Some millennials get it...

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g-man
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Some millennials get it...

Post by g-man »

Redpilljew (Nitakhon?) dropped a link to an article written by a millennial from a coffee shop:

https://alphanewsmn.com/thoughts-from-a ... ffee-shop/

*She gets it. (Edited subsequent to Langenator’s comment below. I totally missed that on first pass, likely because she didn’t identify what oppressed subgroup she belongs to...). I saw a YouTube video that claimed enlisted soldiers were either republican or libertarian at a rate notably higher than the U.S. average, and only 4% of officers are liberal democrats. I mention that because it makes sense, given perspective. Spending a year in Iraq, seeing what the 3rd world actually looks like, and doing so as an officer (meaning I saw and interacted with their ‘leaders’ more often than Joe did), I really get where the article’s author is coming from. I have more amenities, choices, and freedoms when we’re boondocking in the travel trailer than most of the population of the entire planet does in their own full-time homes.

I hope that we can gain some of this contrast perspective without having to go through that hell. Unfortunately that’s just my hope and prayer, and not the scenario I’m planning and preparing for.
Last edited by g-man on Sat Apr 13, 2019 6:41 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Langenator
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by Langenator »

*She (author's name is Alyssa) gets it.

But yeah, it's a great article. I do wonder how much of the slide toward leftism is a product of having things too easy - there's no struggle for the essentials, and thus no gut level understanding that success has to be worked for, and that it takes WORK.
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Precision
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by Precision »

she is right. That effect probably has at least 70% of the reason. There are always retards, but those who have no perspective are easily misled.
"Those who hammer their guns into plows will plow for those who do not." ~Thomas Jefferson
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JKosprey
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by JKosprey »

I find that while I agree with her general premise (our quality of life is, in general, pretty great here), I disagree on the idea that we have nothing to complain about.

For one thing, while our standard of living is higher than much of the world, so is the *cost* of that living. In our society, many things considered luxuries are now needs-or close to it. You're expected to have a cell phone. Employers expect to be able to contact you pretty much all the time. If not, you might just lose out on that job. You really do need some form of regular internet access. Many jobs these days are only advertised online, and only able to be applied for online. They likewise require regular access to email. Sure you *can* get away with using a library, sometimes, but a timely response and an active dialogue can make the difference between getting a job or not. Transportation is also a necessity, especially if you don't happen to live in a city. Unless you're walking distance from the local gas station, you need a reliable vehicle.

It also overlooks the burden that millennial ARE carrying, and the societal implications that come with it. Millennial were told (by boomers) that they HAD to get a college degree if they ever wanted to make it in life. They were also told that the subject of that degree really didn't matter. Degrees open doors- and years ago, before everyone had a degree that was the case. We were repeatedly encouraged to go to college, for *something* while it was also acknowledged that our job might not have much to do with our degree. Then the recession hit.

It hurt everyone of course. Many older folks lost big chunks of their retirement and weren't able to retire. This has had a ripple effect though. Younger people have had nowhere to go. They followed the advice of their elders, got degrees, but they're stuck in entry level jobs because the older generation isn't leaving. When they are leaving, increased productivity has resulting in their positions not being filled. It's caused delayed milestones and the media reported "death" of numerous industries.

As a generation we're not getting married, we're not having kids, we're not buying homes. That's not normal, and it's not good, and I don't believe for a moment that it's because we're all stupid with money.

For me personally? I'm 30. I have a bachelors degree. Many here would probably argue it was a stupid one (Wildlife Management). At this point I don't disagree, but I will defend it to a point: years ago just the science and statistics classes I took to obtain my degree would have been of value. Now, most employers require specificity. Even without landing a coveted biologist or forest ranger job I still should have been hire-able to run a spreadsheet somewhere. Not so much now. The rapid change in conditions in our online world of instant communication has it's downsides as well. For instance, upon starting the program job prospects were much better. The volatile political climate and numerous government shutdowns contributed to funding cuts that closed a whole bunch of doors. In 3.5 years a mediocre choice became a useless one.

I'm in nursing school (RN) now. I opted for the associates program because it would hopefully enable to me to get out making money sooner. I can't afford to wait (and accelerated bachelors programs are 4x the cost). However, many states are moving to make the bachelors the entry-level requirement. I will definitely need one, but my associates in an in-demand field may be close to obsolete before I even get it. I have mixed feelings about my prospects, and will, by the end of my academic journey, have likely spent enough time in school that I could have become an MD.

We live a relatively comfortable life. My apartment is a really good deal, and we never have to wonder about whether or not we can eat enough in a given week. But we can't have kids. We're check to check. There is no extra for babies or the medical bills that come with them, or the diapers and so on. There's no space in this place anyway. We have what we need as a couple but not enough extra to make a trio. Are there places I could cut back and be more responsible? Sure. Would that be enough to actually make enough of a difference? Nope, I've got the spreadsheets.

