Despite the recent gyrations in the market for technical stocks, the media remain filled with breathless stories about how much money is being made in the new Internet economy and how much more could be made if we simply acted quickly enough. To my eye and ear, this frenzied talk is having a disproportionate impact on our young.

So far, most evidence is anecdotal. For example, in my law firm there is a small but steady stream of young people departing for Internet start-ups. Many college graduates also appear to be bypassing graduate degrees, and some who enter graduate programs do not stay the course. At the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, for instance, 25 of 765 students dropped out in 1999 after the first year of the two-year MBA program, most to work for dot- coms.

The reality that awaits young people who rush to obtain their piece of the dot-com action is likely to be jarring. A study for Barron's found that 51 of 207 Internet companies will run out of money within the next 12 months. It also found that 74% of the firms surveyed had negative cash flows. That means that only a handful of those who tie their fates to such enterprises will catch the brass ring and make fortunes by age 30. The vast majority will find themselves chronically envious and not just a little bewildered. They will be faced at some point with the question: If my life or happiness is not going to be about wealth, what is it going to be about?