in the wind | tweets from the week ending June 08, 2013

Less is more | Annual servings of sugary drinks + cereals to US kids decline by double-digits http://usat.ly/11A4JW3 

guns guns guns | 4695 US Firearm Deaths Since Newtown http://jimhancock.blogspot.com

Affordable Health Coverage | Coming Soon to a Household Near You 


I support 'Can music change the world?' http://thndr.it/13DaXYr

Digital Deceptions | Macfee report on kids misleading parents about online behavior + what to do http://bit.ly/11s6OYq

I'm not sure there's any number of Facebook likes that can replace a hug. - Seth Godin http://bit.ly/Zw3vPo

aren't you glad to be alive? | different doesn't have to be scary 

pay me now or pay me later | US student loans at the crisis point 

Thumbwars | dosomething.org peer-to-peer campaign to end texting while driving http://dsorg.us/11xNOYw

credit where credit is due | a small idea from Raising Adults

Free iPad app Kindoma lets children read with parents, grands, older sibs-whoever!-from anywhere in the world http://kindoma.com

pay me now or pay me later | US student loans at the crisis point

graphic by John Uebersax

This year, student loan debt exceeded $1 trillion as the price tag on higher education has risen more than 1100% since 1978.

On Thursday, Senate Republicans blocked a vote on the Reed-Harkin Student Loan Affordability Act—legislation that would freeze federal Stafford student loan interest rates at 3.4% before the big July 1st deadline.

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren points out that, "...right now, a big bank can get a loan through the Federal Reserve discount window at a rate of about 0.75%. Those are the same big banks that destroyed millions of jobs and nearly broke our economy."

I'm convinced we ought to, at the very least, freeze student loan rates where they are. 

Even better, I support Senator Warrens legislation to give students the same deal we give to the big banks: the Bank on Students Loan Fairness Act — in fact, I'd like to see that made permanent.

If you like the idea, you can add your voice right here.

New college graduates can't feed the real economy if their contribution is preempted by overwhelming debt — meaning, if these 80MM Americans can't participate, we can't grow.