God Damned Know-it-All Young People Make me Furious
The problem with young people today is that they think they know everything.
When I was a lad, young people were ignorant – and we were smart enough to know it.
We understood that wisdom came with experience, maturity and age. Knowledge was the purview of the educated, the wealthy and the gainfully employed, not feckless pinheads with an over-inflated sense of self-worth and Wikipedia book marked on their laptops.
In my day young people didn’t presume to understand important issues let alone have an opinion on them. If my old dad told me the piano teacher from down the road was a communist sympathiser, I didn’t offer up some lukewarm retread of the First Amendment in response – I shunned the man in public, pelted his house with crab apples and joined with a mob to run him out of town.
And even if we did think we knew better than our parents we kept our mouths shut. Contradict my father? I may have been ignorant but I sure as Hell wasn’t stupid.
But nowadays, every blowhole of a 15-year old thinks they have the answer to everything from healthcare reform to global warming to the pitching needs of the New York Yankees. And all based on their extensive experience sitting in their parent’s basement watching Scooby Doo Cartons, Ashton Kutcher movies and stuffing their mouths with Ding-Dongs, Skittles and Baby Ruth candy bars.
I blame television for the whole damned mess.
At first, children’s programs were meant to do little more than stop an unattended sprog from sticking his tongue in an electrical outlet but somewhere along the line they started slipping in nasty messages telling these damned kids they were unique, smart and had opinions worth sharing.
Well let me tell you, that damned Elmo may think you’re special but as far as I’m concerned until you’ve hung up your hoodie, held down a job and paid into the tax system, you’re just some know-nothing teenager who’d be wise to keep your damned mouth shut, your opinions to yourself and let the adults do your thinking for you.
That’s just my opinion. But unless you’re over 40, I don’t want to hear any argument.
They think they know everything. That’s the problem with young people today.
The Problem with Young People Today Is... 
Dear Donald,
I don’t often use the Australian vernacular, but bloody know-it-all young people drive me to distraction. Certainly television has a lot to do with it as do those silly little T- shirts for 2 year olds that say “I Can Do Anything”. Well no, sorry, you CANNOT do anything. You cannot stick your tongue in the electric socket and NO, you cannot play in the traffic (though secretly I wish you would) and NO you cannot send hate mail to your babysitter nor swear at old people (or anyone, for that matter).
The worst offender of giving children a voice is the damned Internet. Whatever were they thinking? So now, we have millions upon millions of feckless young brain farts (sorry Donald) from all corners of the globe, who seem to be under the mistaken impression that the Internet was created just for them, for voicing all their petty grievances with every single damned vapid minutae of their pathetic boring little lives ad nauseum. Worse still, they think that can say whatever they like (and they do) and, surprise surprise, are they held accountable for their despicable behaviour online? No.
I’m all for teaching young people to be critical thinkers, BUT, young people wrongly interpret this as being free to criticise everything and everyone, as long as they can express their god damned narcissistic opinions.
To any young person reading this: So, NO I do not want your opinion on ANYTHING as Donald says, until you are old enough to vote and pay rent in your own house, buy your own food and gas, and pay for your own damned internet and mobile devices. Until then, just shut the …. Up and leave the Internet for people who have earned the right to an opinion.
End of rant.
Lily
Many thanks Lily,
A fine rant it was. You’re absolutely correct as usual. Once the army of furry puppets have finished filling the heads of these youngsters with all kinds of subversive messages, they are immediately unleashed on the internet. Just because a purple dinosaur loves you doesn’t mean you have anything of importance to say.
It’s a new damned form of pollution. It was bad enough when they were limited to tossing their candy wrappers, big mac containers and “supergiganto” soda cups on my damned lawn but now they can toss their idiot thoughts all over the internet without any filter or recourse.
Perhaps the time has come to pull the damned keyboards out of their hands and replace it with a shovel, rake or pair of gardening shears. They’d learn a hell of a lot more digging a ditch and would save us all the trouble of sifting through their half-assed opinions.
Thanks for visiting, Lily.
All the best,
Don
To be fair to the furry puppets though
To improve science and mathematics education for American children, the White House is recruiting Elmo and Big Bird.
I may be only 37 but I DO agree with you about know it all PUNKS… put em to hard work and see how they fare… I get more FLACK from my 9 yr old niece who thinks she knows more then ME or any other older adult and talks to adults like scum ( as well as flipping us the bird). I wish they never banne4d old fashioned punishments.. kids have NO respect anymore.
well isnt that a shame ! that sucks that you old people have nothing better to do than to go on the internet and bitch about kidsget in the kitchen and make food like your made to do you dusty old fart
if your gonna bitch about the internet find a better place than the internet to do it…hypocrite but i hope you have a wonderfull day and dont bitch to much.
