> This lack of opportunities could create more pessimism and disaffection than economic conditions warrant. An increasing body of economic research shows that people tend to form extrapolative expectations -- they expect recent trends to continue forever. Overoptimism is also a common psychological bias. Booms make a lot of young, energetic Americans believe that they’re going to get rich. On the one hand, this causes inevitable disappointment when the froth dissipates. But as long as there’s a gold rush somewhere in the economy, big dreamers can dream big.

So America needs another slot machine we can present to our youth to appease their cognitive biases?