I was listening to the radio the other morning and the DJs were having people call in to contribute to a conversation on "kids these days," specifically on how messed up and hopeless they are and how they're going to ruin everything. Since I start working so early in the morning, I was relatively uninterested as I sat watching people swim -- that is until I heard this comment:
Needless to say, this woke me up and I listened in absolute amazement as he continued to rip apart his own daughter and her kiddy cohorts:
Well, there you go little girl. You're 5 years old and your dad thinks the world would be a better place without you. The good news though is that your dad is an idiot.
Don't get me wrong, I'll admit I'm guilty of generational stereotyping and feeling a sense of pride in regards to when I was a kid and how things were far superior "back then," and even further back than my own time. I've even actively engaged in conversations at work where we voice our own disdain in regards to the extreme lack of work ethic we notice in a lot of the younger employees. Things are different. In a lot of ways I would probably have to agree with the things Mr. 42 Year Old Father said on the radio. However, what absolutely grinds my gears is that Mr. 42 Year Old Father has no clue what his own role is in the generational pandemic he sees his own daughter falling victim to.
Mr. 42 Year Old Father, who do you think is supposed to teach your 5 year old daughter about integrity, respect for authority, and work ethic? If she has none now, who isn't doing their job?
Now, I realize I'm getting pretty ranty and that I really have no place in this argument since I'm technically not a parent yet. But isn't it a parent's job to teach their children the characteristics of a respectful human being? Through both their words and actions? By both praise and punishment? Isn't that just a part of the general "parenting" job description? Although I have no control of what the majority of my future child's generation is like, don't I at least play a small role in the kind of person she may grow into? Someone please let me know so I can replace my sense of responsibility and optimism with the "innocence" and defeatist perspective Mr. 42 Year Old Father has.
I can't help but feel extremely sad for the 5 year old daughter in this situation. After having yet another tantrum to get out of picking up her toys, she probably sits in complete oblivion playing with her iPad while dad cleans up yet again. With each toy dad puts away, his resentment for her and all the other "kids these days" grows and while his sense of being an innocent parenting saint victimized by his own child grows. Repeat this for a few months or years and you have a parent who will go as far as to say they hope they're not living when their own child becomes an adult and a child who literally doesn't know any better. If the 5 year old daughter isn't being taught, doesn't that make her the innocent one? And if the 42 year old father isn't teaching, doesn't that make him guilty?
So what do you think? Am I completely out to lunch? I feel confident in my perspective here because it was how I was raised. I can honestly say that neither of my parents were my "friends" back when I was a kid. Yes, I loved them immensely, but holy smokes, if Rena caught me sweeping all the dust and crumbs on the bathroom floor behind the door you could bet I was going to have to sweep the entire bathroom all over again (speaking from experience). And if Darryl heard me even whisper a snippy remark of back-talk after he had laid down the law, you could bet there was going to be a spanking or a really clean garage (again, experience). Do I resent my parents for this? NO. Do either of them wish that they weren't around now that I'm an adult? I like to think I can say no.
"I'm a 42 year old father and I have a 5 year old daughter. I sure hope I'm not living when this generation takes over."
Needless to say, this woke me up and I listened in absolute amazement as he continued to rip apart his own daughter and her kiddy cohorts:
"They have absolutely no integrity. They have no respect for authority. There's no work ethic."
Well, there you go little girl. You're 5 years old and your dad thinks the world would be a better place without you. The good news though is that your dad is an idiot.
Don't get me wrong, I'll admit I'm guilty of generational stereotyping and feeling a sense of pride in regards to when I was a kid and how things were far superior "back then," and even further back than my own time. I've even actively engaged in conversations at work where we voice our own disdain in regards to the extreme lack of work ethic we notice in a lot of the younger employees. Things are different. In a lot of ways I would probably have to agree with the things Mr. 42 Year Old Father said on the radio. However, what absolutely grinds my gears is that Mr. 42 Year Old Father has no clue what his own role is in the generational pandemic he sees his own daughter falling victim to.
Mr. 42 Year Old Father, who do you think is supposed to teach your 5 year old daughter about integrity, respect for authority, and work ethic? If she has none now, who isn't doing their job?
Now, I realize I'm getting pretty ranty and that I really have no place in this argument since I'm technically not a parent yet. But isn't it a parent's job to teach their children the characteristics of a respectful human being? Through both their words and actions? By both praise and punishment? Isn't that just a part of the general "parenting" job description? Although I have no control of what the majority of my future child's generation is like, don't I at least play a small role in the kind of person she may grow into? Someone please let me know so I can replace my sense of responsibility and optimism with the "innocence" and defeatist perspective Mr. 42 Year Old Father has.
I can't help but feel extremely sad for the 5 year old daughter in this situation. After having yet another tantrum to get out of picking up her toys, she probably sits in complete oblivion playing with her iPad while dad cleans up yet again. With each toy dad puts away, his resentment for her and all the other "kids these days" grows and while his sense of being an innocent parenting saint victimized by his own child grows. Repeat this for a few months or years and you have a parent who will go as far as to say they hope they're not living when their own child becomes an adult and a child who literally doesn't know any better. If the 5 year old daughter isn't being taught, doesn't that make her the innocent one? And if the 42 year old father isn't teaching, doesn't that make him guilty?
So what do you think? Am I completely out to lunch? I feel confident in my perspective here because it was how I was raised. I can honestly say that neither of my parents were my "friends" back when I was a kid. Yes, I loved them immensely, but holy smokes, if Rena caught me sweeping all the dust and crumbs on the bathroom floor behind the door you could bet I was going to have to sweep the entire bathroom all over again (speaking from experience). And if Darryl heard me even whisper a snippy remark of back-talk after he had laid down the law, you could bet there was going to be a spanking or a really clean garage (again, experience). Do I resent my parents for this? NO. Do either of them wish that they weren't around now that I'm an adult? I like to think I can say no.
