The higher education industry realizes that their world will never be the same again. Some colleges have robust online offerings already. Now that's the only game in town. No one knows if colleges can allow students on campus in the fall. Some students are considering alternatives to traditional college.
The system of higher education is reeling. All their sources of funding are also struggling, including their endowments. Enrollment will surely be down in the fall. And it may never recover. If high school grads begin learning on line, they may opt out of college. Could there be a YouTube U?
And this is just one example of the system shaking. It may be crumbling. Similar tremors are felt in the worlds of sports, transportation, politics, and justice. Enough of their foundational pillars are damaged or temporarily removed.
We can now see that the system is rigged. Billion dollar corporations are cashing in on the multi-trillion dollar stimulus. Universities with billion dollar endowments are cashing in. Obviously the powerful want their cut. Meanwhile, the exploiters in the system are gaining hearts, and offering to help the exploited.
And some now see that the continued state of shutdown is an existential threat to the system. Our consumerism may not come back. Our way of rewarding greed may no longer be embraced. We may not crave entertainment or sports so much. We may not dash away to vacation spots so readily. We may not travel for business as much.
Those who worship the system realize that their god is threatened. And they are fighting back.
But the system has never been fair. It will never be entirely fair. But maybe with this restart it will be better. More compassionate, more caring, more relationship-oriented, more local, more giving, more peaceful. Less greedy, less materialistic, less shallow, less selfish. Slower. Motivated by meaning.
