My FoxNews.com column this week looks at upper middle class college grads who whine about their student debt — then prescribe more of the same government-funded solutions that are the very reason they had to take on debt in the first place.

I generally think it’s obnoxious to quote yourself, but spare me this one indulgence — I think you’ll find it amusing:

CBS News recently ran a profile of Jason DeBonis and Katrina Lust, two medical students facing a “mountain” of student loan debt when they finally graduate and start their careers.

At first blush, the couple seems sympathetic. We see their tiny apartment. We see them eating modestly, and we see the foreboding amount of money the couple will have to eventually pay back — more than half a million dollars.

But take a closer look. In the report, the two are drinking Starbucks coffee, a pricy habit for a couple so worried about expenses. In another scene, we see a bottle of water on the table where they’re eating a modest meal. But it isn’t tap water. Or even bottled water. It’s Vitamin Water, one of the more expensive brands of water on the market. Between them, the two have attended Columbia, NYU, and MIT, three of the most expensive schools in the world.

And the couple has planned a destination wedding in Jamaica.

I take some shots an Anya Kamenetz, too.

I can’t take credit for finding the dirt on the couple in the CBS News segment. It was sent over by an observant emailer who wishes to remain anonymous. But it’s awfully juicy. And revealing.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 12th, 2006 at 6:02 pm by Radley Balko and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.