The impact of these economic changes reverberated. The solid American option of living off the land and farming was quickly disappearing, replaced by industrial and high-tech farming and global competition. You had to finish high school. What’s more, since it became much harder to get a good job with the skills built in high school, it was no longer sufficient to just pass—one had to do well for the chance to go on. And so began the nuclear arms race for college admissions. The highest priority became not to graduate, but to get accepted to a good college. The standard formula required good
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