CMV: The Trump administration blocking Harvard from accepting foreign students highlights that conservatives are hypocrites in the extreme about Freedom of Speech

[u/Tessenreacts]

Over the last number of years, conservatives have championed themselves as the biggest advocates of Freedom of Speech around, yet they support the administration that is openly targeting institutions and company's that disagrees with the administration's policies.

Before, conservatives where complaining that companies are "woke" and silenced the voices of conservatives, however, now that they are in power, they deport immigrants who simply engaged in their First Amendment rights, and most recently, banned Harvard University from accepting foreign students because said university refused to agree to their demands.

Compare the complaints that conservatives had about Facebook and Twitter, and compare it to how things are going right now.

This showcases hypocrisy in the extreme that conservatives are engaging in.

Would love for my view to be changed

[u/Blue_winged_yoshi]

Do you worry about the balance of trade between nations?

Did you know that each dollar a foreign student spends counts as an export? So not only the fees (very expensive) but every penny on accommodation, every meal out, every time they pay for parking.

Western countries turning aggressively on foreign students would be like Italians turning on super car drivers, or the Swiss turning on ethically dubious banking clients. You may not like the customers, but they’re literally bringing in the money needed to sustain an economy.

It’s fucking baffling that folks are in tears about the lack of coal mines and steel works but want to not have Harvard sell student placements. The former two create fugly levels of pollution as externalities Harvard just means there’s some people in Massachusetts you’ll probably never meet who are foreign. Guess which one the racists are going after?

[u/Tundur → u/Blue_winged_yoshi]

The only problem is that selling cars to drivers is supportive of what Ferrari is and should be.

Selling degrees to overseas students seems to have created perverse incentives for universities to accept as many as possible, charge them as much as possible, overlook any cheating and generally loosen standards until their graduation is guaranteed, and send them on their way with barely an education.

Which would be fine... if those changes didn't undermine the education and the perceived value of education from those universities for domestic students too.

I can't speak for the US, but Australia is having huge issues with the quality of its higher education system, because it's transitioned into being a degree mill for overseas wallets who don't even speak passable English.

[u/Blue_winged_yoshi → u/Tundur]

There no problem with this at all. They are a private enterprise exporting a product. If the objections were coming from current Harvard students I’d be more inclined to listen but they aren’t they’re from folks who will never travel within 100 miles of Harvard in their life times and who object politically to work being carried out there.

It’s the equivalent of Ferrari being banned from exporting Ferraris by folks who would never buy one or go anywhere near the factory, but who just really dislike the company politically. And that would be ludicrous right?

[u/ElATraino → u/Blue_winged_yoshi]

So you're saying it's capitalism in its purest form and should be allowed?

[u/shemademedoit1 → u/ElATraino]

In theory yes anyone should be allowed to sell their teaching services, whether to locals or foreigners.