dodged the dbm bullet
To be fair, it's more like a shotgun. Accuracy is limited but the effect is the same.
@carramrod the last numbers I saw were wealthier people and poor people are having kids above replacement levels. The middle/working class are below it.
Dbm we need to stop fretting over this. As Marv pointed out, it is typical of wealthy, secular societies throughout history. I'm skeptical that stuff like a child tax credits or universal child care and health care would change the trend. It's not a cost problem. The wealthier you are, the less kids you have in this country. Short of a religious revival I don't see the trend reversing anytime soon.
Best thing the U.S. can do is keep the Muslims out and closely vet the people we allow in. Europe would probably need some sort of crusade to change course while they still have the numbers. This time on the streets of London, Paris, Berlin, and Stockholm. I don't think they can be saved.
But are we wealthy? And I mean by that is when you ask younger people they frequently say they aren't having kids because they can't afford them. Tons of student loan debt, skyrocketing housing costs, no good jobs, etc.
Yes we are wealthy. The wealthiest nation in the history of the world.
I’m uninterested in what young people say. It wasn’t that long ago people were sounding the same alarm about millennials that they are now for Zoomers. Yet, millennials have caught up, as a generation they are now wealthier than their parents were at the same age.
So if a Zoomer complains that they went into debt for a low demand degree and rent is too high in Manhattan or Chicago, cry me a river. Make better choices, whole life is still ahead of them.
Some posters on this board are obviously dues-paying members of the Quiverfull Movement.
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@carramrod the last numbers I saw were wealthier people and poor people are having kids above replacement levels. The middle/working class are below it.
Please share. I could believe it. I do know that when people complain about the shrinking middle class, it’s because more Americans are becoming upper middle class or wealthy. And the good news is that income mobility in America is still kick ass. Just because you or your parents were in one class doesn’t mean you stay there.
The economic populist grievance aspect of the Trump movement and its doppelgänger in the AOC/ Mamdani/ Sanders movement aren’t based in a whole lot of truth. There might be a few legit grievances, but on the whole, the American economy still works for everybody that wants to partake in it in good faith.
Dbm we need to stop fretting over this. As Marv pointed out, it is typical of wealthy, secular societies throughout history. I'm skeptical that stuff like a child tax credits or universal child care and health care would change the trend. It's not a cost problem. The wealthier you are, the less kids you have in this country. Short of a religious revival I don't see the trend reversing anytime soon.
Best thing the U.S. can do is keep the Muslims out and closely vet the people we allow in. Europe would probably need some sort of crusade to change course while they still have the numbers. This time on the streets of London, Paris, Berlin, and Stockholm. I don't think they can be saved.
But are we wealthy? And I mean by that is when you ask younger people they frequently say they aren't having kids because they can't afford them. Tons of student loan debt, skyrocketing housing costs, no good jobs, etc.
Yes we are wealthy. The wealthiest nation in the history of the world.
I’m uninterested in what young people say. It wasn’t that long ago people were sounding the same alarm about millennials that they are now for Zoomers. Yet, millennials have caught up, as a generation they are now wealthier than their parents were at the same age.
So if a Zoomer complains that they went into debt for a low demand degree and rent is too high in Manhattan or Chicago, cry me a river. Make better choices, whole life is still ahead of them.
Gemini
When examining the financial situation of millennials compared to their parents (Baby Boomers) at the same age, the answer is complex and often contradictory, depending on the specific metric used. While some data suggests millennials are wealthier, other factors point to a more precarious financial reality.
Wealth Comparison
Recent studies have shown that, on average, millennials are wealthier than previous generations were at the same age. When adjusted for inflation, millennials' median net worth is higher than that of Baby Boomers and Generation X at a comparable age.
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Higher Net Worth: A LendingTree study found that millennials aged 26-41 had a median net worth of approximately $84,941 in 2022. This surpassed the inflation-adjusted net worth of Baby Boomers ($58,101) in 1989 and Generation X ($78,333) in 2007 at similar ages.
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Higher Income: Millennial households also have a higher median cumulative income when compared to older generations at the same stage of life.
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Asset Growth: Millennials' wealth has grown significantly in recent years, largely driven by investments in real estate, equities, and retirement accounts. Many millennials started investing earlier in life than their parents did.
However, this picture is not uniform. The wealth gap within the millennial generation is significant. The wealthiest millennials are doing exceptionally well, while the poorest are falling further behind. This uneven distribution of wealth is more pronounced than it was for the Baby Boomer generation.
Buying Power and Financial Challenges
While millennials may have a higher net worth, their buying power and financial stability are challenged by a number of factors that their parents did not face to the same extent.
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Higher Cost of Living: Key expenses like housing, education, and healthcare have risen dramatically, outpacing wage growth. This means that a millennial's dollar does not stretch as far as their parents' did. For example, the inflation-adjusted median rent and the cost of a down payment on a home are significantly higher for millennials than they were for Baby Boomers at the same age.
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Increased Debt: Millennials are more likely to carry debt, particularly student loans, which were not a major burden for previous generations. This can limit their ability to build wealth and save for other goals, even if their income is higher.
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Homeownership: Despite the increase in real estate wealth for millennials who own homes, the rate of homeownership for the generation as a whole is lower than it was for Baby Boomers at the same age. This is a significant factor in wealth accumulation, as home equity is a primary driver of household wealth.
