I feel sorry for The Young don't you? not today's young primarily but The Young .... there are brownie points for the best collective noun you can come up with, suggestions can be logged in the comments at the bottom of this page, management retains the right to censor all entries and steal any royalties hereby endowed.... I have seen "a grunt of youth" suggested but that seems less than charitable when i consider how voluble my sons were, and the young'ns who worked for me, when i had my bizniz, could debate for England about every issue you could conceive of more knowledgeably, and with far greater passion, than most of my customers .
Why my solicitations for the young? Well, it appears that us crumblies believe everything ill under the sun is their fault, when all they are doing is living up to the job description. They are SUPPOSED to rattle cages, annoy their elders, be inconsiderate, driven by sex hormones, wear outrageous clothes, have an opinion on everything. just ask a 1920's parent's opinion of flapper dresses and the Charleston or the following contingent who ranted and railed when rock'n'roll rolled into town !!!
Every generation has used adolescence as a launch pad for change probably since the stone age, and every generation's parents have struggled to adapt. prehistoric daddy comes home to find his offspring has painted a bison on her bedroom wall.... "A BISON FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!!! no respectable cave has paintings inside, what will the neighbours say.... bison are for hunting, eating not daubing.... and while you are at it go scrub off that woad, no daughter of mine is being seen in public with body art.... antediluvian? go wash your mouth out with soap.... what do you mean 'it hasn't been invented yet' go invent it why don't you?" like i said, it's the job description.
I was a 1950s baby and no surprise that the Age of Aquarius called to my cohort. the wounds of conflict were still raw and we wanted to move on from war mongering and xenophobia, the world had seen enough bigotry and intolerance it was time for liberality and the acceptance of difference. the time was ripe for a Summer Of Love and the freer the love the better, to the horror of our parents. how ironic that those who still remember post war austerity and a divided, desolate Europe are the same ones who have voted us back to those dark and difficult times. it's the young, the same ones who are accused of wasting their votes during an election year by not turning out, who are now being berated for choosing unity and diversity over isolation and division in the referendum. look at the stats: 75% under 25 voted to remain 61% over 65 voted to leave. the generation gap made manifest.
Don't get me started on fashion, the only consistency is it's inconsistency and every time a hem rises or falls out come the predictable cries of moral degradation, youthful lack of self respect and the downfall of humanity encapsulated in a strip of fabric. it was easy pre 20's as floor length was the only show in town. then came the above knee flapper dress and from that point all was lost as every decade saw a rise and fall as predictable as the tide on the causeway of my old home of Holy Island. i caused scandal at a family wedding one hot summer in the 60's by removing the lower half of a trouser suit and consorting with a cousin in a tunic that barely covered the fundamentals.
So what are the poor children being accused of now? Pokemon Go is what !!! the media is full of warnings of rampaging youth chasing computerised beasties on private property, bringing traffic to a full stop, risking life, limb and liberty in pursuit of Pikachu. these supposedly pasty, spotty, overweight, sun deprived, gruntlings have found the temerity to leave their couch potato status behind and step onto our streets to pursue their fun in the real, via virtual, world. and after all our complaints about their lying in bed till noon, watching movies till dawn, texting and surfing till the sun burns cold are we happy about it.... are we.... ARE WE ??? no we are not. In stereotypical geriatric grouch it's all doom, gloom and downfall of mankind at the hands of angsty teens.....AGAIN !!!!
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