And for that matter, some people do live that kind of live but still fall through the cracks. Not everyone is lucky enough to graduate during a strong economy, apply to exactly the right jobs at the right time, etc. There's a lot of wasted talent out there that many businesses have little interest in seeking out.

This! One of the best developers I've worked with used to be a carpenter who had a kid with Down syndrome. He taught himself programming in his spare time. Smart, extremely driven and knew how good we all had it.