I'm sure Dave Ramsey would have quite a bit to say about that as well. Unfortunately, his advice would fall on deaf ears.

There are so many ways to save money on flight training, it is just astounding to me that people will fork out $100k+ for flight training, which sometimes doesn't even include CFI certs. This is nothing more than financial immaturity.

I am in complete agreement with you that aviation is NOT worth investing that much money into. I'd also say the same for an engineering degree, a business degree, a nursing degree, and a teaching degree. All can be done for MUCH cheaper.

For an aviation education, doing it on the cheap means research, self study, and making sure that each rating is mapped out within a budget. Use cheap planes, fly in a cheap area, and make sure you're flying 2-3x/wk. Build time by splitting it w/ a safety pilot, combine business trips with time building, etc.

When I was teaching, I showed all of my students how to do it on the cheap. Few took my advice to heart, mostly due to laziness. They just wanted to come fly, then go home and do whatever. The truly dedicated were rare, but they were my favorite students and they were much, much better off financially in the end.