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This strikes me as an observation from another planet. The young people I know (including myself) have large savings, rent cheap apartments and only spend money on budget travel where they couchsurf or stay in hostels. The adults in my parent generation did things like buying Gucci handbags, fancy cars or taking out a [4x monthly income] loan to buy a designer sofa, and all of these things were specifically because they believed that as adults they have to prove their socioeconomic status by way of ostentatious consumption. At least in my cultural neighbourhood, imposing the "adult" societal role would be by far the most efficient way to get people to engage in frivolous consumerism.
Rate of miscarriage does not seem to really pick up until 38 or so, and I'd be interested to know how that correlates with number of prior pregnancies and lifestyle choices.
Right. It would be nice if the trads could both stick it to neoliberalism but also sire a cozy family, but in practice you are definitely more enmeshed within consumerist capitalism when you go the marriage and children route. It matches my own observations of people my age who are married. Buying drones, Amazon Prime membership, Disney+, two homes, new cars, Vrbo rentals.
Tangentially, the people I know who become successful enough to actually live something of a life the boomers got to enjoy are more into progressive nostrums, not less. It kind of makes sense; the more professional success - required to have a family - the more you're not able to turn a blind eye to woke rituals but actually must participate. Kids in schools, ditto.
The most conservative guys I know are single.
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