Generational Gaps and the Problem with Today’s Youth

I’ll be honest right here at the beginning. The title for this specific blog was meant to be a “hook.” It is bait that I intentionally used to reel in my potential audience. It works like this. Some people clicked the link because they immediately agreed. Others clicked the link because they were instantly angered. As I said, it was bait to simply get you to this point. Having said that, all I ask is that you read to the end before lighting your torches and sharpening your pitchforks. I might not be the monster you think I am. But then again… maybe I am 😉

Speaking for myself, I find my social media feeds these days littered with memes and posts bemoaning the younger generations. Granted, that is probably a reflection of my age and the age of most of my contemporaries, but again, I’m just being honest. I’m not a “Boomer;” but I am closing in on 60, so think more along the lines of “Generation X” at the very start of their defining years. At any rate, I’m not sure how or when it happened, but it seems like my generation somehow turned into our parents. See, I’m not so old that I can’t remember when my generation was the problem, when we represented everything that was wrong in the world at that time. And as so often happens in the circle of life, that torch of assigning blame to the youth was successfully passed down from our parents to us. And now we are the ones complaining about the ills of modern society and doing our best to establish a line of causality between the youth and all of the world’s problems.

Recently, while exchanging IMs online, this whole issue of the generational gap came up for me once again. In the process of trading perspectives I shared the following at that time:

“Another comment from me on this whole ‘generational’ thing. Perhaps it is just me, but I am NOT that old man who thinks my generation had it all together and the present generation is clueless. First of all, we were just as flawed as anyone else. We still are flawed. We have just had time and the luxury of having lived more years to learn from our mistakes. They will get there in time. Secondly, if this current generation is flawed, why do we never hold their parents (our generation) accountable? They are what we allowed them to be. If college is failing them, isn’t our generation the one who runs them now? My two cents? The problem starts with my generation. I am weary of those voices that say we were all about ‘work ethic’ and they are all lazy. I know many older people who aren’t worth their salt at work. And I know many young people who outshine us all. I try my best to throw that broad brush out these days.“

Now, it’s possible, maybe even probable, that I used a broad brush here in this blog. If so, my apologies. I didn’t say I was perfect, just that I would try better 🙂 At any rate, I just wanted to offer a different perspective. The world is filled with challenges and problems. But in our desire to discover and enact real, lasting solutions, we would all be better served to stop burning bridges and instead find ways to build them. Change requires that we all work together. All of us. Working together. Regardless of age differences. Cooperation rather than isolation. Community rather than entrenchment. Compassion rather than constant criticism. And in the end, if we are so intent on lighting and passing on torches… let’s make sure they are ones that the younger generation can actually use beneficially; ones that provide light and warmth rather than destruction. Let’s end the cycle. Let’s work toward a better today and a brighter tomorrow.