We have a high standard of living here. We also have a high cost of living. Our economy as it is now is relatively good at allowing provision of basic needs and even creature comforts, but it is not doing so great at allowing for the milestones of adulthood- "real" jobs, home ownership, and families. We (the millennial generation) are essentially living as long-term college students. Our needs are met, but or progression into a full life is largely stifled. I think that's what was meant by us "never experiencing American prosperity". I think this is going to have major impacts on our society down the line.
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Netpackrat
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by Netpackrat »

JK, your location probably isn't helping your cost of living much.
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JKosprey
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by JKosprey »

Netpackrat wrote: Sun Apr 14, 2019 4:10 am JK, your location probably isn't helping your cost of living much.
No, it's not, and we're working on that. We had to make a choice last year. Move now and pay (and owe) twice as much in loans for the same degree or stay put and get a degree for a lower cost. We chose the cheaper degree, although it was a difficult decision.

Most of the COL calculators I've run rate our area and NH (our goal location) as fairly comparable though. I'm not expecting that the move will greatly impact our finances. The new job will though.

I do know that there are cheaper areas than the northeast as a region in general of course. That comes with it's own set of tradeoffs though. It is very important that our future kids get to know their grandparents, and frankly, that we live close enough to have some familial support. With both of us working jobs that typically run 12 hour shifts, we're going to need it. My parents aren't an option; they live in an extremely expensive part of NY we could never afford (and also, we've been trying to leave NY for damn near a decade). That leaves New England, and NH is by far the most preferable part.
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Netpackrat
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by Netpackrat »

Do you know what sort of degree requirements Alaska has for an RN? The cost of living here isn't spectactular, but skilled and/or professional work requiring a certification tends to pay decently. Former neighbors in my hometown, the guy was a wildlife biologist and his wife was an RN. She didn't seem to lack for work as a traveling nurse. Took a contract when she wanted to, I was given to understand that it paid pretty well. Her husband is getting ready to retire from the state, so they transferred out to BFE to maximize his last 3 years pay prior to retirement.
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Precision
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by Precision »

Life is about choices. Some current choices have a very strong and lasting effect on future outcomes. Many who are millenials do not have the ability, foresight, familial training to know this; even to the slightest degree.

My eldest stepson is just waking up to those things. He is waking up to it BECAUSE he runs a business. Dawn and I seeded him money to start an Amazon business like we built. He ran that money into the ground, because stealing seed capital, incompetence and this takes you know Work, Work.

Not that he was unable to Work, line cooking is work. But, he thought Amazon would be an easy side hustle and well it isn't if you have to do a full time while you build Amazon.

After seeing that his life sucked and I was growing while he was sinking, he sacked up, asked for help and learned how to Work, Work at Amazon. He did less band stuff in the short term to create greater flexibility in the long term. It has worked. He still doesn't really get a lot of the larger picture things, but slowly he is figuring out that conservative ideas, smart money decisions ... not lofty (unhinged) lefty ideas are the way to run your life.

JK, not saying you are anything but hard working. Just some in your age category have not been trained at all for life and it is hitting them squarely in the nuts. Many are to blame for that, but some of it falls on those who chose to remain ignorant past age 18.
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g-man
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Re: Some millennials get it...

Post by g-man »

JKosprey wrote: Sun Apr 14, 2019 2:43 am Are there places I could cut back and be more responsible? Sure. Would that be enough to actually make enough of a difference? Nope, I've got the spreadsheets.

We have a high standard of living here. We also have a high cost of living. Our economy as it is now is relatively good at allowing provision of basic needs and even creature comforts, but it is not doing so great at allowing for the milestones of adulthood- "real" jobs, home ownership, and families.
I understand your logic and reasoning on "Would that be enough to actually make enough of a difference?" question. The perspective difference is this: I have surmised that the financial benefit of cutting cable out of my life isn't worth the argument with my wife. Between that, cutting our dining out spending in half, and cutting our clothing budget in half (which really means just buying clothes for the kids and just wearing what we already have) - I could cut ~$300 to $400/mo out of my budget. This isn't a huge number in my world, but it's literally HALF of the monthly household income of the average person in the world (Median per-capita income is $9,733/yr), and MORE than the monthly income of skilled workers in large swaths of the African continent.

And that doesn't even factor in the 'free' pieces of our standard of living, such as:

-potable water at pretty much any tap you open, anywhere (with the exception of Flint, MI)
- power systems that, assuming you pay the bill, just work. All the time.
-Subsequent to the above point: Refrigeration. I can keep food in my house for weeks without worrying that the power will go out and ruin it all.
- Stores that have full shelves, and stock-rooms in the back, with trucks rolling in every day.

The things the article's author specifically calls out (" Vehicles, food, technology, freedom to associate with whom we choose.") are so far beyond 'having needs met', as to be considered luxurious in the rest of the world. You're right, there are a LOT of issues here which TPTB have royally screwed up by poking their fingers in it (college tuition anyone?). And you're weighing your options and making well-calculated choices, and then putting in the work. But 'just getting by' in America would be 'living like a king' elsewhere. That's the perspective difference I'm talking about.
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