By 17 I was on my own and joining the military. My daughter is 25 and just got her first real job out of college. By her age I had a 6 year old child (her). I'm not saying I took the right path (I didn't) but the level of maturity I had at her age was vastly different. Her peers are all similar, and when I was young many of mine were similar to me. I do thing generationally / culturally there's a difference.
Not picking on your personal experience, but if you see it as a mistake, wouldn't it be a sign you weren't mature enough to take the right decision ?
Now, having a kid definitely accelerate that maturing process. But without a solid parental environment (which was common at some point, especially with the grand parents being around) it's a recipe for disaster, I wouldn't see it as an appropriate path for most in this day and age.
I see your point on much of a change it makes to have fewer young adults already being parents. That's definitely impacting.
