I remember watching that video last spring and thinking, "Psh, what does he know?" - because let's face it: he doesn't.

And whoever said "Who cares about what Zac said" - AMEN!!! Honestly, I think he comes off sounding ignorant whether he wanted to or not. Nobody is perfect, and just because he's ridiculously good looking and in a band I adore doesn't mean ludicrous things aren't going to slip out of his mouth. Perception is reality.

Besides, I don't think any member of Hanson could handle living the typical american college student lifestyle for a week anyway. :) After seeing some of the conditions we live in, they'd probably raise money for less roach-infested dorms for freshmen or something. ;)

Yeah things about money always bug me about famous people in general...like, I know they are doing this thing to help kids in Africa, but I mean honeslty...Toms shoes are expensive!!! 50 bucks for one pair....I don't even have 1/4 of what Hanson has in the bank I'm sure, why doesn't Hanson buy a whole bunch of TOMS shoes and send them over to Africa instead of asking us as the fans who don't have any money (most of us anyway) to buy a 50 freaking dollar pair of shoes?!!!  It always bugs me when famous people do charity stuff and ask the fans to pay for it. 

I'm split on how I feel about this. On the one hand, I can see how people can be hurt by Zac's comment, especially those who are struggling financially. It's a lot of hard work living paycheck to paycheck and sometimes, you just want to stop and cry because things can seem so hopeless at times. I honestly don't think Zac was referring to those of you who fall into this category. However, I agree that he will never truly understand the struggles that so many college students go through. 

However, as someone who went to college, I know that I saw a ton of students who claimed to have no money, yet were going out to the bars every night, spending $10+ cover charges to get into clubs that charge $10 per drink. They made sure to buy brand new designer clothes when going out, because god knows that's what life's all about. They claimed to have no money for food and only ate Ramen Noodles, yet their refrigerators were always filled with plenty of (expensive) alcohol. I personally watched one of my best friends get into massive credit card debt not from school loans, but just from going out to trendy places almost every single night. I think these are the people Zac was referring to. 

However, as someone who went to college, I know that I saw a ton of students who claimed to have no money, yet were going out to the bars every night, spending $10+ cover charges to get into clubs that charge $10 per drink. They made sure to buy brand new designer clothes when going out, because god knows that's what life's all about. They claimed to have no money for food and only ate Ramen Noodles, yet their refrigerators were always filled with plenty of (expensive) alcohol. I personally watched one of my best friends get into massive credit card debt not from school loans, but just from going out to trendy places almost every single night. I think these are the people Zac was referring to.

see, now that is absurd. i have never lived like that, even when i was younger a part of me recognized that want =/= need. even now, i never go shopping, if i'm forced to buy something for weather or work reasons i go to thrift stores or walmart, i study the weekly sales papers for grocery stores and clip coupons... everything is off brand and bills are paid before i get my $5 bottle of vodka or whatever for the weekend. the only thing i've wasted on in the past... 5 years, is hanson, LOL. and that takes a lot of saving first.

now that i think about it, i do remember a few friends like that, from my past... they'd talk about how 'broke' they are, and how they can't afford -whatever-, then mention their $1,200 savings account and how they don't "want" to take money out of it... i was always floored... um hi, if you have twelve hundred dollars in the bank, YOU ARE NOT "BROKE". trying scrounging in the couch cushions for a gallon of milk and balancing your checkbook just so you don't accidentally overdraft when you pay your gas bill.

THAT'S broke. some people need a wake up call.

all of that is gone, finally. my first credit card is on it's way to me in the mail as i type, and i'm that much closer to building my credit up and buying a house. next step is fixing my husbands credit, as he just found a better job also. and yes, i've been donating here and there throughout the year, but only to my own community. i haven not and never will buy a pair of toms shoes, even though i plan on continuing my current path to higher wage and better credit - i don't want a pair of cheap, flat-soled un-supportive wal-mart quality slip ons. i can get those for $5. and if i want to donate $40 to a charity, it's going to be to my own country. charity starts at home. that's how i feel, and i'm not sorry for it - and neither should of you be sorry for it. especially if you're in college, and you're going to have thousands of dollars in loans to pay off.

i guess i mean to say - so WHAT? so what if zac DID mean it in that sense... who cares. it's your life, your hard earned money, and you shouldn't feel hurt or indignant because of something zac says. especially since (and i know i speak for most of you in this sense) when you're treating yourself or 'wasting' money, it's usually with something hanson related. amiright? ;)

also, we have to keep in mind that the hanson boys have never had to struggle financially. that's not to belittle the struggling they DID do - because everyone struggles in their own ways, with their own problems - but finance is not ever something they will have to lose sleep over. they don't get it. and that's ok, because we don't get them, either. and really, good for them for finding something to be passionate about. at least they're not selfish and uncaring - they have compassion, and the will to make a difference, and that's honorable. me, i'm just more worried about my own country, because this is where my children will be growing up.

I didn't mean for this to start anything like what was written above. For my birthday my parents bought me a pair of TOMS. They are actually quite comfy... it almost feels like you are wearing nothing on your feet. And If I am donating money - as I will with some of my Christmas money- I will donate it to takethewalk.net. And I think it's completely okay to donate money to whatever cause you want whether it's in your country or not. The point is, in America you have the ability to change your life around. Legally a hospital has to treat you even if you don't have the money to pay your bill. In Africa, things are much much different. I'm not saying that there aren't very poor people here, but those people have a daily opportunity to attempt to turn their lives around and don't. I'd much rather give to a country that really needs the help financially.