Jesus Jimmy Jones,
I’m not sure what you’re baking in that damned kitchen of yours but I’m guessing it’s brownies of some infernal sort (and I sure as Hell hope there isn’t any kool-aid involved).
“bitch about kidsget in the kitchen and make food like your made to do you dusty old fart”
It could be my pain medication, JJ, but I can’t help feel that you’re proving my point. You’re obviously worked up, feel strongly about your opinion and believe yourself to be right but at the end of the day – you make no god damned sense.
I don’t like to pick on spelling, grammar and punctuation (I make plenty of boners myself) but, honestly, this is unreadable.
Take a few minutes and compose your thoughts before you call me a dusty old fart. I don’t mind being called a dusty old fart – I just like to understand why.
And don’t worry, lad, I complain in person, over the phone, via correspondence and by ham radio as well.
Thanks for the comment, though, lad. I appreciate the effort and hope you have a wonderful day as well.
All the best, Jimmy Jones.
Don
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!!!!
Wow, Lily, you went for that one! Excellent polemic BTW.
However, limiting opinions to taxpayers leaves out you senile pension sucking ancients…
Oh Miranda, you’re a pip.
Nothing better than an outraged 13 year old fiscal conservative who’s never paid into a pension, the tax system or anything more ambitious that a Daisy Duck savings account.
Sorry to be harsh, Miranda, but it’s just too damned much.
Don
p.s. In all seriousness, you’re too young to be on this website. Some of the content isn’t appropriate to a lass your age.
You however cannot deny the fact that I am working towards is paying taxes for YOU…show some respect, you know the world will be my generations in a few years, would you insult and discredit a prince as he rises to power on the throne? of course not, he would behead you before that happened (figure of speech). In fact, in 5 years I will be paying taxes and only looking forward to work for the rest of my life, so why not put myself ahead now and argue my generation worth to you?
I do understand how taxes work by the way, I googled it.
p.s. I’ve never had a Daisy Duck bank account, I like Donald better.
Okay, as long as you googled it.
Thanks Miranda.
All the best,
Don
Don,
Even though Miranda used Google to look up anything regarding factual information about Tax paying — doesn’t justify their disrespectful, pretentious arrogance within their reply. They obviously didn’t Google enough to dilute their own ignorance in order to comprehend how you (and others in your generation) have paid enough taxes in your own life, to compensate her generation’s freedoms, as well as education. So we can now ascertain just what little knowledge technology has provided them. lol. Oh, how I love the smell of books! 😉 And always will.
P.S. Don, if you would, please delete this post of mine! I could not find an edit link to click on in order to correct a mistake. And then it ended up duplicating my message. I would delete this one myself, but am unable to.
Thank you! 🙂
Definitely nothing worse than a fiscal or social conservative lol. Take care Don. While I dont advocate running so-called communist out of town,I do understand where you are coming from. I have a step-son that thinks he has all the answers but he does nothing but blame the world for his personal mistakes. Time to bring back paddling in the school and to allow parents to put the belt to the kids. I am a die-hard liberal on most issues but when it comes to disciplining the kids,I am all for a belt or a good old hickory “switch” lol. Take care Don.
The tax money the pensioners paid their whole lives pay their own pensions…..And who has paid for your 13yrs of life. The world supports each other in youth then again in old age….It’sa fair system that balances out in the end.
I suppose if you don’t believe in paying taxes that somehow go to the pensioners that paid taxes their whole lives you could always calculate how much it cost for your parents to raise you and pay it all back.
Then and only then could your opinion have a chance of being valid.
Comparing yourself to a rising Prince just confirms the narcissistic viewpoint Lily was speaking about.
” … how much it cost for your parents to raise you and pay it all back … ”
First off, paying for your kids is EVERY parent’s responsibility. If you CHOSE to have kids (through sexual or embryo injections) then it’s YOU who must pay that price by raising them to the best of your ability WITHOUT expecting any form of repayment from your kids in the future.
That’s why there are so many people out there who are not fit to have kids and should be sterilized. If you can’t accept the responsibility to raise a child that you brought into this world, then the least you could do is give him/her up for adoption.
Right on ACH1LL1ES! Well said! Miranda must have forgotten to Google that part.
Oldperson in youngperson costume,
Applauds, and very well said as well!
