This is an important article for HN readers, if this somewhat recent article from the East Bay Express is anything to go by: http://www.eastbayexpress.com/oakland/the-bacon-wrapped-econ...

The gist is that 20-something year olds come to the Bay area (or wherever else), go from graduating college to suddenly having high-paying jobs, and then they blow their money on short-term edification without thinking long-term. And so I think this type of personal planning for a future is important, too. Maybe down the road, we've accumulated a nest egg, or have enough money in the bank to bootstrap!

(Does the EBX article generalize? Yes, very much so, but my hunch is that the article raises insightful points that are definitely worth more than the generalizing or ranting that detractors might point out, for the record.)