HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: Some say bypassing a higher education is smarter than paying for a degree.

Across the region and around the country, parents are kissing their college-bound kids — and potentially up to $200,000 in tuition, room and board — goodbye. Especially in the supremely well-educated Washington area, this is expected. It’s a rite of passage, part of an orderly progression toward success.

Or is it . . . herd mentality?

Hear this, high achievers: If you crunch the numbers, some experts say, college is a bad investment.

Read the whole thing. Also, let me repeat a thought I’ve posted before: If students are leaving college deeply in debt, how will they afford to start families, buy houses, and do the other things our economy needs the rising generation to do?