Another important piece of information little Miranda must have forgotten to Google.
That says it all !!!!
Don, you hit the nail on the head again. I am only 28, but I hate the young people also. I am ashamed of them. Back when I was younger, I had learned respect. Something that most of this generation does not know. And for the record, I hate wikipedia. If I want to find out something, then I look it up the old ways…..in a book
Thank you kindly Jason and welcome,
First off, good on you for using a book as a reference document. It’s a dying art but it’s nice to know that some young people still see the value.
And don’t worry about your age. At 28 you’re starting to turn the corner. Another 20 years and you’ll be out of the woods once and for all.
All the best and thanks for stopping in.
Best regards,
Don
I’m so ashamed. I remember feeling the same way when I was under 40. What was I thinking?
They’ll learn soon enough. Just give them 30 years.
Many thanks Pamela,
Nothing wrong with shame. There appears to be a worldwide shortage at the moment. In my view, more people should get some. The planet would be a far more decent place.
All the best,
Don
“When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished by how much he’d learned in seven years.”
~ Mark Twain
Okay, so multiply that by two and you’ll reach the point where you can go toe-to-toe with Donald Mills.
Thank you Debbi,
I always enjoy a Mark Twain quote. I’ve always been partial to this one:
“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”
And of course…
“All generalizations are false, including this one.”
All the best,
Don
If there is anyone to blame for the “trouble with young people today” it is Ashton Friggin Kutcher. History will show that he and he alone was responsible for the downfall of youth. Had he not made himself cool by marrying a cougar he would have ended up on the childhood star heap like the entire cast of Beverley Hills 90210 and OC. Now he is responsible for every friggin over 40 telling the world what they are doing in 140 character or less. He is a friggin demi god 😦 .
But he married a 47 year old woman, so give him credit for trying to learn . . . maybe.
It was a ploy Jammers to infiltrate the middleagers and get closer to Bruce!
Thanks very much Frigginloon,
Sad to think the lad will go down in history at all but who am I to debunk the long-term importance of films like “Dude, Where’s my Car?” In my day, we looked up to actors like James Stewart. He may not have married a “cougar” but he was a fine film actor and also a Brigadier General in the United States Air Force Reserve.
Still, he didn’t “tweet” so I suppose it’s hard to take him seriously.
All the best,
Don
And saw very large rabbits!
I blame Whitney Houston and that song “The Greatest Love of All”….. how did young people get to hold themselves in such high esteem? by listening to the lyrics of that stupid song
Many thanks Nurse Myra,
I’m not familiar with the song (if it isn’t available on 78 I’m likely not be familiar with it) but it’s a damned preposterous title. While they appear to have the fornication part down to a fine art (they won’t practice their multiplication tables but they’re happing to practice their damned humping) it seems to me that they know nothing about love.
Thanks for visiting.
Hope you’re keeping well.
Don
Good one Nurse Myra, I forgot about Whitney’s involvement 🙂
My God, you guys are being rough on Ashton Kutcher. My God. Anyway, I do agree with you wholeheartedly as usual. I know that the problem is with the idiot box. These young hooligans are being influenced by the TV alright, but it’s not the atrocious sitcoms, horrendous dramas, or unwatchable reality shows. The problem is that the God damned news isn’t news anymore.
In my youth I could sit myself down in front of the evening news and learn about current events. And that Russia wanted to kill us all. But we were free of all of this ‘personality’ nonsense. Now, the entire news business is filled with either commie loving cat-whisperers or racist, armed militia gathering rabble rousers urging you to stick a teabag somewhere or other.
So whatever side of the fence their parents or gang-leader is on, you can bet they’ll be on too. They’re still lemmings, but they’re lemmings who just scream, type, twitter, or text whatever they heard some other jackass spouting about the night before.
Ashton who? I’m so old if he was shown to me in a line up I could not identify him for certain. I’m still in love with Sean Connery.
Well said Scott,
Those damned cat-whisperers are especially execrable. In my day we called people who talked to cats “mental deficients” or “witches” and had them sent away for the protection of others. We sure as hell didn’t give them a television program or put them on the evening news.
Excellent comment, Scott. Couldn’t agree more.
Best regards,
Don
I’m in with you too Scott… a damn fine post reply… and keep up the great work Mr. Mills… G-Damn youngins are so friggin irritating… My son is totally guilty of running his fly trap when he should be silent… Even got fired from a job once and I talked the manager into hiring him back with the promise that he would zip it… lasted about 2 more months before he got fired…
Don;
When I was 18, I thought I knew everything. Then in my 30’s, I started to have a few doubts. Now, at age 45, I feel I know jack-squat.
