You could apply the same poor decision making process to putting your money in a bank or learning to read or getting out of bed in the morning.
You can always take money out of your 401k to purchase a house or go to school. You can also take it out and pay the tax penalty.
If you work for a company that matches your investment, its free money.
When I quit my job at the height of the recession my 401k was on track to be over $3M. Now the markets improved and I'm kicking myself and grinding hard to put some money in an IRA.
Anybody who isn't investing in longterm retirement and relying on Social Security is losing.