Hear Hear! Well said Whirly.
Most pilots can be got to a solo standard by a decent instructor in far less than 80 hours but, not all instructors are competant, not all students have the motivation/aptitude/finance/desire and there are many other factors.
It's nobody's place to suggest that anyone should "give up", that's hardly the spirit which developed aviation into the major industry it has become in the last 100 years!
3 Point