View Full Version : Is Today's Generation Inferior?
Every generation gripes about the next. Every generation lacks historical perspective, and is far blinder to its own shortcomings than those that came directly before and after it (which it finds glaring). So, I must ask: is the concern most of us likely share for today's youth (I'm speaking particularly about American youth, but international takes are welcome) warranted, or is it just more of the same? Is there anything about the development of people, well, my age, that should cause us more concern than most generations have for the one which proceeds them?
r3port3r66
08-14-03, 02:48 PM
Well Yoda, I think that you are certainly an exception to your generation. I think your smarter than most people today that are only 19!!. Perhaps I'm wrong though, maybe it's just me.
I hate to ask a question in response to a question, but what problems do you think past generations are leaving you to resolve in your adulthood?
I think we probably are getting shafted, but I don't see any reason when we shouldn't continue to "pass the buck."
So, worried about my generation? Hardly. It's my great great grandchildren that aren't going to slip by.
People are people. But societies [due to technologies etc] are on a strange path perhaps. If i'm worried about anything it's how technologies and the "extelligence" of our societies (the combined human knowledge and social examples available to copy or bump up against) might be slowly forming a chain of slightly irresponsible humans (accidently so) i.e. ones less interested in or able to deal with the repurcussions of their actions. I ascribe that to seeing themselves as just a small part in a big world - or on the "flip-side" as masters of a now small and understood one. These are two low-level opinions that seem to float around the psyche of people around my age (27 - ankle creaks, eyelash falls out - argh, my eyes are going bald! And my ankle's turning into a door. It's all going wrong :bawling: )
So who can say? I pondered (on the "techie" thread) about whether young'uns will grow up with a slightly emotionally-removed dialectic style due to things like email, forums and text - i.e. all mediums, that in different ways, allow you time to pause and be "objective" if you so wish. i.e the prevelance of textual communication. But there's not that much evidence for it :)
[one hope i do have is these technologies might cause a grass-roots logical-holistic alteration of how we spell! The spelling we use is so out of whack with how we actually say it. It's gotta happen at some point (yet the changes that've made English popular have always come from grass-roots phenomenon, never top-down control). Oh well, pet topic (i'm attached to how we spell anyway :rolleyes: )]
So: society on some slightly dodgy trends? We are changing SO fast these days, and the repurcussions have barely had time to filter thru. And there's a tendancy for self-satisfaction (i.e. "what-could-be-wrong?") amongst societies that seem to be doing well/expanding to sustain - so yes i think so [my worries are all in the areas of technology application really - tho that means worrying about the minds that apply it]. Irresolvable problem? - no - tho i'm fairly sure we need to change certain attitudes. Who knows tho - maybe this generation, being forced to adapt quicker to keep up with technology, will also take on ideas more rapidly as a whole/ go thru "paradigm" shifts etc far more rapidly than has happened historically. It's possible i think. It's just our stick-in-the-mud brain that might get in the way ;)
But inferior? No. Do you think so?
EDIT: I voted yes - but only to reflect the world surrounding said young'uns (and everyone else) containing: GM food; anti-social industries; depleted-uranium; chemical-over-use; over-belief in religions, like science for example ;) ; and some rampant new diseases. (please note that i'm fully aware these are all reflections of problems from time immemorial with food, trade/war, chemicals, bad interpretation of religions, etc etc - i just happen to think all of these inevitable "pass-times" have been accentuated thru technology. And we should address this. I wonder how much this generation, or mine, sees these things as a problem - and what they're prepared to do about it - and are we in fact the best people to deal with it? - it's a totally different generation that has the wisest heads of all (for the most part) - and yet runs most everything that we deign to impose on the world ;)). Ach, i'll go sit in my hippy-tree some more :rolleyes:
Henry The Kid
08-14-03, 05:26 PM
The Who-My Generation
People try to put us d-down (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
Just because we get around (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
Things they do look awful c-c-cold (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
I hope I die before I get old (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
This is my generation
This is my generation, baby
Why don't you all f-fade away (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
And don't try to dig what we all s-s-say (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
I'm not trying to cause a big s-s-sensation (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
I'm just talkin' 'bout my g-g-g-generation (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
This is my generation
This is my generation, baby
Why don't you all f-fade away (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
And don't try to d-dig what we all s-s-say (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
I'm not trying to cause a b-big s-s-sensation (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
I'm just talkin' 'bout my g-g-generation (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
This is my generation
This is my generation, baby
People try to put us d-down (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
Just because we g-g-get around (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
Things they do look awful c-c-cold (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
Yeah, I hope I die before I get old (Talkin' 'bout my generation)
This is my generation
This is my generation, baby
No. I don't think we're inferior.
