I think OP's comments about being a good Asian parent are pretty silly, but the kind of wishy-washy "everything works out in the end" reasoning that you use here is exactly what has gotten so many young people stuck in the position described in the NYTimes article. One must to consider the economics of things to plan for the future. You cannot get a liberal arts degree on the hope that things will work out. Well, you can, but then you're going to spend a decade in unpaid internships before you finally suck it up and learn to program.
It seems like snake-oil education is culpable, with folks enrolling in college for nebulous reasons. Young people are having problems because of student debt tied to degrees that aren't doing anything for them. The "everybody should aspire to college" ethos is dying quickly, but not without collateral damage.
I completely agree about useless degrees, but we're talking about 18-year-olds smart enough to get into college. They are responsible for wisely choosing what to study.
