Dependent and materialistic!
Dependent and materialistic!
and dying everyday in iraq and afghanistan..I just can't critisize the 20 somethings of today.....not in good conscious..I'm sorry for their service or how they came to serve and for whom they serve, who in return as pointed out last night by decorated veteran James Webb, are not served well....
But this 20 something generation has my thanks and i have a new respect for every kid I coach.
The youth in our military service deserve our respect and appreciation. We and our mandated repeated tours of duty for them have not treated them fairly. Each generation (desert storm. Vietnam, Korea) has had worthy segments of young people.
However, While I do believe the baby boomers are selfish and certainly have screwed things up; the new generation is worse; their sense of obligation to the greater good is scary in its absence.
At one time baby boomer have have at have been conflicted in pursueing strictly selfish interests to making a positive contribution. This is no conflict (for most) in this generation.
The ironic thing is that they don't even take care of there own children. Never have there been so many grandparents raising their kid's kids. The sense of entitlement is very very high with young people.
I am 20. I feel like I belong in another generation. I've found that there is a swarm of people my age that are materialistic (and I've been in a highschool, college, non-profit, and volunteer). Also, I've found that money is THE major concern of my age. I have no wish for money.
I found that there is a lack of idealism in the US (and I know this is overstated, but young adults don't act.) We are given the doors to be soft, unresponsive, and lazy. There is hope! And I see it in each and every person that considers themselves a runner. There's something to taking time to strap on some shoes and give yourself a little punishment: maybe it's our generation's gokart. I see many posters here in a funk because their improvements in running are not as marked as they wished. For those who fit that category I ask you this: are you ready to bring that dedication into a world that needs it? You can balance your life with running, just look at Dan Lincoln. Right now our generation needs you out there making the difference: you are the potheads of the 70s who protested the war, the soldiers who can remind us what a soldier should mean: someone who brings change.
I have trust that you are the soldiers of change. The world has been waiting.
I wouldn't throw potheads up there with those involved in serious change and work ethic.
Like usual, sweeping generalizations of the younger generation.
get serious wrote:
Question for under 22\'s
Do you own a cell phone? Who bought it and pays the monthly charge? I own a cellphone that I paid for.
Do you have a computer? Who bought it and pays internet fees? I bought my laptop and my school has ethernet.
Do you have an IPOD? I have an Ipod that I bought.
Do you have a car? Who pays for repairs and insurance? I boguht my own car and I pay for repairs. My parents pay for my insurance for my first 4 years of college. I pay once I get to grad school.
Are you going to College? Who pays? I pay for all my college expenses.
Who\'s materialistic? So am I materialistic b/c I bought these things or would I be materialistic if my parents bought them? Im not sure I really understand how this proves anything.
get serious wrote:
The sense of entitlement is very very high with young people.
Which was enabled entirely by the generation that raised them.
Are there stats for what % of eligibile voters in the 18-28 age group went to the polls in the 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and 00s? Were the youth of the 60s and earlier much more apt to be informed and act upon their ideals than those of today and the recent past?
I'm posting as an 18 year old, and I like to think I do not fit in to the shallow crowd you are asking about. I do try to pay attention to whats going on in the world, I did vote in my last local election, and to the poster asking about things people my age own, I own most of those things and pay for almost all of them. I have a job which I put in 20 hours a week, while playing 3 sports a year, and attending my senior year of high school.
My reason for posting though is because I believe I am not one of those shallow 20 somethings because my parents who are both baby boomers, have taken the time to instill these qualities in me. I at minimum attempt to understand some of the global issues at hand because I recognize the need for my generation to be able to deal with them.
The question I raise is, if we are any more shallow than previos generations which i truly believe we are not, then would it not directly correlate with the parenting of the baby boomer generation whose childhoods were so glorious?
Every individual is capable of higher intellectual thought,its a matter of the values being instilled in the person to use those talents. I for one see that duty as being the parents.
I took a course this year called self in society, taught by an ex navy seal officer. One of his favorite sayings is that my generation cannot deal with issues today as your generation did, and that way is reactivly.
Centuries ago, two neighboring villages would go to war, and they would fight in hand to hand combat, a few deaths would occur. Today countries go to war, a nuclear bomb goes off and hundreds of thousands die. The actions are the same the technologies just change.
