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You're trying to change the terms of my argument, though. You are trying to look at it from a different perspective. I'm saying look at it from the perspective of the individual being asked for £18k.
Let me put it this way. Imagine you're a student or soon-to-be-student. You are about to start university just like everyone before you has. You will get the same services as everyone else before you (this isn't true, as you'll likely get worse services, but..). However, all of a sudden, you are being asked for 18k more than anyone else who has gone before you. In fact, many of the people who went before you paid nothing and they are the ones who want you to pay 18k more. This is to say, you are doing what you would have done anyway, but will be out 18 thousand pounds more than you would have been had you started a year before.
Now imagine you're you. You wake up tomorrow and the government has decided you will give them £18k for doing the same stuff, and getting the same services, you would have anyway. Sure, you can pay it back slowly, but pay it back you will. And you will get nothing out of it which you would have had you not paid the extra £18k.
For a student, situation a and b are identical. For someone who doesn't want or already has a university degree, situation b would be a real pisser. This is the basis of my original point:
"If more people were hit as hard as students are about to be financially, you would see a lot more protesting."