A FASCINATING IDEA:  A teenager boosts a concept that can truly make a positive difference.  From Fox: 

As university enrollment and Americans' confidence in higher education decline, there's growing support for allowing veterans to use their GI Bill benefits to start a business rather than attend college. Proponents say the policy change could also alleviate the military's recruiting crisis.

"In the past, the GI Bill college tuition grants was the military's big recruiting magnet. But it didn't really appeal to me," 18-year-old Aden Gilbert told Fox News. "My acquaintances and peers, we think that college is very much overrated, and it can really just impede or delay an entrepreneur like myself."

Gilbert is the son of a Marine Corps veteran and considered following in his father's footsteps until recently. He said the proliferation of "woke" ideology in the military prompted his decision as well as his own finances — he started a social media marketing business during his senior year of high school that he says has taken off.

"Why would I be taking classes on why America sucks, which is what's taught in a lot of these colleges now, while my business competition is getting a four-year head start on me? It just doesn't really make any sense," Gilbert said.

Bipartisan legislation introduced this year would create a pilot program allowing 250 GI Bill-eligible veterans to receive a grant to open their own business or purchase a franchise. The grant would be equivalent to the maximum amount under the GI Bill. The veteran would also be required to participate in an entrepreneurial training program.

"Veterans moving into civilian life face a daunting mission in determining the next chapter of their life. Many of them want to pursue higher education, but others want to pursue a different path," Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., who sponsored the bill, told Fox News in an email.

"I know a ton of other entrepreneurs and like-minded kids who would flock to the military if that were to pass," Gilbert said, calling the legislation a "no-brainer way to end the recruiting crisis."

The military is struggling to fill its ranks as young people like Gilbert forgo service. Military officials blame a competitive job market and a dwindling pool of qualified applicants. Only 9% of young Americans are interested in serving their country, according to the Department of Defense.

College enrollment has also suffered a decline since 2012, and recent polling by Gallup shows Americans' confidence in higher education is waning.

"The youth of this era is not as interested in college," Jason Gilbert, Aden's dad, told Fox News. "They don't see the benefit that we have in past generations. The return on investment isn't there. It costs more and they get less, and the youth today are far more entrepreneurial than generations past."

COMMENT:  Unless we try, we can't know whether that idea will succeed, but it represents some of the most creative thinking that I've seen in a long time.  America has always been a land of innovation and adventure, and if the entrepreneurial spirit surges, I'm all for it.

July 20, 2023