Corporate College defrauding 101

Dear Congressman,

Back here in the burbs of your fine constituency, we are still fighting our way through the great recession the best ways that we can. Many people have had to cut back on different entertainment venues, so the television in the corner of the room has been getting a fairly substantial workout in most households.

In fact, I had mine on this weekend and saw an interesting commercial. As usual for this time of year, it was a "back to school" ad for a major US retailer starring a college freshman and his mother as they happily equip and supply his dormitory room with items purchased directly at a discounted everyday price from the aforementioned retailer.

But it did raise a comment.

The dorm room. Wow... it was huge. I am over 20 years removed from my university days, so maybe I lack perspective. Are all dorm rooms that big nowadays? I remember dorm rooms were of a size only slightly larger than those available at Pelican Bay State Penitentiary, with just enough room for two beds and "mini-desks" for those who actually get round to studying while at school. Is this one of the shovel ready projects that the stimulus package is funding? And that window overlooking the campus. That room has almost as much glass as Schuller's Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, CA.

I'm impressed, but skeptical. If all dorm rooms were like this one, there would be no room left on campus for classrooms. Colleges would be overrun with extremely habitable but educationally challenging space constraints as all class would be held in the parking lots surrounding the campus. The Professor's Union would strike for better working conditions, as the weather forecast becomes a major consideration of their lesson planing and incidents of skin cancer goes through the roof.

All because a major retailer wanted to sell a few more linens....