UK student loan system less destructive than US system

A detailed explanation of student loan repayment in the UK shows clearly why it is a far less destructive system than that of the US. In the UK, even well-paid graduates can't advance very far in paying down their student debt. But does that matter? After 30 years, the debt that remains will be cancelled anyway. To explicitly "rebrand" the UK student debt as a tax on graduates sounds manipulative, but it is valid to argue that the UK's student loan system already is in fact a tax on graduates. By contrast, in the US system you must pay even if unemployed, and the debt will be canceled only by your death (or perhaps if you are permanently disabled).