My generation has to be taught how to deal with problems proactively and that is just something your generation does not understand how to teach. We are not any more shallow, we just have different issues being thrown at us and are learning to deal with them in different ways.
runnerdi7 wrote:
Centuries ago, two neighboring villages would go to war, and they would fight in hand to hand combat, a few deaths would occur. Today countries go to war, a nuclear bomb goes off and hundreds of thousands die. The actions are the same the technologies just change.
My generation has to be taught how to deal with problems proactively and that is just something your generation does not understand how to teach. We are not any more shallow, we just have different issues being thrown at us and are learning to deal with them in different ways.
See: Cuban Missile Crisis.
you sound like an intelligent, thinking young man... very good, i agree with most of what you sayhowever, i would be careful about what a navy seal is teaching you... as one in academia, i personally would not consider navy seals to be a fountain of profound knowledge; i'm not saying they can't be extremely smart men but they have their job and does not involve philosophy and studying and doing research on global sustainabilitythe only reason i mention this is because while I agree we cannot be reactionary, i don't like the words proactive either... proactive was the argument for the u.s. being involved in korea, vietnam and now iraq. this proactivity is not addressing the underlying reasons for divisions in our world.
runnerdi7 wrote:
I'm posting as an 18 year old, and I like to think I do not fit in to the shallow crowd you are asking about. I do try to pay attention to whats going on in the world, I did vote in my last local election, and to the poster asking about things people my age own, I own most of those things and pay for almost all of them. I have a job which I put in 20 hours a week, while playing 3 sports a year, and attending my senior year of high school.
My reason for posting though is because I believe I am not one of those shallow 20 somethings because my parents who are both baby boomers, have taken the time to instill these qualities in me. I at minimum attempt to understand some of the global issues at hand because I recognize the need for my generation to be able to deal with them.
The question I raise is, if we are any more shallow than previos generations which i truly believe we are not, then would it not directly correlate with the parenting of the baby boomer generation whose childhoods were so glorious?
Every individual is capable of higher intellectual thought,its a matter of the values being instilled in the person to use those talents. I for one see that duty as being the parents.
I took a course this year called self in society, taught by an ex navy seal officer. One of his favorite sayings is that my generation cannot deal with issues today as your generation did, and that way is reactivly.
Centuries ago, two neighboring villages would go to war, and they would fight in hand to hand combat, a few deaths would occur. Today countries go to war, a nuclear bomb goes off and hundreds of thousands die. The actions are the same the technologies just change.
My generation has to be taught how to deal with problems proactively and that is just something your generation does not understand how to teach. We are not any more shallow, we just have different issues being thrown at us and are learning to deal with them in different ways.
I've been a college prof for the last 13 years and before that, I was a 20 something.
IMHO, there are differences in this current crop, but there are both positives and negatives with each difference
-The "helicopter parent" phenomena makes them a little TOO dependent and entitled, but I also think they relate well with us old folks
-They work a lot better in collaborative situations than we did. They will do what they are told, but that's balanced with a little less independent initiative.
-They have a really cool social network. Because of e-mail, myspace, etc they keep in contact with HS friends all the way through college and that network of friends is introduced to their college friends. They don't lose touch with people the way we did (still do).
I think that people in their late teens and early 20's have always been self-absorbed. A colleague of mine once pointed out that the students aren't selfish, they're self-absorbed. If you politely point out that their behavior is disrespectful, selfish etc, they're usually horrified and correct it immediately.
The only trend I've seen that I really hate that seems to be unique to this generation is rioting on college campuses. I was definitely a part of the partying in college, but I cannot imagine in my wildest dreams participating in looting and large-scale vandalism. I have an even tougher time imagining waking up the next morning and justifying said behavior. I've seen that too many times. I remember some ignorant kid at UConn writing a column after they rioted in celebration of their basketball NC. His overall defense was "that's what we do and you just don't understand". He's right, I don't.
As a 22 year old, I am going to answer this...
Do you own a cell phone? Yes as a matter of fact, I do.
