For them, the promise of the American Dream is elusive at best.

Everything is more expensive. The job market is frozen for pay for which they were hoping. Industry is changing so fast that educational credentials are ever less valuable.

There is real panic in the air among them, which is why so many have turned to substance abuse and far-flung hopes of making it rich in crypto or the influencer economy.

A new survey on the expenses faced by this generation has appeared that frames it up in alarming terms.

Over 20 years from 2005 to 2025, the cost of all essentials has soared:

Housing (rent) is up 120 percent.

Transportation is up 86 percent.

Education is up 133 percent.

Groceries are up 79 percent.

Entertainment is up 100 percent.

Utilities are up 53 percent.

Time to save for house down payment has gone from 8 to 14 years.

The average student debt burden has moved from $20K to $30K.

The real increase in salaries is 12 percent.

Health insurance these days is a killer of living standards, averaging $27,000 from the business side and that's without using it.

Housing ownership seems largely out of the question.

In general, this whole generation has a delayed wealth curve that is 7 to 10 years relative to prior generations. In other words, it's a lost generation, with a financial challenge that is matched by the trauma of pandemic lockdowns, ill-education, and digital addiction.

Behind all this is a hidden force at work, the dramatic devaluation of the currency over five years. During this time, the dollar lost 25-35 percent of its value, depending on the service or good in question. Salaries simply are not keeping up.

All this began to unfold in 2020 when the Federal Reserve accommodated the wildest spending binge by Congress in American history. The result was debt, which the Fed purchased with newly printed cash, which was then dispersed to the public in the form of stimulus payments.