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Spending Habits: Millennials' spending habits are different, with a greater focus on experiences, technology, and brands that align with their values. While they have a strong global spending power, this is often tempered by the higher costs they face in other areas.
In summary, while millennials may appear to be wealthier on paper due to higher net worth and income (when adjusted for inflation), this masks a more complex reality. The combination of high costs for essential goods and services, increased debt burdens, and a widening wealth gap within the generation means that many millennials feel less financially secure and have less discretionary buying power than their parents did at the same age.
It's a common perception that millennials are burdened with more student debt for degrees that don't lead to high-paying jobs, but the reality is more nuanced. Here's a breakdown of the evidence:
Higher Student Debt for Millennials
The most significant and undeniable factor is the skyrocketing cost of a college education. When Baby Boomers attended college, tuition was a fraction of what it is today, even when adjusted for inflation. This means that a degree that required little to no debt for a Baby Boomer might require a substantial loan for a millennial.
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Increased College Attendance: Millennials are, as a group, more educated than previous generations.1 A greater percentage of millennials have attended and earned a bachelor's degree or higher compared to Baby Boomers at the same age.2 This increase in college attendance naturally leads to a higher overall debt burden for the generation.
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Larger Loan Amounts: The average amount of student loan debt per borrower is significantly higher for millennials than it was for older generations. This is a direct reflection of tuition costs, which have risen much faster than wages.3
The "Useless Degree" Argument
While some sources suggest that a greater number of millennials are getting degrees that are not directly tied to a specific career path, it's difficult to make a direct comparison to Baby Boomers.
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Correlation vs. Causation: The narrative that millennials are taking on debt for "useless" degrees is not fully supported by data. There's no clear evidence showing a generational shift in degree choices toward less in-demand fields. The bigger issue is the dramatic increase in the cost of all degrees, regardless of the field.
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The "Worth it" Debate: A 2019 survey found that more than half of millennials with student loans said that going to college wasn't worth the financial burden.4 This sentiment is a direct result of the high cost of education and the challenging job market they faced, especially after the Great Recession. This isn't necessarily because they chose the wrong degree, but because the economic return on their investment has been lower.
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Underemployment: The issue for many millennials is not that they have "useless" degrees, but that they are underemployed. The job market they entered was difficult, and many graduates, including those with degrees in high-demand fields, ended up in jobs that didn't require a college education. This leads to a situation where they have significant debt but a lower-than-expected income, making repayment more challenging.
In conclusion, the evidence strongly suggests that millennials are going into more student debt than their parents, but the primary reason is the astronomical rise in the cost of education, not a wholesale shift toward degrees in less in-demand fields. While some millennials may have degrees that are not directly linked to a specific career, this has always been true for many majors. The difference is the scale of the financial risk and the debt burden that now accompanies a college degree.
@gros-louis millennials have stronger purchasing power than their parents as well. That is fact. Your AI is hallucinating. Which you might have caught if you had any thoughts or knowledge of your own.
Don't younger people like CamRod and mcmurt also have much lower sperm counts because of their latent femininity?https://twitter.com/tng512/status/1891263364271075411?s=46
The issue is the money.
Don't younger people like CamRod and mcmurt also have much lower sperm counts because of their latent femininity?https://twitter.com/tng512/status/1891263364271075411?s=46
The issue is the money.
lol....I want to agree with this, but I'm younger than Murt and my boys hunt.
https://twitter.com/tng512/status/1891263364271075411?s=46
The issue is the money.
We agree wrt to inflating the money supply but this is not the first inflationary cycle in U.S. history. Somehow my parents braved 13% inflation and a 12% interest rate on their first home and still were able to pop out four kids. Their whole generation did. Somehow their parents, my grandparents, were able to grow up during the Great Depression and have kids.
It’s not uncommon for young people to think they have the toughest economic circumstances that ever were. What is troubling is the growing number of those in older generations enabling that self-centered, lack of perspective.
So excuse me if I don’t buy “student loan debt” as the reason for plummeting birth rates. I think it’s completely bunk.
@snarlcakes I’m a millennial and my minion and I will be paying a visit to the gravedigger in a few short weeks. Soooooo….
@carramrod you have to look at average wages. Housing, education, and healthcare are all more expensive today than say the 1980s when you control for it. Also, if we were measuring inflation like they did in the 80s, it got to 17-18% in 2022.
https://twitter.com/tng512/status/1891263364271075411?s=46
The issue is the money.
We agree wrt to inflating the money supply but this is not the first inflationary cycle in U.S. history. Somehow my parents braved 13% inflation and a 12% interest rate on their first home and still were able to pop out four kids. Their whole generation did. Somehow their parents, my grandparents, were able to grow up during the Great Depression and have kids.
It’s not uncommon for young people to think they have the toughest economic circumstances that ever were. What is troubling is the growing number of those in older generations enabling that self-centered, lack of perspective.
So excuse me if I don’t buy “student loan debt” as the reason for plummeting birth rates. I think it’s completely bunk.
You're nuts.
https://twitter.com/Geiger_Capital/status/1942577128907624693?t=9GS1s3ugIZRw_WmmRbaTnw&s=19
https://twitter.com/Budgetdog_/status/1948466311438180398?t=pA9lDHiSFOLo3fu57DkZaQ&s=19
https://twitter.com/unusual_whales/status/1927750964175642940?t=dnBkkcPl604i_fAN1UDz5w&s=19