I think you might be catching too much flak on this thread but to add to the discussion: >Oh you mean the same time I graduated into a shitty job market with t

I think you might be catching too much flak on this thread but to add to the discussion: >Oh you mean the same time I graduated into a shitty job market with thousands in college loans? I think this is actually to the same point. Compare what you stated with someone who, say, graduated in the 1960s where they could have a middle class lifestyle without even graduating college, or if they did graduate, without mountains of debt or relatively high home prices. Both points can be true. There can still be paths forward while also acknowledging it can be more difficult. Exceptional people will always find a path to success; that's what makes them exceptional. What worries me is when we (as a society) make it exceedingly difficult for large swaths of people to succeed at achieving something as modest as "middle-class".