WALTER RUSSELL MEAD: Teenagers Flee The Bursting Higher-Education Bubble For Brown Jobs.

The real significance of the story is that brown jobs are making it possible for Americans to make a decent living without a college degree. It’s a heartening sign of a new reality that some teens are finding ways to launch a middle class life directly out of high school. As the energy boom continues, we may be seeing a lot more of this. New developments in oil and gas extraction are already helping to point us towards energy independence. If they can also help build up the middle class, that’s even more reason to celebrate them.

My question. The New York Times seems upset that teenagers might skip college — which could lead to an, er, white-collar job — in favor of going straight into a “brown job” out of high school. So, according to the NYT, white=good, and brown=bad. Uh huh. Got it.