Spot on. "Free time" becomes exponentially more expensive as soon as your parents aren't obligated to take care of everything you need.

I'd go so far as to argue that the foundations of a successful technical career need the groundwork laid out for them way before someone turns 18. It requires a supportive, nuclear household where science and knowledge are held in high regard. Having at least one parent being technically apt is a big plus also.

I did dirty blue collar jobs for years. Then I would sit on my couch with a laptop and learn Python every night, from 6 or 7PM until I couldn't stay awake any longer. It was no picnic but it can be done.

You had a laptop. And it sounds like you only had one job, not multiple, and you didn't have a family to support.

And, quite frankly, just because you were able to do it, does not mean that it's not an incredibly shitty thing to expect of everyone else, or that those who aren't able to do it aren't somehow less deserving.

I did have a family to support, and a crummy old computer. And I never implied that someone who couldn't do it is less deserving, just that it can be done. Computers are ubiquitous and while not everyone has one, a great many people do.

It is also more difficult if you have kids (I don't), but I agree, in most cases it is possible to make some time.