

Peter Thiel: I’m Really Not Crazy; I Just Want to Help Some Kids - jayjay666
http://dlvr.it/7zNSL

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paul
It's interesting how angry some people get if you suggest that not everyone
needs to follow the traditional educational path.

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hristov
Maybe they are angry because they see this as somebody bribing young kids to
make what might be the biggest mistake in their lives.

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kevinpet
If delaying college for a few years is the biggest mistake you make in your
life, you have been far too cautious.

This position is discussed and Thiel addresses why it is not a reasonable
position in the article. If you want to advance this position again, protocol
says you need to provide a new argument or new evidence that was not
considered in the previous round.

Didn't down vote you, but think I understand why someone might have.

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hristov
I read the article carefully and I do not see Thiel discussing that at all.

Note that Thiel does not target kids that are about to go to college but kids
that are already going to college. So he intentionally wants to interrupt an
ongoing college education, not merely delay it. People say you can always go
back but that is often not the case. If you are in a very competitive school
or program it is very doubtful they will take you back if you took a couple of
years off. Actually it would be probably impossible. And believe you me he
will choose kids from competitive programs in order to get maximum news
exposure. I can imagine how this can be a huge mistake at least for some kids.

It is just a very perverse situation ... he says here is all this money but
you have to give up something to get it. Usually when one does charity one
tries to help the people one does charity to, and does not pose to them
difficult and maybe even dangerous bargains.

If he thinks these kids are so valuable, why would he not give them the
stipend before they go to college or after they finish. It is just a couple of
years difference either way?

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maxawaytoolong
It's usually pretty easy to get a leave of absence, maybe even moreso at
competitive schools. Harvard, for example, lets you take a leave of absence
for up to five years. And even after 5 years you can go back if your petition
is approved. MIT has a similar policy. I went to a lesser school but I was
allowed to finish up after an 8 year leave of absence.

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browsemybooks
I find it interesting that those proclaiming that students bypass education
(including Tony Hsieh) are products of the top universities.

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fossuser
They themselves might be, but some of the notable people they've invested in
have dropped out. Granted for Zuckerberg it was Harvard he dropped out of.

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_delirium
Zuckerberg is actually the only one I can think of, though I assume there must
be at least one or two others. But if you look through Thiel's portfolio
companies, they're stuffed to the gills with people with degrees, often
multiple degrees, from top universities. PayPal was all people with degrees,
LinkedIn is people with degrees, Palantir was founded by a PhD, etc.

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Eliezer
Singularity Institute founded by someone who went autodidact after eighth
grade...

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candre717
I applaud Thiel for offering this alternative to ambitious students.

What I don't applaud is this myth of the genius college dropout who changes
the world. That just doesn't happen enough to make a rule out of it. I think
it gives students the wrong idea - especially those whose never managed a
business.

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kevinpet
As opposed to all those students who leave their VP Sales jobs to go get an
education?

What Thiel and many others (this seems to be something of a theme in
libertarian circles) are saying is that a college education is not relevant to
certain kinds of activities. Sure, it may be beneficial, but not beneficial
enough to forgo something more beneficial for four years.

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candre717
Right - but I think what Thiel should do when explaining his fellowship is
qualify it. "Drop out of college ...and, oh yeah, make sure your some
superstar, prodigy, and/or really lucky because in the past those were the
qualities that kick started the billionaire stars of today."

Sure, a college education is overpriced and, at times, overrated. But, I hope
these young people come in fully aware that failure stings and when you're
heading in that trajectory - even temporarily in any thing or venture - a lot
of choices you made do not look too bright.

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andrewtbham
the article is pretty bad.. <http://www.slate.com/id/2271265/>

it paraphrases his views as saying.. "giving women the vote wrecked the
country"

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pjscott
Ugh, what a nauseating hatchet-job. It's such blatantly distorted,
emotionally-loaded propaganda that it hurts to read. I can understand someone
wanting to criticize Thiel's plan, but that article makes him out to be a
moustache-twirling cartoon villain.

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kiba
Haters are going to hate.

However, at the end of the day, people who attack their opponents like that
deserves to be ignored, whether they are liberal, conservative, or
libertarians.

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sayemm
my favorite line: "I question how closely education links with
entrepreneurship."

it doesn't. i think competitive fields or sports (physical or mental) are the
best test of an entrepreneur's DNA

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nickpinkston
One of my investors told a story about a company he invested in because the
guys were Navy SEALs, and seems like they'd stick to their guns through the
startup life. They caved after a little over a year...

I tend to see a lot of the stick-to-it-tiveness in athletes, but a lot of
times I see them doing a bunch of "reps" while essentially spinning their
wheels. Good entrepreneurs are a perfect storm of many things, and they rarely
start with all the pre-reqs. I think "Know thy self" and having a willingness
to keep improving yourself is a big part of being an entrepreneur.

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sayemm
right on about self-awareness for learning/improving. though i like sports as
a pyschological indicator because of that too - can't expect to be an awesome
basketball player, a great programmer, or an expert chess player if you suck
at monitoring yourself and you're not constantly evolving.

no one-size-fits-all obviously like you mention though

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jfb
I don't think he's crazy; I just think he's _wrong_.

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bhiggins
Ideally, kids should drop out of college because they found something better
to do with their time, not the other way around.

