Public perception is utterly meaningless. They're basically a collection of what whiny people want life to be about instead of what it actually is, and that is a collection of uneducated inbreds on both sides of the isle agreeing on the same damn thing but finding a boogey man on the other side to blame there perceived problem on.
It's well known I don't relate well to those who don't understand basic economic principles, so let me tell you all how this works and what these complaints amount to. Free tuition or higher wages or this or that do nothing more than raise property prices because everyone can afford more and gets into the same ol same ol treadmill race. At that point your cost of living is higher and you've literally accomplished nothing more than making a one time transfer to old people and there descendants who will benefit in the will.
That's how society works. If you want free tuition, fine, it's basically a no-brainer to me (ElRoach knows this but keeps pretending we haven't had this exact conversation before), but if you think you're being some progressive crusader accomplishing some perceived injustice against the working poor you're as far off base as it gets. Not only will you put wage pressure on those who have already worked for it themselves but you'll also lower production and thus tax revenue in the short run and possibly the long run (look at European production for a hint here), and that means less money for actually beneficial societal programs.
The goal is to improve society constantly, not to grovel in talking points that are essentially meaningless in the grand scheme of things. That's what society does best, however, and the reason current ***public polls*** regarding Washington politics are so negative.
