To paraphrase a popular saying, nothing in this world can be certain except death, taxes, and folks thinking that younger generations are too entitled.

Last week, father and Reddit user ThrowR-7746 submitted a story to the platform’s ‘Am I the [Jerk]? community, asking if he had overreacted during the run-up to his son’s wedding.

The two had a falling out after the guy told his dad that $10,000 won’t be enough to cover the cost of the ceremony. The man called his son spoiled, but members of the subreddit aren’t sure if he really understands how bad inflation has gotten.

This man had a wedding in the 1980s for $7,000 and is now mad that his son can’t do the same in 2023

Image credits: Carsten Vollrath (not the actual photo)

He even called the guy spoiled for it

Image credits: RDNE Stock project (not the actual photo)

Image credits: throwR-7746

Younger people are often accused of taking things for granted

Younger cohorts are often stereotyped as being lazy, entitled, and self-obsessed. But was the dad’s criticism of his son and his partner just?

“The tendency for adults to disparage the character of youth has been happening for centuries,” said Peter O’Connor, a professor of management at Queensland Institute of Technology, Australia.

He pointed out the stereotype remains alive and well, with research showing thousands of Americans believe that “kids these days” lack positive qualities that participants associate with older generations.

But this isn’t necessarily because the youths of today actually do lack these qualities – the researchers argued that this was due to the fact that we project our current selves onto our past selves. By doing this, older people are unconsciously comparing who they are today to today’s young people, giving an impression that today’s youth is somehow on the decline, no matter the time we’re living in, when in reality, they might not have the experience that comes with older age.

Each generation’s actions and beliefs are shaped by its own unique problems and challenges, but that doesn’t mean that one is weaker or stronger than the other. They’re just different.

Image credits: Kindel Media (not the actual photo)

Prices have changed a lot since the dad’s own wedding

So let’s look at the numbers instead. If we were to compare only the face value of the currency, $7,000 in, say, 1983, would be equivalent to $21,443 in today’s money. So the kid and his fiancée should receive more than double the amount they’ve got from their parents to have the same buying power that his dad had when he said “I do” all these years ago.

However, the cost of a wedding nowadays is even bigger. According to The Knot’s 2022 Real Weddings Study, on average, couples spend $30,000 for their ceremony and reception.

Of course, that’s not a number that describes everyone. “One $1 million wedding can bring up the average of thousands of $10,000 weddings,” said Jessica Bishop, wedding expert and founder of the Budget Savvy Bride. So treat this data as a benchmark more than an expectation.

Still, it can give you an idea of how much things cost. The same study discovered that the average reception venue was $11,200 while the transport was $980. The attire ran for $1,900 with an extra $250 for hair and makeup. The average photographer received $2,600 for their work, the florist got $2,400, and the live band made $3,900.

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What’s more, even with careful planning, surprises are bound to happen. Bishop suggests allowing for a 10% buffer in your wedding budget to cover hidden fees, overages, and add-ons.

Image credits: Jonathan Borba (not the actual photo)

But people who read his story think the man is out of touch

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