[MissRissa]

This isn't really a question but more of an observation and me just sharing some of my thoughts.

So I saw a mentor of mine the other week and we started talking about school, family, and what not and somewhere along the conversation, these exact words came out of his mouth "..you're only 16 years old, all 16 year old's care about now is eating and sleeping...." :confused:

WHAT! I couldn't believe I was stereotyped like that. I could not believe that, that is really how some adults, maybe most, perceive me as when they look at me.

But then I really thought about what he had to say, and it's true. It seems like my generation is going so down hill, that it's scary. We're so selfish, stubborn, and ignorant. I'm practically ashamed of being a 16 year old in the year 2009!

Why are we so selfish? Why are we so stubborn? Why are we so ignorant? I really don't know.

Some say that we are growing up too fast, but I disagree. I feel like we aren't growing up fast enough mentally. I feel like a lot of us aren't maturing fast enough. We lack the maturity to care about others, to worry about what is becoming of our world, to take the care to listen to the great advice we are given by adults! Yes, adults! The ones who have been in this universe longer than we ever have and ever will! The ones who have experienced and pushed through more bull crap than our petty high school drama! Why do we never listen to the advice adults give us? I REALLY DON'T KNOW.

When will this generation stop worrying about if the guy/girl who passes you in hall likes you and start worrying about what YOU can do to make yourself a great person when you grow up. When will this generation quit taking the easy way out of everything! When will this generation be able to differentiate what goes on in television as oppose to real life? When will this generation have the desire for knowledge and wisdom instead of sex and partying? Again, I do not know.

I blame media. I now see why movies like "Harold and Kumar go to White Castle" is a rated R movie. Because us kids just don't realize that movies like this are JUST movies. NOT real life. And getting high does not mean you will go on a funny adventure to burger place.

Sex, drugs and partying. The three most misleading desires of a teenager. I wish we could all just grow up and realize how misleading they are in reality.

I think that this is a serious issue in the United States and it should really be looked at and recognized. And if you took the time to read this whole thread, I appreciate it. And if nobody agrees with any of the ideas I expressed, that's okay, because I felt like I really needed to say something about what is becoming of this generation.

[N0help4u]

Some say that we are growing up too fast, but I disagree. I feel like we aren't growing up fast enough mentally. I feel like a lot of us aren't maturing fast enough. We lack the maturity to care about others, to worry about what is becoming of our world, to take the care to listen to the great advice we are given by adults! Yes, adults! The ones who have been in this universe longer than we ever have and ever will! The ones who have experienced and pushed through more bull crap than our petty high school drama! Why do we never listen to the advice adults give us? I REALLY DON'T KNOW.

When will this generation stop worrying about if the guy/girl who passes you in hall likes you and start worrying about what YOU can do to make yourself a great person when you grow up. When will this generation quit taking the easy way out of everything!? When will this generation be able to differentiate what goes on in television as oppose to real life? When will this generation have the desire for knowledge and wisdom instead of sex and partying? Again, I do not know.

I blame media. I now see why movies like "Harold and Kumar go to White Castle" is a rated R movie. Because us kids just don't realize that movies like this are JUST movies. NOT real life. And getting high does not mean you will go on a funny adventure to burger place.

Sex, drugs and partying. The three most misleading desires of a teenager. I wish we could all just grow up and realize how misleading they are in reality.

I agree but to clarify
Yes your generation is growing up too fast

I just replied the other day

What ever happened to innocent childhood
At 13 I was more upset
That I wasn't allowed a Barbie doll
Nylons, make up or earrings,
The other kids were allowed to go a block further away than I was.
Street lights coming on meant time to go in the house
That I was never picked for a team in gym until last.
If the girl in front of me was going to pick on me
Or the boy behind me was going to be mean
If my mom was going to let me have a quarter to go to buy an ice cream cone
And father knew best

Nowadays kids may be physically more mature and having babies, boyfriend and grown up problems but they lack the maturity to see things from others perspectives and all.
I agree a lot of it is the media and the parents. Even many parents nowadays are self centered, enable their kids. Many don't even raise their kids but let them go do their own thing by the time they get to grade school.

