I agree completely with your last statement. When kids grow up these days, they expect to have everything their parents had (or better!) Instead of a teeny efficiency apartment, they need to have a $200,000 house. And don't even get me started on the cell phones, TVs, cars, etc. that they must have - the latest and greatest.
This feeling of entitlement has created the poor economic situation we are in now - bankruptcies because people can't pay for their debts, and foreclosures on homes that people should never have bought in the first place. I'd love for Dr. Phil to do a show on how we can keep our kids from this future! I try hard to not give my kids everything they want, but it's hard when all their friends are getting/doing the things I am withholding.