The Dumbest Generation

[austrya]

We had a teacher that used a paddle in elementary school. In high school, we had a teacher that would make you "bite the bar" if you said a cuss word in his class. He kept a bar of soap in his desk drawer for that purpose.

 

Other than that, we just had detention, which really didn't deter anyone from doing anything bad. Detention was usually pretty fun, depending on what teacher was in charge.

[Analogman]

I graduated in 2001 and I was paddled in high school. It wasn't really much of a deterrent to bad behavior (talking in class). It was mostly just funny and awkward.

 

At my HS, it was the weight lifting asshole gym coach doing the paddling - I think he got off on it - so I recall hearing. Most of my friends in HS were often in trouble in one way or another.

 

The detention in my school consited of setting in a room at lunch - where you were allowed to eat lunch - and do nothing else.

[the carlos]

I received a paddling in 8th grade for spraying Canned Fart Spray on Donnie Gaillard's ass during a game of basketball. This was in 85.

[Good Old Neon]

i submit my 22-year-old brother-in-law as proof that there is indeed a real live 'Entitlement Generation'. he's a nice kid and all, but everything is someone else's fault and he actually acts slighted that he actually needs to go to work to pay for things. he expects the job that he does have to work in be the perfect scenario...not hopes or dreams that it's the non-existent perfect job, but EXPECTS it to be.

 

even better, he complains when my mom-in-law (a widow) expects him to pitch in on housework or groceries and was dumbfounded when she wouldn't front him some cash to get his credit card in-line...he's living there RENT-FREE and it chaps my ass that he doesn't step up a little more to help be the de facto man of the house when my mom-in-law needs one. i had to live at home for a brief time outta' college and my folks charged me rent...and told me that unless i'm doing something proactive to better my career, either shut my my mouth/collect my paycheck or do something about it.

 

i don't think the generation behind me is dumb at all, i do however think the sense of entitlement and expectation that everything in life should be McInstantaneous could be a major downfall for a large % of them. hopefully there will be enough good ones to shoulder the rest until they figure it out.

 

plus, i do hold parents responsible for a large part of this problem...including myself. you can blame society and marketing and school systems, but if a kid's upbringing was a pie chart...those would be slivers in comparison to the influence a parent has or, really should have.

 

Though I agree with about 90% of what you

[John Smith]

This generation entering the workforce is exactly what we made them to be. They are the offspring of what is probably the most affluent generation in US history. The middle class has done extremely well from the late 1970's until the mid part of this decade. We have given our children the upbringing we wanted them to have. Of course many of us have also bought off our kids and replaced parenting with consumerism. But regardless of how they were raised or who raised them, they are who they are and they are here entering the workforce. They are smart, tech savvy, consumers and far more industrious than we give them credit for because we judge them by our standards.

 

I work in accounting, the norm for accounting has always been be here, work long hours, get paid well. For years and years that has been the standard and it worked for the accounting industry. This current generations does not believe in that, they generally don't believe in working the hours just to put them in. For these people they want to know that the hours they put in have a purpose and is not just busy work. They will do the work, but they also want to have a life outside of work. Case in point: A partner from one of the big four discussed how his millennials want to go home at 6 and have their lives, but it is not at all uncommon for him to wake up and see emails timed at 2 or 3 am containing finished work in his in-box awaiting review.

 

My current boss is not at all a millennial, and neither are any of my co-workers. But he generally holds the same philosophy, as long as the work gets done in a timely manner, the rest is all open for discussion, which even to my old a** is a great way of thinking and have allowed our department to run very smoothly.

 

I guess my whole point is that we should not blanket these people with our pre-conceived notions of how an employee should act or with how we perceive them. Regardless of how we view them they are here, the work will get done the baton will be passed and looking down our noses at a whole generation will not serve any purpose other than to reinforce our sense of self importance and superiority. Besides, we all raised our kids right, it's always someone else raising their kids who screw things up for the rest of us...right? At least that is what my brother in law says as he buys his kids everything while not asking them to do chores or even to succeed in school. Why should he pay the price of the other parents out there who raised their millennials?

 

As a side note if you have kids entering college they might think about accounting as a profession. I beleive that soemthing in the neighborhood of 70% of all CPA's are over the age of 45. It is an area of the workforce that is graying very rapidly.