I have been saying basically what you are saying for years.

[CanadianCrook]

Hm, Interesting idea.

I see a lot of stereotyping.. and it is unfortunate that it has to be that way. But unfortunately when there is one black sheep in the herd the whole herd gets effected.

A black man steals a Mercedes from a white middle aged woman.. suddenly every black man is a suspect and you can't trust them.

An Asian woman who happens to be tired falls asleep behind the wheel and crashes into a convenient store. I guess all Asian's are bad drivers!

It is the same with teenagers. I am sure you know one teenager who is involved with drugs, stealing etc.. And what happens when a few bad seeds get broad casted on the local news? "white Caucasian male caught stealing from K-Mart.. teenagers are useless and untrustworthy now.

"A bunch of young males caught speeding way over the limit in the suburbs.. Hey guess what? All the young males now have to pay more insurance because they ALL are the same"

I don't think stereo typing will ever disappear.. even this thread is stereo typing how ALL adults see teenagers the same.

It is wrong and something should be done about it, but.. what CAN you do?

[N0help4u]

Exactly one bad apple tends to make others see it as a group thing. Unfortunately there are way too many bad apples making it hard to find any good apples.
I was just saying a week ago how refreshing it was to see a lot of good teens in one gathering because the university that I work at had a Christian group of 18,000 mostly teens and the majority of them you could tell weren't into the lifestyle so many kids are in nowadays.

[CanadianCrook]

exactly one bad apple tends to make others see it as a group thing. Unfortunately there are way too many bad apples making it hard to find any good apples.
I was just saying a week ago how refreshing it was to see a lot of good teens in one gathering because the university that I work at had a Christian group of 18,000 mostly teens and the majority of them you could tell weren't into the lifestyle so many kids are in nowadays.

I see great promise and potential in a lot of kids. I see a bunch of young guys going to the gym frequently. I love seeing this because I know they are staying out of trouble and focusing their time on something productive.

Unfortunately THIS, the internet is not a good pathway for bored teenagers. The internet will only be a barrier and will limit the kids from actually doing something productive like working and making money or reading a book.

However I think there is great promise in the next generation. There will be the black sheep's but they will find there place. If that means working in a grocery store or flipping burgers for the rest of their lives.. then so be it.

[N0help4u]

I know they are out there.
Where I live though I see things such as way too many kids on their second pregnancy by the time they are 15. On welfare and an entitlement mentality where they think the neighbors owe it to them to feed their kids even if you don't even know them.

[MissRissa]

I agree but to clarify
yes your generation is growing up too fast

I just replied the other day

what ever happened to innocent childhood
at 13 I was more upset
that I wasn't allowed a Barbie doll
nylons, make up or earrings,
The other kids were allowed to go a block further away than I was.
Street lights coming on meant time to go in the house
That I was never picked for a team in gym until last.
If the girl in front of me was going to pick on me
or the boy behind me was going to be mean
if my mom was going to let me have a quarter to go to buy an ice cream cone
and father knew best

Nowadays kids may be physically more mature and having babies, boyfriend and grown up problems but they lack the maturity to see things from others perspectives and all.
I agree a lot of it is the media and the parents. Even many parents nowadays are self centered, enable their kids. Many don't even raise their kids but let them go do their own thing by the time they get to grade school.

I have been saying basically what you are saying for years.

Yeah, I mean I feel like we're trying to grow up too fast like doing adult things, for example, having sex but I think that we aren't growing up fast enough in the sense that if we're going to have sex we should realize the consequences. We should realize how big of problem sex can become into before we even go and try it. It's like no one my age wants to even think about all of the problems that could occur (pregnancy, STD's etc.) we just want to believe that having sex comes with no worries and we just want to do it right now. We don't even care what happens in the future we just care about now now now! And I just don't understand why it's like that.

[MissRissa]

Hm, Interesting idea.

