mikehall:
I think I am making a discrepancy between ‘great rabbis’ and ‘gedolim’. Gedolim are the leaders of our nation, in whose footsteps we yearn to follow and whose guidance has sustained us for thousands of years. You were naming rabbis though, that you were giving as proof that college is a viable option for people.My rebuttal was that you have no proof that they didn’t regret their decisions and would tell someone else not to go.
I agree with you 100% that some people may have to go to college. For instance someone who is meant to be a doctor will have to go to college. However, I think it requires guidance and the understanding that it is a necessary evil- not because school is bad- but because the hashkafos there are tamei u’mitamei.
We do not go to college because “Withought I would never be able to enjoy my lifestyle”.
We go to college because we want to become doctors and do chassadim. Because we want to ensure a Torah eduction for our children and have absolutely no other means of support. Because we ourselves cannot sit and learn all day but are machshiv Torah so much that we want to support those few that can.