SHOCK EXCHANGE is Released
By: Christina Mancuso Jun. 14, 2016
BROOKLYN, N.Y., June 14, 2016 /PRNewswire-iReach/ America's student loan debt has been rising at three times the rate of inflation and is now over $1.2 trillion. Politicians have known about this problem for over a decade but have been loath to do anything about it. Millennials have practically become indentured servants to student loans. However, the rising cost of college has nothing to do with a better education or rising professors' salaries. Instead, it has been driven by a luxury arms race colleges have engaged in, and "bling" they have thrown at kids in order to attract the best students.
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Now Congress has decided to act. Congressman Tom Reed (NY) has floated a bill to tax colleges with the largest endowments. The Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee have sent letters to the wealthiest 56 private institutions, inquiring about how their endowments have been managed, and the percentage of endowments devoted to financial aid, amongst other things.
Too bad the idea was plagiarized. According to Ralph W. Baker, Jr. his book, Shock Exchange: How Inner-City Kids From Brooklyn Predicted The Great Recession And The Pain Ahead, recommends taxing colleges with the largest endowments as a practical way of tamping down the rising cost of college. He also sent Shock Exchange to several politicians, including certain members of the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees. Here is an excerpt:
The "game" is to attract enough students to apply to one's college (with no intention of admitting them) and then deny their applications. The more students the college rejects, the lower its "acceptance rate" and the more "exclusive" it appears ...The luxury arms race that colleges are engaging in is evidence of traditional not-for-profit entities behaving in a "for profit" manner
The institutions that sell luxury suites, saunas and gourmet meals and offer a college degree as an ancillary service, price out the masses and hurt our country's competitiveness. The best solution to institutions that act in a "for-profit" manner is to tax them at the same rate as other spas, real estate developers, and fine dining establishments.
Mr. Baker has sent a cease and desist letter to Congressman Reed, Senator Orrin Hatch of the Senate Finance Committee and Congressman Kevin Brady of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Pursuant to politicians co-signing Shock Exchange, Mr. Baker had this to say, "The kids of the New York Shock Exchange have been discussing the dismal U.S. economy since 2006 when nobody cared. We suggested that investing in infrastructure could both spur the economy and shore up our crumbling roads and bridges. President Obama later made infrastructure investing the linchpin of his economic plan. Critics try to make and unmake authors. Ultimately, the market decides. President Obama, the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees have spoken. Shock Exchange is the best book on Wall Street in the past 20 years and on economics, arguably the most important book since the Great Depression."
Baker went on to exclaim, "I feel like Marlo Stanfield from HBO's The Wire, 'The crown isn't worth much if the person wearing it is always getting his ideas taken.' Shock Exchange is the most plagiarized book in America. I think it's time that politicians, and the mainstream media promoting them, acknowledge the book as their source of information."
Ralph W. Baker, Jr.
Mr. Baker received his B.A. in economics from Hampden-Sydney College (1989) and his MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (1993). He has over 15 years of experience in corporate finance and mergers & acquisitions. He is currently the Executive Director of the New York Shock Exchange, a financial literacy program he started in 2006 to share his passion for investing and basketball with his 11-year-old son and other boys his age. Mr. Baker who was also a small college All-American in basketball, has one son, Ralph W. Baker III, and resides in Brooklyn, NY.
On Shock Exchange
Shock Exchange examines the stock market and U.S. economy through the eyes of the New York Shock Exchange. The book predicts the "pain ahead" for the U.S. economy, the demise of China, the pending stock market crash and social unrest. The first few chapters describe Mr. Baker's experience growing up in Prince Edward County, VA, one of the five lawsuits which made up the Brown v. Board of Education decision. He grew up with stories about the walkout at Robert Russa Moton High School, the public school closings that followed Brown and the five year fight to get them reopened. Mr. Baker's parents and relatives had to attend school in other counties, in other states or forgo school altogether.
Library Journal called Shock Exchange "Innovative ... an intriguing work." SLAM Magazine called it "Unique ... refreshing." Ken Townsend, Elliott Professor of Economics at Hampden-Sydney College exclaimed, "Great book!"
Where To Buy:
Shock Exchange is available electronically and at the following bookstores and retailers:
Barnes & Noble Bookstores
Hampden-Sydney College Bookstore
Media Contact: Ralph Baker Baker, New York Shock Exchange, 917-597-6566, ralphbakerjr@msn.com
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SOURCE New York Shock Exchange
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