hmmm..I dont know Bruce,
I agree with you to an extent, but I also think people can find a way to do something if they really want to.
for example, I went to a SUNY (State U of NY) college because its all I thought I could afford.
good education! and I dont regret it.
but I always wanted to go to Cornell.
I just thought there was no way financially..
but I ended up getting my entire education paid for by grants and loans! my parents didnt pay a dime. (which was good, because they couldnt afford a dime!)
I just finished paying off my college loans last year.
(only $12,000 for 5 years! not bad)
so..could I have gone to Cornell?
probably..I just would have had a much larger loan load!
but if I had gone for engineering or something like that, I could probably afford the huge loans.
So poverty didnt have to hold me back..
of course, if you are poor and you go to Cornell and you graduate with $100,000 in college loans, you better make darn sure you pick a major thats going to pay you a ton of money! be a doctor, dont go to Cornell to be a liberal arts major!
but if you have the mental capability to do that, being poor doesnt have to be an obstacle..
and you said in your case "you screwed up".
well..that was your choice, you didnt *have* to screw up.
so that obstacle wasnt something that was out your control..
and those other 19year olds who didnt get the second chance..well maybe they didnt, but in that case its their fault that they needed a second chance that never came.
they HAD the first chance..they chose to not take advantage of it..
again, thats just a choice, not a rigid unsolvable obstacle..
Scot