Why are the kids today slackers & cry babies?

Answer 1

The literature calls them "Millenials," and it is quite an epidemic. I live and work with college students, and the level of DEpendence on parents has seemed to grow over the last few years. I will not claim everyone I meet in this age group is this way, but there is a strong majority.

The literature does implicate the Baby Boomer parents for the most part. Many are trying to provide a better life for their children than they had, and it has gone to excess. To start, in homes where two parents still exist, both will work to bring in more money to afford basic needs, plus the desires of their children. More hours away from home will increase the guilt of the parents that they are not spending enough time with their children, and they will make up for it by overindulgence. Bigger bills to pay means more hours at work, and the cycle starts again.

Working as hard as they do, the parents are tired when they get home and want to relax. When a child starts complaining or throwing a tantrum, the energy to fight is too great, and the parent gives in to end the situation quick. The slippery slope has begun, because the child quickly learns that they can easily get their way, and if they don't, keep up the fight and they will win.

Watch Nanny 911, and you will see. How does it get to a point where kids are throwing items at their parents in anger or beating them? The parents sit idly by or break down in tears; quite a role-reversal from two generations ago. Anyone over 25 would probably have expected to have a sore behind from a spanking or a broken arm if they ever attempted it, and no one would have thought the parent wrong for their disciplining.

By the time the children reach the age of maturity, they have had everything they ever wanted handed to them, not earned, and parents who are trying to be friends instead of guiding role models. They enter college, and expect the same treatment from those who control their futures. This goes beyond the normal "testing of waters" to be expected; there is a great lack of respect. Students will delibrately break rules or get themselves stuck in academic jams because their current personal lives outweigh their prospective futures. Then they call their parents, who have always fixed their problems before, and expect them to step in again. And they do: parents pay fines their children earn, call professors and presidents to complain their child is being treated unfairly, etc.

But it spread even more: parents are now applying for jobs on their child's behalf and calling bosses when their children did not get the raise they thought they earned. CNN.com did a story in December about these Millenials entering the workforce, and how employers are stunned at their ethic.

There will always be crybabies and lazy individuals, but we have a critical mass now. My prediction is that the Millenials, or their children, will swing the pendulum back the other way, going from overprotective parents to those willing to teach independence early to their children in hopes they will lead better lives.

Answer 2

I think the last several generations have sincerely tried to give their children a better life than thay had growing up. Unfortunately, the baby-boomers and following generations have become extraordinarily successful and have ended up not only giving them better, but giving them too much--in essence, spoiling the living daylights out of today's 20-somethings and under.

Giving children too much makes them ungrateful and unaware of the value of a hard-earned dollar. They cry because things aren't just handed to them the way Mommy and Daddy have dished it out all their young lives. Read any parenting book for younger children and it will warn you to not overgift your child or if a child has too many toys, rotate them or hide some so the child does not in fact reject all toys as unstimulating and unexciting. Too much of a good thing is, in effect, harmful. Sound familiar?

My 17 year old has friends driving brand-new BMW's to high school. (He doesn't, but we got him a classic Camaro, instead) They all have the latest electronic gadgets (Ipods, games consoles, etc.)--including him. We go for great vacations and get-aways several times a year for the whole family and we aren't shy with his allowance.

Point of all this? His father and I feel we've made a grave mistake. In letting him keep up with his peers, we've created a materialistic little monster (who I love dearly, though) that announced to us the other day that he expects us to put him through college, get him an apartment, and foot the bill for everything because he can't be bothered to work. Imagine.

He's made several bad mistakes and had several poor judgement calls this year and is not currently doing very well in school. He got into some serious trouble at school last fall and had to pay some consequences. He is unmotivated and expects us to just "arrange" the next chapter of his life to his satisfaction.

He's in for a rude awakening.

We haven't raised our boys to do this. His older brother is a Navy SEAL and completed college on his own with no help asked from us. My younger son is much younger, and I already see where my raising of him will be very different. The boys' father and myself are both from very hard-working blue-collar backgrounds and though we are both very successful today, we both earned it ourselves and value the experience immensely.

I vow to not unleash my slacking cry-baby middle son on the world unchecked and I challenge other parents to take a hard look and do the same. We as parents need to learn where that fine line is between nurturing parental generosity and spoiling the little beasts! Yes, give them more than you had growing up, but don't give them so much that they don't understand that adults derive the most satisfaction from things they work hardest for.

Let's turn slackers back into achievers!

Answer 3

Oh yeah, I cry every time. In fact it takes all my strength just to hold back from smacking the nurses out of the way :-) I know I am doing this to prevent her from suffering certain diseases, so I just remind myself of this. The nurses are used to seeing this emotion from mothers, so don't be embarrassed. The thing that I found that helped the most for me was I would give a dose of Tylenol beforehand to help take the edge off, then I would breastfeed her IMMEDIATELY after the shots, because nothing offers more comfort. If you are breastfeeding, then just do that as much as she wants during the time frame after wards, and know that you are a wonderful mom!!

Answer 4

They get rides everywhere, no matter what ! even if the school is two blocks away, they play video games all day, so nobody ever goes hunting or fishing, they are all turning into "Atheists" (this is supposed to shock you in case it hasn't, when they inform you that they are an "Atheist" look shocked, other wise they get very upset, and run home to mommy crying), nobody works a p/t job, and you must wear your hat backwards, what I don't get, is the "LOOK" (backwards hat, baggy pants 8X too big), now this "LOOK" covers every kid from 6 yrs old, to 26 yrs old, when I was 26, I did NOT want to dress like someone who is six years old, but, now that's cool to look like a six year old ! The parents are just as bad, not caring, or giving a sh-t, about anything, what they don't realize is that they are grooming a bunch of "Pansy's"

Answer 5

What BS!

I taught in a blue collar university. I had MANY students who were continuously working full time or more than full time in order to pay their tuition. They didnt have daddy buying them a BMW or even a Camaro - they bought their own cars.

My kids didnt have to work their way through school, but they did hundreds of hours of volunteer work while in college, they had part time jobs to buy extra things they wanted and I never, ever one single time heard any of them complain about money or how tough they had it. They did a great job in school and are hardworking young adults, as are all their friends.

Today's young people are terrific and I've been very happy to spend my working life with them.

Answer 6

We aren't it just looks like it because the ones that are don't leave school at grade 8 and get jobs like they used to so everyone sees more of them and they don't have to grow up until they graduate.

No, I take that back, read Shakespeare and Chauser, they had slackers and crybabies too. (Romeo!)

Answer 7

Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.

"Why can't they be like we were, perfect in every way?
What's the matter with Kids today?"

Right -- that song was from the 1960s.

I was tired of hearing your complaint when I was a kid in the 1960s. I was tired about hearing it about Generation X in the 1980s & 1990s. I'm tired about hearing about it now.

Kids are kids. Let them grow up. In fact -- perhaps you should stop whining & grow up, too.

Answer 8

It all has to do with how much their parents let them get away with. If I think back to when I was a kid, I didn't have chores, I didn't have to make my bed or mow the lawn or anything but my parents still managed to teach me that when it was time to help with something important there was no discussion about it, I just did it.

Answer 9

Because they're kids. Kids have always been slackers and crybabies. Read Shakespeare.

Answer 10

Big business has led us to believe that are kids need x box's and it would cause permanent damage if you spank. Kids are spoiled and with that are losing their values. Parents are so busy they give in out of convience also so they dont have to listen to their little brats whine. Kids have began a new generation where manners are unknown chores are unheard of and part time job, yeah right.