If we want to escape this current rut and truly join the future society that we are starting to see sparks of on the internet, and that this author wishes to be a reality, we must enact social policies that enable lower class individuals to seek higher education without the risk of crushing debt and without having to sacrifice feeding themselves or keeping themselves healthy.

Great point. The privatization of higher education and profit incentives create a toxic environment where people feel like they have to do something which will get them a job, putting the economic incentives ahead of the educational ones. And who can blame them? 100k of debt is a huge mountain to overcome and severely limits the abilities of a young generation. A good first step would be providing a cheap (or free) education/healthcare system which would incentivize education and economic advancement (with no debt). Only then would we see more people pursuing careers and educations that interested them.

As for the anti-intellectualism perpetuating youth culture, I feel that it is a problem that cannot be overcome quickly. It is a longterm game where change is slow and meticulous. This does not mean that there cannot be change in the broad social spectrum. We don't need everyone to be an engineer, or mathematician to move forward as a society. The issues just have to be brought to the forefront so people can become aware of change and the future. If more people become aware and conscious of the world around them, change is bound to happen, it is just a matter of getting the ideas out there and acting upon them.