Forgive me, but I must vent.

I've got a son that attends BYU and he's been totally on his own for the past 3, almost 4 years. He hasn't lived at home and we don't provide any financial aid other than letting him use one of our cars and pay the insurance. He paid his way to school through working, scholarships and financial aid. I haven't claimed him as a dependent on my personal tax return for the past 4 years. He is the epitomy of the poor struggling college student.

This year while filling out his FAFSA it required him to include financial information on his parents, which totally nuked any chance of getting financial aid. It's as if they assume that because his parents have some money they are obligated to pay for his education. Notwithstanding the fact that we don't claim him as a dependent, he's not covered on our insurance plan and he doesn't live with us.

There is simply no way around it on the application. For the first time it asked if your parents have more than $22,500 in assets. If you answer yes, then it asks for the current cash balance of all your parents accounts, the current value of all your investments excluding your personal residence and the value of any business interests. Whatever you enter is included in the "expected family contribution" (EFC) which they use to determine the amount of financial aid you are qualified for.

So a kid that is trying to make it on his own (and doing a good job of it) is now left with no choice but to either ask his parents for help or borrow money simply because he's part of a family. Contrast that with an illegal immigrant in the same position who would get a full Pell Grant and other aid. They system is now so screwed up it actually discriminates against white Americans.

It's also interesting that once I found out he couldn't get any financial aid, I tried to add him to our family health insurance, but they wouldn't let me because he isn't considered a dependent because I don't claim him on my income taxes. He couldn't qualify for Medicare (even with only a $6000 gross annual income) because he is a student, and he couldn't buy health insurance on the Obamacare exchange because he's so poor. They actually told him to apply for medicare. He ended up buying the health plan from BYU, which isn't Obamacare compliant, so he'll have to pay a penalty on his taxes. It's as if he's in a black hole of the system and can't get out until he either gets married or turns 25, which is the age the government has decided is old enough to be on your own regardless of your circumstances. Very frustrating.

I'm so sick of the Government deciding the winners and losers with all their regulations skewed to favor anyyone but white Americans. I'm afraid we are on the slippery slope and there is simply no way to stop us from ultimately crashing and burning in a financial meltdown. All the political discussion is centered on what new benefits the Government should be handing out and not on fixing the mess that exists in the present system.