I don't understand your point. Yes, it was a lot more difficult in the 90s, but there was also less demand. A front end developer can get by just fine.
What is wrong with frontend development? I don't quite understand your point.
Most frontend web developers I have worked without are also competant to excellent backend web developers (or more). I'm not sure why they would be necessarily constrained to one domain, or why the domain is not important enough to hire for.
Get off my lawn! Just because this person didn't have to suffer like we did doesn't mean they won't be productive and make a living. Zeldman was great, but these new folks coming into the market are following DHH, bootstrapped rapid frameworks that scaffold it all. They are building quick and cool things, and will have years to figure out all the inner workings.
It is a sustainable living, and if you don't sit on your hands it will be for some time. Though we might call ourselves something different by then right?
I think your parents argument is that it isn't sustainable. If one can learn and be productive as quickly as the OP, then it follows that the developer "shortage" will only be temporary for this particular corner of the industry.
Greetings, from somebody, who in the 90s, was a) still going to school and b) making 8.0000 - 10.000 DM per website, "on the side". Yeah, those where the times..
One question, just for fun: have you even heard of some "Zeldman"?
(To the inclined: We coded to the DTD long before he got off print design. Because only coding to standards was cool on the usenet, already in the 90s :-) )