Hmm. I think there’s a couple of themes here that might not be intertwined, and one that appears absent.

There’s no doubt there are whiney men across the spectrum who complain loudly about not getting any, who also aren’t really doing much to improve their lives. There are also men and women who are getting by and are making an effort but might have unreasonable expectations or haven’t meet the right person. And then there’s across the board social isolation and casual sex, which make some of these ‘conditions’ worse.

One of the biggest things I see missing in discussion like this is the subject of class. To answer your question in the subject header, yes, in this modern world, both young men and women should get their financial house in order and bring something to the table in terms of having started a retirement savings, and savings for something bigger, like a house, before thinking about marriage. And here’s the kicker, you should be looking for people within the same economic class and have the same financial sensibilities.