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by acuozzo 1335 days ago
> I don't see the issue.

I replied specifically to this: "Expecting individuals to think rationally at 18 is completely valid."

I quoted it within my reply to point out exactly what I was choosing to address; no larger issue, no hidden agenda requiring you to read between the lines.

I don't think it's valid to expect 18 year olds to think rationally about matters like this because it requires speculation.

18 year olds don't have 18 years of steady life experience to guide their predictions for the future. They don't have 18 years of clocking in and out at the same job. They have, instead, 18 turbulent years of childhood and adolescence, even in the best case.

With that out of the way…

If wall street can't time the market, then how can 18 year olds? Do you really expect them to sit down and accurately calculate projected inflation and the probability of various economic downturns?

What about the graduating class of 2022? Do you expect them to have accurately predicted a 40% drop in the value of the USD back in 2017-18?

What would be the value in their arithmetic if they hadn't?