I think the debt problem is largely a problem of students making poor decisions. It is possible to save up for college to minimize or eliminate debt. Also, if you are going into debt, make sure it is for a degree that will actually help you get a job to pay off that debt. Finally, make smart decisions about what school you go to.

Going to an in state school is far cheaper than going out of state and depending on exactly what you want to do there's a pretty good chance that this is a reasonable alternative. In addition, in most states if your grades and SAT scores are reasonably good, a significant amount of your tuition will be paid via scholarship. Also, attend a community/state college instead of a university for at least your first two years and live at home if this is an option. Nobody is forcing people to go into absurd amounts of debt here. The option is yours. Costs and job prospects for any given degree are at least reasonably well known ahead of time. Don't spend half a million dollars on a liberal arts degree and then bitch about being in debt.

Yes, I know that's not the whole story and that you can still find yourself in debt trouble even making all the right decisions. I just don't think it would be the crisis it is today if people made smarter decisions.