The Spoled (Ruined) Generation

It took me a long time to get through college. I screwed around, partied too much, dropped out, etc. In all it took me five years to finish a four year degree. I have always had mixed emotions about this. One is shame, and the other is acceptance. Many people are slow starters who do just fine once they get their acts together.

But many people who are graduating from University in 2009 seem to have taken it to an entirely new level. It is not uncommon to see someone who is in their late twenties, and is still living at home. They are still freeloading off their parents for their rent, food, laundry, and in many cases even the car, insurance, and gasoline.

My own kid is now in his early thirties and is still working on getting a University degree.

My parents started me in school one year early thinking they would give me a head start. They were nice people who I respect and admire (both are long deceased now). But as soon as I graduated from high school I was determined to spread my wings and jump out of that comfortable nest.

Extended families are good for society. Having the grandparents, aunts, and uncles around to help raise the kids helps. The different viewpoints result in these children growing into more balanced adults. It is not healthy for people who are in their mid-twenties or even older to still be living with their parents and for the most part not taking any responsibility. Not working, not cleaning the house or doing the laundry, in fact not doing much of anything at all to help out.

This incredible delay in people accepting their adult responsibilities also means that more and more women are delaying having their first child until they are in their 30’s. This is unhealthy physically and emotionally both for the children and the mother.

Unfortunately modern advanced societies demand that both the husband and wife work in order to achieve even a middle class income. So even if they do decide to have children, the kids are mostly raised by day care centers, baby sitters, and the television.

I fear that this is not going to turn out well. And in fact looking at the generation of people who are just now becoming adults, for the most part I am unimpressed.
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