re: Will the millennials be a lost generation?

It's always difficult to lump a generation into one monolithic group. As an older millennial, it sometimes appears to me that the younger ones lack the same work ethic I do, but I expect it's more just a maturity and anecdotal thing.

Millennials will be fine. They have high student debts, as others have stated, plus a difficult time finding good jobs due to the glut of boomers staying in their jobs forever. They also have limited political power at this point. Give them about 10-15 years, and I think we'll turn out fine. We are more efficient than any other generation, and once we get some more real world experience, I think we'll have more moderate political leanings (at least fiscally) than the previous generations.