Forget Grandma: It's ALL About ME!

I started a new job yesterday working with high school students. I found it particularly humorous that some of the students asked me if I was in high school myself, which by the way I took as a huge compliment because it illustrates that like my mom, I am aging well. What amazes me is how much high school has changed since I attended in the late 90's. While the majority of the textbooks have not changed, except for maybe becoming more liberal, which I started to see near the end of my high school career, the key difference if the new presence of what Glenn Beck referred to on his television show yesterday as the "Me" Generation. Here is how Glenn defined it one his show yesterday:

"A generation that only cares about 'me, me, me, mine.' A generation we never taught the meaning of merit. A generation that doesn't understand what it means to actually learn something because we've handed everything to them because our love and our compassion. It's what parents do. They've been brought up by parents who would not spank them because it was too barbaric. They weren't graded in red pens because it's too frightening, and we had to use a purple pen. A generation who got trophies no matter what place they finished in- it could be last place; they were told 'good job; here's a trophy.' A generation too busy trying to get noticed on You Tube or Facebook or Twitter to actually accomplish anything of real lasting value or make lasting value relationships. We never expected it of them. We promised them a life of sunshine, lollipops and rainbows."


As a youngster, I was taught by my parents to be self-sufficient and work hard to reach my goals, or as my parents put it: "reach for the stars," which I know is a very common current phrase, but very true. Not only did I try to do my best in school, but I worked hard in other areas of my life like sports and various extracurricular activities. Now, I may not have received an "A" in every class, but I worked as hard as I could; my parents were great because even if I received a "C," they knew that I had tried my hardest. Kids need to be encouraged and commended when they do well, commending is one thing; giving handouts are an entirely different matter. Handouts and prizes seem to be the norm now. The "Me" Generation expects more. The simple pat on the back and the "well done" have been replaced with trips, money and cars. I'm not the government, so I'm not going to look down upon or chastise a parent who may do this sort of thing. The point I am trying to make is that this generation expects such things; anything less would be unacceptable.



Parents are not solely to blame, for we see pop culture and the entertainment industry influencing kids. Not only are kids seeing and craving the latest in fashion and electronics, but more importantly, they are spending less and less time with family and more time playing video games, and on the computer. In spending less and less time with family, children are not hearing the stories of old- the stories that I remember hearing all the time as kids. I'm not talking about the stories you heard as a kid about a family member's daily trek through the snow to school. I'm talking about war stories, stories about the Great Depression, and stories about heritage. These stories shape a kid. I have to admit that as a kid, I sometimes grew tired of hearing stories like the ones mentioned above. Now as I look back, I'm glad I heard about the good and the bad times because it makes me thankful to be living in the world I live in today. While we have many hardships, and we are scared about the direction our country is heading, we have so much now that our parents and grandparents did not have. Things such as advances in medical care, more economic advantages and more educational opportunities just to name a few.




Our forefathers, and the members of past generations, risked so much, sometimes giving their lives just so we can be free. While many kids still hear the important stories, those apart of the "Me" Generation don't care enough to want to know. They don't seem to care about the struggles and hardships their grandparents went through; instead, they think the world centers around them. People like Robert Reich doesn't help the situation. The following is what he told a group of college students, only to be applauded and cheered:


"We are going to have to, if you're very old, we're not going to give you all that technology and all of those drugs for the last couple years of your life just to keep you maybe going for another couple of months. It's too expensive. So, we're going to let you die."


And the extreme liberal left called Sarah Palin a liar and fear monger for speaking out about death panels? Sarah was right in her assessment. You only have to look to the quote above for proof of this.



This notion of the whole world centering around the "Me" Generation leads to their developing a "me mentality." Glenn Beck did such a great job describing this mentality. The following is a letter written by Agnieszka Marczak of Lincoln, R.I. to the editor of "TIME" Magazine; Glenn read it on his show yesterday:


"I had to way through eight years of an administration that brought this country to the brink. Frankowsky should sit down quietly while the rest get to the task of cleaning up Bush's mess; besides, this health care debate isn't about those over 30. It is about the millions of uninsured recently graduated young people saddled with loans we cannot imagine paying off who are sick and tired of living in an abyss created by our elders' stupidity. Obama would be smart to focus on college towns: 'Step aside, grandma. We want health care, and we want it now.'"


This letter is not only disturbing, but is a clear indication of how far off course the "Me" Generation has veered. I was raised to respect my elders. Yes, I did get into trouble and was a very ornery child, but at the end of the day, I came back to reality and realized that I wouldn't be where I was or have the things I had without my elders; We owe them so much!!! Why would we want to punish them? This, essentially, is what that young individual and the rest of the "Me Generation want to do.



Our president is basically rearing this generation in the way he is leading our nation. The handouts have greatly increased. College kids are set to get tuition credits for performing community service. In walking lock step with the president, organizations and corporations, such as Disney are following Obama's lead, giving out free theme park admission to anyone who performs community service. I'm sorry, but this goes against the whole idea of community service and everything community service stands for. Yet, the "Me" Generation doesn't know any better. They see community service as a golden ticket to that prize behind door "number one," which is very unfortunate. For more on this, see "A Handout for Service." The members of "Me" Generation are going to continue to think solely about themselves until the time comes in which they are forced to learn that there are others who breath the same air as they do. Let's just hope they will realize how big a mistake it was to belong to such a dysfunctional generation.