Here’s the thing: not everyone wants to end up being a middle manager at McDonarby King’s at 40. “Advancing within a company” isn’t a substitute for education and being able to actually choose one’s career, rather than being tracked into being a manager at a lard and grease slinger.
Go to France or certain other European countries — anyone with a high school diploma can start medical school, the bar to admission is very low. Work hard the first two years, pass exams, and you’re guaranteed to get into the next four years. Social mobility in the US is actually falling while it’s increasing in other countries.
As far as run-ins with the law, the liberal solution is better than the conservative one. Legalize some drugs, allow people to clear their records. Permissiveness trumps authoritarianism here, pun intended.
