Generation Debt: Why Now Is A Terrible Time To Be Young
Amy Baldwin interviews author Anya Kamenetz for the Charlotte Observer. Kamanetz, a 25-year-old Village Voice freelance writer, focused on the issues of student loan and credit card debt in her book titled "Generation Debt: Why Now Is A Terrible Time To Be Young" published last month.
Q. How are this generation's issues different from struggles previous younger generations have complained of?A. It has always been tough starting out. The difference today is the quality of jobs is going down. And, in order to get a decent middle-class job you have to have a college degree. It takes longer to get your education and get out on your own. Now it takes so much longer for people to complete the transitions, to become financially independent.
Jonathan Kiefer also reviews Anya's book in today's San Francisco Chronicle.
Looking back at a recent era in which personal bankruptcies exceeded college graduations, Kamenetz confirms the self-destructive fiscal habits inculcated from her generation's forebears, and the burdens left over from them. She also demonstrates that with inflated living costs and financial predators and low-quality rampant, stakes are higher and securities fewer for young people now.
Anya maintains two blogs - a personal one and another for her new book.
I admit that I'm suspicious of some of this positioning. A point that Anya doesn't mention much is that her fiancee is a Google Employee. It sure doesn't seem like either of them have had the issues she is claiming in her book and interviews.
Posted by: hoffmang | March 05, 2006 at 09:30 PM
Interesting that her book tour included a stop last week at Google in New York City.
Posted by: Scott Loftesness | March 06, 2006 at 05:05 AM