I may have never had the organizational skills for it after all but I can tell you, the idea of having tons of student debt hanging over my head just to compete for middling compensation, likely worse than private industry, just so the research can be used to invent new ways for capitalism to screw everyone over, all really dissuaded me from higher study and academia in the US. I was a good enough student, strong interest in a few areas, had some professors say I should go for a higher degree but ultimately there was just no way it made sense.

I'm sure there's millions of people smarter than me that went the same way or worse. Under educated because of the perverse incentives and huge inequality of capitalism. Let alone the topic of research funding