand how crappy these fees are. They're ridiculous and they keep getting worse. The only thing probably more outlandish as tuition costs is the price of gas these days (seriously, $4.50 per gallon? Come on, Obama. I thought we was homies).  


The problem is that these kids are not thinking the right way. The only way to hurt the fat-cats that are in charge of Universities is to hit them where it hurts: Their wallet. Here's a suggestion on what you crazy kids should do if you REALLY ACTUALLY want to make a difference with your protest (write this down): Drop out of school for a semester. Collectively. The school will then lose TONS of money from this and will be forced to accommodate to the students' demands. 


Sounds simple, right? Well... maybe you students should do it. And faculty, y'all should do the same thing. Stop teaching for a semester the same time the students drop out. One semester is enough to hurt school cash flow and cause change. Blocking the entrance to a school does not. Plus its dumb and makes you look like a douche.