Also, I surprised somebody hasn't called Zac out on this situation. I've never heard Taylor or Isaac make any sort of reference to make fun of "poor college students", probably because they know most of their fans are poor college students!

i'm one of those people you're talking about. i have almost $5,000 in a savings account. WHY because i'm SAVING IT. and as of right now, i'm broke. i have enough in my checking account to pay my bills and not much else after that. i pretend that $5,000 doesnt exsist. WHY? because i've been saving it sincce i was 14 years old to have a cushion for hard times or to help pay for my wedding, etc.

all anyone EVER says is that they're "saving their money for hanson, spoiling themselves on hanson" yaddah yaddah yaddah and that's all fine and dandy. but if you're living paycheck to paycheck don't bitch and complain because you're seeing hanson ten times this time around. i'm seeing them once and i'm blessed for that.

i honestly think some of you need to put you "obession" on hold and put things into perception. dont get me wrong, ive been a fan for 10 years like everyone else, but never once have i put my finances in jepordy to see them. they're ordinary guys, i don't think of them as anything else than that. i honestly think some of these people that give them $7,000 dollars to donate are trying to get in their pants when they are happily married with children.

i'm bringing 30 of my sorority sisters to the walk, i personally think that's above and beyond what the average person is expected when they're on the walk. ive never seen hanson ask for money besides whats on takethewalk.net or anything else. the walk is meant to raise $24,902 by having 24,902 walking.

I took it to mean that he was shocked the someone on a college campus would have won money and not kept it for themselves for whatever reason (assuming that they were a "poor college student") and that they were willing to donate it to the cause.

And as a musician, he seems bitter that people illegally DL because they are "poor college students" and wont pay even a measley $.99 for a song.

I dont think he was trying to offend college students who are at the moment, broke.

But maybe i dont get it either because I was lucky enough to attend college on a scholarship and for 2.5 of my college years I worked for spending money so I never had to deal with loans and that kind of stuff.

i watched the video on youTube.. and though i dont go to college, bc when i moved things got messed up, i have a student loan to pay for along with other bills.. but this video didnt "rub me the wrong way" at all... i'm not gonna lie and say that i'm struggling, because i'm fortunate enough to have enough money and a mom to help pay my bills and have extra money to go buy what i want, including going to a hanson concert 5+ hrs away from where i live... i dont think that Zac's comment was meant to be offensive as much as its being taken as...when you look at the mass majority of college students, they spend their money on alcohol and partying (i'm not saying all so dont get all defensive)... a case of beer costs about 10 dollars... i'm pretty sure that instead of spending that 10 dollars on beer to go play beer pong, get wasted and not remember what has happened the night before, you can take that and donate it to a good cause... 

although, i'm not zac, and have no idea what he meant by it.. my thoughts are that he was just trying to get the point across that you should try to give as much as you can...  but by doing the walks, buying a pair of toms shoes, and even, if you can, take a trip to help out over in africa... 

if all you can afford to give is 1.00 them thats a dollar more there to donate than before.

i personally think that its really great that they are getting the word about helping the less fortunate out.. and its really something that makes you think (at least has made me) of someone else other than yourself... and to realize that even if you dont have a lot you have more than most and to know that you're life is truly blessed..

In my opinion, I don't think Zac was trying to undermind how much we, as college students, struggle with money.  I think he was saying "Stop telling yourself that because you have no money, you have nothing to offer"

It is true that he probably has no idea what it is like to be without fluid money, but if we are going to be REALLY really honest right now, most of don't really know what poverty is like either.  We may have nothing in our bank accounts, but that only lasts for a short time because more money comes in...we eat regularly and are getting educations...we really have no right to call ourselves poor by any means.  That is just my opinion and the way I see things. 

I personally am in the same boat as a lot of you, I am paying my way through college and paying all my own bills...but I do have the power to do something.

I thought that every student in USA lives like a king!:))))))

"most of don't really know what poverty is like either.  We may have nothing in our bank accounts, but that only lasts for a short time because more money comes in...we eat regularly and are getting educations...we really have no right to call ourselves poor by any means."

That's a really good point. It's all about perspective. Yes, a lot of us are struggling, but we're all on this website. There are a lot of people out there who can't even afford access to a computer, much less the Internet. I'm assuming that most of us live relatively safe and secure lives. I took a trip through South Central Los Angeles a few weeks ago and it made me realize just how fortunate I was to be "struggling" in the neighborhood where I live. Many of those people live in absolute war zones where the criminals rule the neighborhoods and they really have no way of getting out. 

Well, I never read this blog or anything your speaking of, but from what you are saying I totally and completely agree! I am always broke, pretty much everyone my age or around my age, dang, even a lot of adults are always broke. Especially these days, theres so many bills, and having a job without a college degree pays next to nothing where I live, not even near enough for all my bills! I can't even afford college yet and wont be able to until I hit 24 years old, since I dont qualify for any financial assistance. They must not understand how "normal" young people live since they haven't really lived that way.