Is the US one of the best places for career growth and income? I'm 30. I've been in the tech industry for several years. During the COVID tech boom I would have agreed. I made insane amounts of money for a new grad. Then I was laid off, cut, or just downright fired for unethical reasons a few times. The combination of reduced demand for software folk, the further loss of autonomy and meaning thanks to LLMs, and that blight on my resume has made it very difficult to believe this is a great place for a career. I know I'm not alone in thinking this. Many of my techy friends, and strangers that I've met, share a bleak sentiment about the future of our careers. It seems that negativity stretches far beyond tech lately. White collar work seems to be more hopeless than ever before.

I've retreated to a public servant tech role. I was drawn to the theoretical stability of this position and the idea that might effort might do some genuine good for my local community. After several months of being here I'm skeptical that I'll be able to do any good because I'm no good at the internal politics. The stability is somewhat comforting, but only in the sense that I will not starve to death. Inflation seems like it will continue to outpace my potential earnings.