I'd like to add a few things.

"Send his kids to college". Whatever happened to supporting your kids while letting them work the summers and get part-time jobs during the school year? I know It can still be done. In my world, giving your kids a “free ride” isn’t part of the dream.

Your flame to Tom is what brought me here. It looks to me you're only pointing out the system doesn't work the way it used to and that's a given. You've repeatedly pointed out the disparity between the rich and the poor and chalked it up to greed. While I agree that greed is large part of the problem, it's certainly not the only one. In other words, the bone you chew is meatless. You don't want to look seriously at any causes beyond your predetermined judgments. Your reply to "Five lessons from the European fiscal crisis " is a perfect example.

How about instead of just pointing out the unaffordability of a college education, why not look at college costs and see what’s causing the problem. Here is just one:

"From 1975 to 2005, the cost of attending public universities in the U.S. tripled.... much of the increased cost can be attributed to administrative bloat.
Since the 1970s,..... the number of administrative staffers has risen by 235 percent, while the number of faculty and students has increased by only about 50 percent."

I'd say that has something to do with it and I’m sure you would too, but you and other liberals ignore information like this especially when Tom posts it. Instead of being dismissive like ER and Eri, would it hurt to find sources of information to counter Tom's claims? Too much work or prefer just to spout off?

Sorry, Back to your subject.

I think you unknowingly invited Tom’s embellishment by using the word “Pension” instead of “retirement account” or “401k“. Pensions are associated with trade unions and government employees and we know what conservatives think about them.

The irony is you shouldn't have to be a union member to live the American dream. And that takes your argument even further.