Too many chefs spoil the sue?

Former students at the Western Culinary Institute are moving ahead with a lawsuit against their alma mater. They claim the school “overstated the value of its culinary education.” Well, no shit. They can’t find jobs and they’re overloaded with debt. Sound familiar? It sounds like pretty much every recent graduate from any higher learning institution.

Don’t get me wrong, I do feel bad for these people. But I’m in the same boat and blaming PSU is the least of my worries.

I realize now I fucked up. Why should one pay $15,000 to learn what is readily available in the library? Because society tells you this is the only path to success. We are all socially ingrained with the belief that smart and successful people attend college. Society tells us that college graduates make significantly higher salaries. What they don’t tell you is that a 4-year degree is the new high school diploma. Or that personal connections are much more essential than a framed piece of paper indicating you’re educated.

College professors stress the importance of critical thinking. Unfortunately, it’s nearly impossible to critically analyze the education situation when you’ve whole-heartedly invested in it. During my college years, any speck of doubt about the importance of a college education was wiped away by my steadfast belief that this would work out. It had to.

Yet here I am, two years later, still working the same shit jobs I slaved over in college. Has my pay increased? No. Am I happy? Definitely not. Have I opened up doors to golden opportunities? We’ll see about that one, life ain’t over yet.

The realities of life are far different than the fantasy-land depicted in WCI’s television commercials. Is it false advertising? Of course. But, that’s what TV’s all about: creating artificial consumer needs in an attempt to rake in the dough. In that way, WCI is no different than McDonalds. People are pissed because they bought into WCI’s spin. So naturally, they did what any good American would: sue their asses.