It wasn't a war. Afghanistan and Iraq were 'blips' of distant violence which scarcely effected anyone on the home front relative to WWI, WWII, Korean War or even Vietnam. Afghanistan and Iraq were' conflicts'. There's a legal distinction there but also for the sake of this conversation a very practical one.
No drafts. No mass mobilization. No existential threat.
Let me put this into perspective. The quantity of US personnel lost in
both Iraq and Afghanistan as of 2019 was 7,000.
The Russians seemingly lost that many troops in Ukraine in
about a month.
The 2008 Financial Crisis hit before most millennials were really even a player in the economy. So we were 'coming up' just as that hit, so we didn't really lose anything (our parents did). I will agree of course that our careers have been complete trash compared to Boomers, and this has been something we've been grappling with. 2008 probably didn't help that.
Our generation has been completely coddled is what I was going for. I didn't say that our lives were charmed, just that we've been exceedingly babied before being dumped into a world far more difficult and complicated than the one our parents enjoyed at our age. This then ties directly into insufficient coping mechanisms resulting in alcoholism. Alcohol and drug use are symptoms, not the problem in and of itself. Our generation is seeking an escape from the stress.
We were babied and whispered asinine promises like 'do what you love' and 'your work should make you happy'. The reality we walked into was very different from what we were being told, but the government backed student loan money was easy and the curriculums watered down or complete bullshit (gender studies, et al). That was a bomb waiting to explode as we approached 30. Toss in Covid/being stuck indoors, flagging economy, and you've a wonderful recipe for self medication.