[Mrs. Peel]

Case in point: A partner from one of the big four discussed how his millennials want to go home at 6 and have their lives, but it is not at all uncommon for him to wake up and see emails timed at 2 or 3 am containing finished work in his in-box awaiting review.

 

This just means his workers are more tech savvy than he is and know how to hack their mail program so it doesn't send the email they created at 3pm until the middle of the night.

[Duck-Billed Catechist]

I do that (the late night working from home thing).

[ikol]

If it wasn

[EL the Famous]

inherent, hard wired behavioral patterns and peer pressure can both have a nullifying effect on even the best parenting.

 

i won't debate that, but i also refuse to use that as excuse not to do everything i can to help my kids learn to try and overcome and/or work within those patterns/pressure to be a better person. there is no silver bullet, but, again, finding the best balance you can between providing for your child and preparing them to see the value of being able to provide for themselves is a HUGE part to the equation.

 

it has to be, all signs point to me having to forgo legitimate 'retirement' and work my ass off just to keep me and my wife in a decent enviornment until we pass away. plus, if they see me make excuses or blame someone else for raising them wrong...there is nothing to stop them from doing the same thing themselves in other situations.

 

accountability for yourself and/or those you've put yourself in a place to be accountable for until they can be accountable for themselves. like i've said before, you can't help others unless you know how to and actually do take care of yourself.

[Guest Jules]

As a side note if you have kids entering college they might think about accounting as a profession. I beleive that soemthing in the neighborhood of 70% of all CPA's are over the age of 45. It is an area of the workforce that is graying very rapidly.

Yeah, but have you ever met an accountant?

[Good Old Neon]

Here

[EL the Famous]

Here

[JUDE]

Yeah, but have you ever met an accountant?

 

You can go straight to hell dude.

[Good Old Neon]

You should favor neither, because both are equally important. Someone may be hard-wired with tendencies toward certain behaviors, but upbringing also influences whether those behaviors get expressed.

 

My belief, and I think science will eventually find this to be true, is that due to our evolutionary past, we are more a product of our genes, than the environment in which we are raised.

 

Twins separated at birth share very similar thoughts, ideas, and behavior patterns, regardless of their upbringing. Evidence that nature, in many cases, trumps nurturing

[John Smith]

This just means his workers are more tech savvy than he is and know how to hack their mail program so it doesn't send the email they created at 3pm until the middle of the night.

 

Cynicicsm at it's finest

 

Yeah, but have you ever met an accountant?

 

Actually yes...I am an accountant, I work with accountants, the CEO of my company is an accountant as is the CFO and one division head. I am fairly familiar with them. Another profession to encourage young people to enter is Engineering which is also suffering a shortage here in America.

[Guest Jules]

Another profession to encourage young people to enter is Engineering which is also suffering a shortage here in America.

I am with you there.

[bobbob1313]

Twins separated at birth share very similar thoughts, ideas, and behavior patterns, regardless of their upbringing. Evidence that nature, in many cases, trumps nurturing – whether that nurturing is good or bad.

 

That is actually evidence that nature, in very specific cases, trumps nurture. Since, you know, you are citing a very rare circumstance being tested.

[Reni]

all parents should read this book.....

 

[Good Old Neon]

That is actually evidence that nature, in very specific cases, trumps nurture. Since, you know, you are citing a very rare circumstance being tested.

 

I

[LouieB]

Kids these days aren't dumber about some shit.....

 

That's all I have to say....

 

LouieB

[TCP]

Okay, I have to say that I find this topic to be kind of offensive. I can not believe that some of these comments are acceptable on Via Chicago (Specifically things like calling young people "little fuckers" or saying they all have a "sense of entitlement"), if they were about race, this topic would be locked right away but since it's age, it's alright. That said, here goes my rant.

I am 21 next month. I have spent the past two years going to school, no summer breaks. I had class and/or labs 6 or 7 days a week. There was many, many, days that I left for school at 6:45 am and got home at 11:30 pm. Did I mention this school was $35 000 dollars? I worked my ass and you know what I got for it? A job where I get paid $11.50 and I only get three or four 3 hour shifts a week. And do you know what? I was EXTREMELY happy when I got that job and still am. I have to pay my dues and I know most of my friends from high school and most of the people I graduated college with realize that. Yeah, I know some people who have a "sense of entitlement". But people who are assholes can be any age. And that's what they are, assholes.

