Broken Promises and Avocado Toast: The Bitter Truth About Intergenerational Inequality

A recent report says that 90% of young people are on track for a pretty crappy retirement. Why? A combo of not having enough dough and politicians who just don't give a damn. To make matters worse, those fancy-pants defined benefit plans, which are mostly a thing of the past, are tempting people in their 50s to peace out of the workforce early, leaving us high and dry.

You've probably heard it a million times: the housing market is completely bonkers. But let's be real here, the real issue isn't just that working your ass off in a cushy job won't score you a sweet pad anymore. No, my friends, let's chat about pensions, too. That age-old deal society made with us—bust your hump now, and we'll make sure you don't have to eat cat food when you're old and gray—is falling apart for the younger crowd. It's like we're stuck working our butts off just to hand over a fat chunk of cash to some other lucky generation, without any hope of getting the same payoff. How messed up is that?

Now, here's the kicker: older folks just don't get why we're making such a fuss. Sure, they had it rough back in the day, but it's not about the struggle, man—it's about the unfairness. People can handle sacrifice if it's worth it, but when society starts breaking promises left and right, that's when things get ugly.

You might think this broken contract would lead to some serious YOLO vibes among millennials and gen Z, but aside from the occasional rage quit or splurge on avocado toast, we're not seeing that. Instead, we're witnessing a more insidious shift—a kind of psychological mind game where we avoid even thinking about the future. It's like we're all silently agreeing to just not go there.

But here's the thing: that emotional investment, that glue that holds society together—it's the unspoken force that makes us feel like we're all in this together. It's patriotism, solidarity, empathy, and group loyalty. And when politicians need us to step up, that's the stuff they're counting on. But trust me, that trust ain't an infinite resource.

So why aren't young people raising hell about this generational injustice? Why did we roll over and play dead during the pandemic? Well, it's complicated. Family ties, man. Kids don't want to fight against their parents' benefits, and parents just want to help their own kids (screw everyone else). Plus, time keeps ticking away, and by the time we get a fair deal, we might have crossed over to the dark side ourselves.

With fewer babies being born, today's young 'uns are gonna be the majority soon enough. And all this resentment we're brewing? It's a ticking time bomb. Trust me, it won't stay buried forever.