Actually, there are two sides to the equation. On the one hand, I am extremely impressed with the intelligence and awareness of today's generation. Kids are, in many ways, a lot better informed than I was at the same age. I think mass media and the internet has a lot to do with it. Growing up in a third-world country in which my family didn't even have TV until fairly recently--and with black and white TV with a single State channel, I guess I relate more with the older generation when it comes to cultural exposure. On the other hand, physically, I relate more to the 20's and 30's crowd. But back to generation next--like I said, I'm very impressed with the level of awareness and information they display. On the other hand, I'm very disturbed by the apathy and lack of humanity they display at the same time. And this, I also attribute to the prevalence of mass media in modern culture--esp. video games, TV, action movies, etc. which tend to desensitize and psychologically distance one from violence. Hence the disturbing trends of high school violence, etc. I'm also disturbed by the prevalence of drugs and the glorification of sadism and heartless cruelty in modern culture. More unnerving trends in today's society.
But inferior? No. Do you think so?
My mistake, I should clarify: when I say "inferior," I'm referring to accquired things...knowledge rather than intelligence, for example. I've no doubt there's lots of raw intelligence in this generation, just as there has been in every generation as far back as we can see. I'm referring to how much usage this generation is (or is not) getting out of its intelligene.
Or, put another way:
"Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work."
-- Stephen King
Clearly there's plenty of ability to go around...the question is, will apathy bog it down? I think, overall, it will. I don't have time to go into detail just yet (my view's a little more nuanced than simply "yes"), but I'll try to elaborate a bit later. In the mean time, I'd love to hear more points of view on the matter.
Clearly there's plenty of ability to go around...the question is, will apathy bog it down? I think, overall, it will. I don't have time to go into detail just yet (my view's a little more nuanced than simply "yes"), but I'll try to elaborate a bit later. In the mean time, I'd love to hear more points of view on the matter.
Cool. I'll stick by my definitions of potentials-for-mind-problems then (tho it's a mini-version ;) - and only part of the story i'm sure). Lookin forward to hear other views too. I think, as Django said, there is a lot more potential for self-information now. But i think to an extent this relies on the individual being motivated to learn (so, even tho i slumped in front of open-univestity progs and learnt stuff during my laziest phases, it was pretty passive. It wasn't until i twigged that you deal with boredom by doing stuff that i actively immersed myself in things and started to really take stuff on board on a conscious/directly-applicable level) - so on a sourcing front - hopefully there's enough info out there flying around to stimulate lots of minds (and get them off their skull-sofas ;)). Unfortunately, i'd say there's an even greater amount of detritous and out-right bad values preached on our goggle-boxes/radios etc etc, so there might be equal/greater cause for sustained apathy. Quality quality quality. Where for art thou quality? ;) :rolleyes:
Let's get out there making quality, brain-engaging, thought-provoking, something-to-say-but-not-tooooo-held-in-its-sway media my friends. Our societies are what we make them. (well, there's ripple out from every action. Better a good one than a bad, where possible ;)) - nuff
Well, considering my age, I guess I am part of today's generation. Without trying to brag or sound arrogant, I know I'm not inferior by any means. But the few 'real-life' friends, so to speak, are usually fairly ignorant of pretty much everything. During the election, I overheard a kid saying that Bush was going to put up cameras everywhere and arrest you if you littered if he became president. Even Sunfrog can admit that that's absolutely ridiculous. And a 15-year-old didn't even know who Gore and Bush were, or the who Clinton was for that matter.