I don't mean to piss anyone off by this but to be honest, I'm kind of pissed off about a lot of the broad, generalizations, made here. If you're daughter is angry about her iPod breaking and wants you to buy her a new one, then maybe that's not anything to do with her generation, maybe that's your parenting. I know for sure that neither myself or any of my siblings would have ever done anything like that. I don't know what's wrong with that one persons brother in law but I probably do more around the house then my parents do. Not a knock on them, but I'm living here rent free so I like to help out.

My point is, I have absolutely no "sense of entitlement", and I am definitely not lazy. I have the same strong work ethic my father has, the same work ethic he raised me to have. I could say the same thing about most of the people my age that I associate with. Saying this generation has a sense of entitlement is a STEREOTYPE. I grew up in a small northern mill town. You have no idea how many people I know who are working full time at the mill now, just like they'll do for the rest of their lives. Or worse yet, how about the ones out drilling who only get to come home once every few months. Do they have a sense of entitlement?

For the record, it wasn't this "dumb generation" that elected George W. Bush into office not once but TWICE.

[giraffo]

I haven't read the article, but I don't think that this generation is dumber at all, I just think from observing my peers that they have a horrible work ethic. if anyone ever wonders why America is on the global decline, it's because the generation that solidified America as the world's greatest was one of the hardest working generations. Every generation since has gotten a little lazier and lazier. I'm in one of the most work intensive schools in the states and even here where you're supposed to be the best and hardest working people still slack off and think that because they are at a place that gives them a lot of work that they're working hard.

[Duck-Billed Catechist]

Okay, I have to say that I find this topic to be kind of offensive. I can not believe that some of these comments are acceptable on Via Chicago (Specifically things like calling young people "little fuckers" or saying they all have a "sense of entitlement"), if they were about race, this topic would be locked right away but since it's age, it's alright. That said, here goes my rant.

I am 21 next month. I have spent the past two years going to school, no summer breaks. I had class and/or labs 6 or 7 days a week. There was many, many, days that I left for school at 6:45 am and got home at 11:30 pm. Did I mention this school was $35 000 dollars? I worked my ass and you know what I got for it? A job where I get paid $11.50 and I only get three or four 3 hour shifts a week. And do you know what? I was EXTREMELY happy when I got that job and still am. I have to pay my dues and I know most of my friends from high school and most of the people I graduated college with realize that. Yeah, I know some people who have a "sense of entitlement". But people who are assholes can be any age. And that's what they are, assholes.

I don't mean to piss anyone off by this but to be honest, I'm kind of pissed off about a lot of the broad, generalizations, made here. If you're daughter is angry about her iPod breaking and wants you to buy her a new one, then maybe that's not anything to do with her generation, maybe that's your parenting. I know for sure that neither myself or any of my siblings would have ever done anything like that. I don't know what's wrong with that one persons brother in law but I probably do more around the house then my parents do. Not a knock on them, but I'm living here rent free so I like to help out.

My point is, I have absolutely no "sense of entitlement", and I am definitely not lazy. I have the same strong work ethic my father has, the same work ethic he raised me to have. I could say the same thing about most of the people my age that I associate with. Saying this generation has a sense of entitlement is a STEREOTYPE. I grew up in a small northern mill town. You have no idea how many people I know who are working full time at the mill now, just like they'll do for the rest of their lives. Or worse yet, how about the ones out drilling who only get to come home once every few months. Do they have a sense of entitlement?

For the record, it wasn't this "dumb generation" that elected George W. Bush into office not once but TWICE.

This post brings up a good point about this generation getting a raw deal in some respects. They won't know extreme poverty for the most part, but they do have to deal with the inflated cost of education and housing, among other things, with earning power generally at or below their parents' generation.

 

I think you are barking up the wrong tree suggesting that this conversation is somehow bigoted, though. For the most part it is just Americans talking about American culture.

[EL the Famous]

On average, intelligent people tend to give birth to intelligent humans, less intelligent people tend to produce less intelligent humans

[JUDE]

what about the large % of children who develop autism coming from parents who are engineers and other professions, like folks who are considered uber intelligent?

 

it's got nothing to do with distaste, i just find it another sweeping, sensational quote not completely grounded in actuality. some truth? maybe. THE truth? hardly.

 

Cocky young whipper-snapper ain't you?