SH, I have thought some of your sober points were worth hearing, but less and less so with time. Many people, such as myself, enjoy aviation and are committed enough to find those opportunities which are still very much worthwhile.

Keep in mind I'm starting over from all but the bottom and with plenty of debt and battle scars ... outside of aviation I've worked daily with people who make 2/3 what's I make now working 3 times as hard. Without chasing more lucrative opportunities (which are realistic for me), I will double that in a couple years. And I'm year 1 at my company. Which is growing. And improving QOL.

Everything takes work. Are we all going to cry because along with the rest of the present world, aviation isn't as much of a free ride as we want it to be?