Young employees' perceived lack of resilience isn't a generational flaw but a result of parenting that shielded them from hardship. The decline of teenagers working difficult, blue-collar summer jobs has created adults who are less prepared for the realities of the workplace.

Rising calls for socialist policies are not just about wealth disparity, but symptoms of three core failures: unaffordable housing, fear of healthcare-driven bankruptcy, and an education system misaligned with job outcomes. Solving these fundamental problems would alleviate the pressure for radical wealth redistribution far more effectively.

For generations, increasing wealth allowed Western society to discard essential cultural norms like social trust and shared values. Now that economic growth is faltering, the catastrophic consequences of this "death of culture" are becoming fully visible.

Modern culture has transformed productivity from a performance metric into a measure of a person's deservingness and identity. This is dangerous because it falsely suggests hard work is the sole variable for success, ignoring systemic factors and harming well-being.

Despite America's high standard of living, decades of wage stagnation have created a national psychology of pessimism. Conversely, China's explosive wage growth, even from a lower base, fosters optimism. This psychological dimension, driven by the *trajectory* of wealth, is a powerful and often overlooked political force.

The narrative that vast tech fortunes are built on individual grit alone ignores the critical role of luck, timing, and systemic tailwinds. Recognizing fortune is key to humility and social responsibility, contrasting with the "obnoxious" belief of being purely self-made and entitled to the winnings.

Focusing on immigration misses a deeper issue: a systemic failure to inculcate core American values in both children and newcomers. A nation with a "distressing number of people... that hate America" becomes internally weak and vulnerable to fragmentation, regardless of its border policies.

The struggles and pathologies seen in young men are not just an isolated gender issue. They are a leading indicator that the broader societal belief in upward mobility—'we can all do well'—is eroding. This group is the first to react when reliable paths to success seem blocked.

Society is experiencing a 'generational whiplash' in parenting. A reaction against strict methods led to a culture of 'eighth-place trophies,' producing adults ill-equipped for real-world consequences. A counter-movement is now emerging where parents are reintroducing competition and accountability to better prepare their children for life's challenges.