if you can pause the personal responsibility rhetoric for a moment and attempt *shutters* empathy, consider that the entire society, education system, and oftentimes parents strongly push kids into this “go to college or you’re a failure” direction their entire life.

I remember the feeling well. I took responsibility and dropped out a year in. I never said it was easy. I'm sorry I push back. I just think there can be no free society without massive implication of individual responsibility. I can have empathy and also realize who's fault it actually is. I empathize with drug addicts. But I don't pretend to think it's someone else fault they decided to do drugs. No one gets better that way.