Millennials and Generation Z were raised to be self-employed, convinced that success and security are within reach as long as they work hard and keep learning. In their view, failure is a personal shame because it means not putting in enough time and effort. However, this dream was shattered after the 2008 financial crisis.

These new generations also grew up in a speculative environment. Most of them were teenagers or children during the financial crisis, or just graduated from college, or became adults during the pandemic. They were born from the mid-1980s to the early 21st century, and their growth environment was shaped by factors such as the vacuum of post-communist politics, the speculation and excess of the Internet era, and the uncertainty of the 2008 financial crisis. They experienced the collapse of the American dream and felt the country's backwardness in aspects such as student debt, quality of medical services, and cost of living. The sense of security and investment in public resources such as education and housing that their grandparents and parents enjoyed after the war have been replaced by uncertainty and risk. Trading forums are not only places to exchange crazy investment advice, but also places where people express their loss of hope in these dreams.

What replaced people's fantasies of a better life? Is it the dream of preparing to live on Mars or other universes? Financial security through crazy deals? Or finding a good spouse who can take your mind off your troubles?