Some people would rather work for 40 years at a 9 - 5 job
Rather than save and invest for 15 years, and retire early
Discussion
I doubt that. Rather, they just don't know how to deal in another way yet. They are learning.
If you want to save, you should, and it should be beneficial. But one should not have to, for survival.
What are you going to do all day? Shop?
Make a family at a farm, farming my own meat, making sourdough, lifting weights, meditating, making love, ….
Retiring early shouldn't really be the goal. There's value in work, and it's not really work if you love it, even if ither people want to pay you for it.
But you're right. Having the freedom to choose how you spend your time as you get older is the goal. Saving is the only way to take control of that choice. Anything else carries risk, and that risk is unacceptably high today.
Becoming financially independent is my goal.
After that I want location independence.