I don't agree with student loan forgiveness that would be unfair to all the people who paid their student loans. But I do agree with lowering the cost of college tuition. I used my GI bill to attend college so maybe that is a way to entice young people to serve their country.
Difficult one to answer about student loans.
My experience, from England.
As a mature student in the 90's I took out student loans to assist me through the duration of my course. Six thousand total over the three years, paid off within six years of work. Done.w
Now it's harder, you almost have to pay for most of your course.
I went to work at a place which employed one of the last guys who had come from a completely free (all paid for-no fee) education. If they'd had pits, he'd be sent down to them and he would have been broken within them.
Turns out that this wee beastie was was of the best minds I've ever met. He could not have entered education on a fee-for-course basis. In his mind, debt was associated with loan sharks and penuary. He would never have taken on education because his limited cost-benefit analysis didn't have the scope to associate debt with future reward.
In essence. Spend shed loads on education. Primary, secondary, higher and further, in that order. Paid for by taxation. And you will reap the rewards.