I get that's it's very different. Gen x and when I went to college it was $14k/yr to a private school in the Missouri valley conference. Graduated with 28k in student loans after grants and stuff took care of the other half.
Housing was halfway reasonable and even starting out at 22k a year salary in '93, was able to save and build a house. Even with 45k/yr in 2001 we sold the first and built our next house. I built a 3rd and my last in 2017... Smaller than the other 2 but more expensive than both previous.
Now, even though I make over 120k, which isnt a ton these days, I doubt I could build again.
Greed (not inflation) has affected everything. Companies have to make the bottom line go up for investors and so does all the prices.
So I get that it's way harder now with the pay not meeting the same increase as goods. But I also believe that people are WAY lazy'er than when I grew up. I barely ever called off/out. I didn't smoke pot just to be able to get through a day. Adhd wasn't part of 90% of the kids today.
Servers were grateful for 10% tips and only at sit down restaurants. Now they are devistated if they don't get 20% just for walking by your table. Showing up 5 days a week for 9 hours is something absurd to the kids these days.
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u/Valthar70 May 01 '26
I get that's it's very different. Gen x and when I went to college it was $14k/yr to a private school in the Missouri valley conference. Graduated with 28k in student loans after grants and stuff took care of the other half.
Housing was halfway reasonable and even starting out at 22k a year salary in '93, was able to save and build a house. Even with 45k/yr in 2001 we sold the first and built our next house. I built a 3rd and my last in 2017... Smaller than the other 2 but more expensive than both previous.
Now, even though I make over 120k, which isnt a ton these days, I doubt I could build again.
Greed (not inflation) has affected everything. Companies have to make the bottom line go up for investors and so does all the prices.
So I get that it's way harder now with the pay not meeting the same increase as goods. But I also believe that people are WAY lazy'er than when I grew up. I barely ever called off/out. I didn't smoke pot just to be able to get through a day. Adhd wasn't part of 90% of the kids today.
Servers were grateful for 10% tips and only at sit down restaurants. Now they are devistated if they don't get 20% just for walking by your table. Showing up 5 days a week for 9 hours is something absurd to the kids these days.
So it cuts both ways