I see a lot of stereotyping .. and it is unfortunate that it has to be that way. But unfortunately when there is one black sheep in the herd the whole herd gets effected.

A black man steals a Mercedes from a white middle aged woman.. suddenly every black man is a suspect and you can't trust them.

An Asian woman who happens to be tired falls asleep behind the wheel and crashes into a convenient store. I guess all Asian's are bad drivers!

It is the same with teenagers. I am sure you know one teenager who is involved with drugs, stealing etc.. and what happens when a few bad seeds get broad casted on the local news? "white Caucasian male caught stealing from K-Mart.. teenagers are useless and untrustworthy now.

"A bunch of young males caught speeding way over the limit in the suburbs.. Hey guess what?? All the young males now have to pay more insurance because they ALL are the same"

I don't think stereo typing will ever disappear.. even this thread is stereo typing how ALL adults see teenagers the same.

It is wrong and something should be done about it, but.. what CAN you do?

I understand why we're stereotyped and I'm not trying to say that the stereotype is completely untrue because it is true for a lot of teens. I'm not sure what I could do. I wish teens could just see what they really look like in the eyes of older generations.

[HelpinHere]

Yes, I almost completely agree with you...

The fact isn't that the kids aren't growing up, it's that they are growing up wrong. When you become mature, mentally and physically, you draw on what's around you to see how you should grow up, in a sense.

It's not all the media, the parents, or any one source. This has been happening for a long while, it didn't just appear overnight, but it just became widespread as of late.

The media: Where do they get their ideas? Most, if not all, forms of "fictual" entertainment are in one way or another based on a factual event. When ONE person does ONE wrong thing with a smile on his/her face, it spreads like wildfire.

The parents: Obviously, we haven't always had perfect parents. However, we haven't always had horrible parents too. The majority of unsuitable parents of this generation were the rebeleous teens of the last generation, or others somehow unsuitable to be parents. When they have children, they pass their bad ways on to their children, and it only escalates from there.

The parenting: I mean, seriously, it is illegeal to spank your children? Think about this, will you. Yes, there is child abuse, but the majority is simply parenting. The people who deem the parenting styles of past generations CAME FROM those generations. A grudge for their own sore bottoms, perhaps? You know something had to work, and work well, or they wouldn't have had the influence to alter the laws like they did. It is stupid to govern parenting in this manner.

Too many more points to list right now. I may come back later and list some more... these things, and others, are annoying me too much right now...


Also, it is NOT just in the United States, it is all around the world, and it is a growing epidimec.

[MissRissa]

I feel like it's the United States more than any other country.

[HelpinHere]

I feel like it's the United States more than any other country.

Well, how often do you talk to people from outside of the united states, in their native language?
Most of the teenagers outside of the United States, who speak other languages first, speak fine English, but I have seen txt spk for phrases such as "adm" (ay dios mio, oh my god in Spanish) and others in other languages used quite frequently...

Just putting that out there.

[Silverfoxkit]

I agree. The younger generations are "growing up" without maturing.

The problem has always been wanting the best of both worlds. Wanting to have the privileges of being an adult without any of the consequences or costs. Its all fine and dandy as long as you are having to buy your own food or pay your own bills. I don't think that in itself has changes much, only the fact that parents are no longer guiding their children as well.

The blame doesn't completely fall on this generation, but the one before it that is failing as parents to teach their children and guide them properly.

What bothers me is to see children that hardly can be classified above toddlers with cell phones in mini skirts.

Why? Because their parents let them dress that way. Act that way. Supply them with the things they need to do both.

There is nothing an 8 year old needs to talk about badly enough to need a cell phone for, yet I see them all of the time. Just learned to talk and already mobile.

When I was in Kindergarten I wanted barbie dolls. When I looked at the wall last year of my nieces kindergarten class at the Christmas wish lists what did I see written? Mp3 players. Ipods. PS3. It actually made me sad.

[MissRissa]

Oh my gosh! 8 year olds with cell phones! What the hell?