Let me get started on the mis-usage of the word 'ignorant': I can't understand why it would be so hard to look it up in the dictionary before insulting someone with it just because it's the current fad. You might as well say kids are ignorant of the definition of the word ignorant and they wouldn't understand you.
So, in short, I think this generation is inferior, except for a select few, such as Hondo, who, IMHO, seems very intelligent.
If the generation you're talking about is the teenagers of today then yes, they are inferior.
The generation before the teenagers of today pretty much ruined the world. The baby boomers of the 60's and so forth. They changed our world into a robot, a corporation where every person is a single gear, oiled by products we don't need and only want because of commercialism.
We each do our part because Grampas old ice cream store isn't running anymore, the generation before us gave us Dairy Queen instead. Dairy Queen, hording teenage high school dropouts for employmeant.
Everyone today is raised to become a gear. The only part of life that is mesured is education. The more education you get, the better of a gear you become. The more useless items you can buy.
The circle of life which will continue until the sun fails.
We call it society.
So yes, the generation of today is inferior, because the generation before them was greedy.
If the generation you're talking about is the teenagers of today then yes, they are inferior.
The generation before the teenagers of today pretty much ruined the world. The baby boomers of the 60's and so forth.
So yes, the generation of today is inferior, because the generation before them was greedy.
Woa, hope you got some tough hair on you BEAR, coz Yoda's gonna try and shave you with his gnashing teeth ;). Well, the cogs thing is all cool with me, but you might be going a tad rampant ;)
As for the age thing, i think all generations are greedy. It's just that technology and larger communities have allowed for stranger rationales to be placed on/amongst the orderly-chaos of everything, and to have a more wide-spread effect. And we get on with it, coz that's what we do ;) Ok so, for me, "Fordism" for example has brought about some dodgy/life-degrading situations unfortunately (which may well outweigh it's benefits - hard to judge over-all). And certain other "mechanistic" ways of thinking do pervade lots of society-wide or large-scale decision making/structuring attempts IMO
(EDIT: i.e. again, over-rationalisation, causing our mind-sets' patterns to be imposed on the world and the limits of our socieities, and stemming more relativistic-reactions into contained, clearly defined little dams of potential stagnation - but still, v.tricky prob - i.e. how do you "rationally" address issues and structural probs then? - i'd say: through a mixture of top-down pattern-enforcement [altho more varied/imaginative approaches need to be introduced in some cases - with a bit more flexibility in application etc woven in perhaps...which all connects with...]...mixed with grass-roots enforcement of more "natural" and subtly-structured realisations/interpretations of our potentials. - troublesome mindsets involved in this overly-"human-mind"-structured top-down action i'm positing = the generic/abstract not balanced enough by the relative/specific, not to mention general simplification designed to facilitate the plan-makers, who are not the be-all or end-all of the equation, yet this "consideration" is often reflected in how we enact broad-proceedures. Etc etc etc, all very tricky in practice, which is why we need to practice more IMO ;))
But what i wanted to say, fairly off topic, is that if you want to worry about Baby Boomers, worry about when they retire, and the hit the deficit takes can't be balanced out by all the GDP the stats can stretch ;) [alright, i've probably set Yoddles a-gnashing enough - and yes, i know, they don't stretch the GDP stats/quantifiers at these times etc. Economists etc just set it up to measure what they think is important. And i've read some eco's with some disturbing thoughts :eek: ]
Henry The Kid
08-14-03, 10:13 PM
This is ridiculous.
"Oh, this generation sucks. Except for this guy, he TOTALLY rules!"
This is ridiculous.
"Oh, this generation sucks. Except for this guy, he TOTALLY rules!"
Hey gun-toter, who or what r u aiming at here? Which one guy has been put forward? And the question seems to be more about societies' affect on people, rather than people per se (man, tell me the "per se" thing makes me sound like i know what i'm talking bout :rolleyes: ;))
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