Who bought it and pays the monthly charge? My dad got it for free through work. I was going to pay for it before he found this deal. I'm on a family plan and its in my parents name, but I pay them for my line, and any minutes that I use over our monthly amount.
Do you have a computer? Yes
Who bought it and pays internet fees? I bought it, I pay for my internet
Do you have an IPOD? No.
Do you have a car? No. My parents believed that if you wanted a car, you buy it. I have to say that I agree with them on this.
Who pays for repairs and insurance? Well, seeing as I don't have a car, no one does. Though if I had a car, I would be paying for it.
Are you going to College? I graduated from college.
Who pays? My parents did - the first 2 years were my graduation present from hs, the second 2 years was an early grauation present from college. If I had needed a 5th year, I would have been on my own. Most of my friends had to take out loans and got minimal support from their parents.
Who's materialistic? I would argue that my generation is no more materialistic than yours.
macker wrote:
I've been a college prof for the last 13 years and before that, I was a 20 something.
IMHO, there are differences in this current crop, but there are both positives and negatives with each difference
-The "helicopter parent" phenomena makes them a little TOO dependent and entitled, but I also think they relate well with us old folks
-They work a lot better in collaborative situations than we did. They will do what they are told, but that's balanced with a little less independent initiative.
-They have a really cool social network. Because of e-mail, myspace, etc they keep in contact with HS friends all the way through college and that network of friends is introduced to their college friends. They don't lose touch with people the way we did (still do).
I think that people in their late teens and early 20's have always been self-absorbed. A colleague of mine once pointed out that the students aren't selfish, they're self-absorbed. If you politely point out that their behavior is disrespectful, selfish etc, they're usually horrified and correct it immediately.
The only trend I've seen that I really hate that seems to be unique to this generation is rioting on college campuses. I was definitely a part of the partying in college, but I cannot imagine in my wildest dreams participating in looting and large-scale vandalism. I have an even tougher time imagining waking up the next morning and justifying said behavior. I've seen that too many times. I remember some ignorant kid at UConn writing a column after they rioted in celebration of their basketball NC. His overall defense was "that's what we do and you just don't understand". He's right, I don't.
Interesting, but your still a youngster. I haven't thought about the looting. I do have a question about the expanded social network. How is that affecting the type and quality of relationships?
pass the buck, pass the hat wrote:
People, period, are more shallow and superficial than ever, as least in the US. It started with the boomers, because they were so often indulged and sheltered in the post-war era of prosperity and plenty. It only seems more prevalent now because the generation that used to temper the boomers' vanity and vapidity, the generation that went through the depression and the huge wars, is dying off rapidly.
Wrong. Where do you think the WW I, the Depression, and WW II came from? That generation wasn't heroic, it was stupid, naive, vainglorious, spendthrift, and selfish. We had no business in WW I, the Allies would have been forced to accept Germany's demands which were much more reasonable than theirs turned out to be, thus no Depression based on spending of war reparations that could only be raised by printing money that had no value, thus no Nazi party, thus no WW II, thus no Soviet domination of the Eastern Europe, etc., etc.
^^Wealth is a top priority for today's youth
7 more of them died this weekend in Iraq...nothing shallow about these 20 somethings.
Really? How is military recruiting going these days?
plu wrote:
7 more of them died this weekend in Iraq...nothing shallow about these 20 somethings.
lkdkld wrote:
Wrong. Where do you think the WW I, the Depression, and WW II came from? That generation wasn't heroic, it was stupid, naive, vainglorious, spendthrift, and selfish. We had no business in WW I, the Allies would have been forced to accept Germany's demands which were much more reasonable than theirs turned out to be, thus no Depression based on spending of war reparations that could only be raised by printing money that had no value, thus no Nazi party, thus no WW II, thus no Soviet domination of the Eastern Europe, etc., etc.
Well, they didn't come from the generations that grew up through them. It was the ruling class of previous generations that enabled each of those events. Kids who got drafted weren't the ones starting wars and kids who starved during the depression had nothing to do with the stock market.
Uncle Sam wrote:
Really? How is military recruiting going these days?
plu wrote:7 more of them died this weekend in Iraq...nothing shallow about these 20 somethings.
Uncle Sam, you are a douche. YOU volunteer. Your generation started the war anyway.