Hmph. Seems it just keeps going downhill.
When does it level off, and start going up again?
How much longer, before I can start feeling old and wise?
Keep on waiting. The wisest of the oldest don’t feel wise, they only feel old, dearie.
I’d suggest you’re well on your way, Friar.
It’s the unceasing din of young people screaming in the background that’s causing the problem I’m sure. They’ve thrown the natural order of thing right out of whack and are giving everyone over 40 a headache and brain cramp.
Take two aspirin and yell at a punk kid. You’ll feel better soon enough.
All the best,
Don
The wisest of all are the ones who know they don’t know everything. 🙂
I believe it was Albert Einstein (when he was well over forty, by the way) who said that the more we learn the more we find out that we don’t know. As the edge of the sphere of knowledge expands outward, it necessarily gets larger and larger, revealing the vast mystery beyond the edges. Those damned young people are sitting inside a sphere of knowledge that has such a tiny circumference they are made ecstatic and delusional by the fact that they know so much and what they need to learn appears to be so small. And they have been empowered in that opinion, as you so magnificently point out, by television and the internet pouring messages of “Self Esteem” into their tiny shell like ears.
The REALLY annoying thing is that they are so damned ignorant that when some twit half my age is trying to tell me how to do something that I started doing before they were born, they don’t even understand the reference when I tell them “Not to try to teach their grandmother to suck eggs.”
Wonderful! Very eloquently stated, healingmagichands.
I have nothing to add but my sincere thanks.
All the best,
Don
Dear Ms healingmagichands,
I concur wholeheartedly with Donald in regards to your wonderful comment.
It shows a high degree of insight, which I find is quite rare on the Internet. I particularly like
“young people are sitting inside a sphere of knowledge that has such a tiny circumference they are made ecstatic and delusional by the fact that they know so much and what they need to learn appears to be so small.”
Until you introduced that imagery of the sphere (for me it became a bubble and one they cannot see out of) I had imagined it to be more like a net and more specifically, a cobweb. (The parallels with the Internet have not escaped me) I had the mental image of young people as insects caught in a spider’s cobweb.
Back in the bubble, however, I think they have graduated from being “empowered” with purely narcissistic over- inflated self esteem to shameless and aggressive self-aggrandisement (had to look that up for the spelling)
self-aggrandizement
n.
the act of increasing one’s own power, importance, etc., esp in an aggressive or ruthless manner
self-aggrandizing adj
but chose the Australian English spelling.
Lily
Facebook and twitter! Those damn insidious purveyors of everything wrong with young people. One can read anything and everything about anybody on its pages from hell. Those damn young punks insulting us older, wiser, highly more intelligent generation, is the height of moronic behavior. If they took the time to learn a tenth of what we know, they would be humbled at the very sight of us.
Problem is, they have been so brainwashed by their own lack of intelligence and addiction to computer “socializing sites”, it would take a Herculean project to unlearn all the crap they have so uselessly learned, and teach them life consists of more than, “I’m going to do my nails now,” or, “Suzy wears old clothes; how stupid!”
Thanks very much Jammer,
I very much approve of the notion of young people being humbled before us. And it only seems fair. I spent my entire youth being humbled by the sight of older folks and I want my due. A few bows, curtseys, a little genuflecting, the occasional “Yes Sir” and some damned cowering wouldn’t go amiss either.
But I fear you’re right. Their brains have been acid washed, tumbled dry and shrunk to the point that they no longer fit.
Many thanks. Always a pleasure to have your company.
Don
That will earn you a defriending or two Jammers 😦
did you know that they no longer teach children how to use a dictionary? I was astounded to learn this from my 4th grader. He is still giving me the veiled rolled eyed look when I tell him to look it up. Doesn’t matter what it is, just look it up. How does he think I learned? I still have to look things up but now I’m a big enough girl to look up the dictionary on line rather than in a hard covered book. Don’t get me wrong, I still have plenty of those lying around for times I’m too lazy to type in the word.
I do know everything, and what I don’t know, I’m willing to admit I don’t know. It’s a hard lesson to teach the young ones today. When we say we don’t know, we get that knowing look that says ” you’re old and an idiot”..I usually say “why not look it up and let me know the answer.” don’t you know the little punks never have the answer when I ask later. We are made to feel bad because we are expecting our son to work hard and think harder. But we are told that we are too hard on him. In todays society we don’t want him to be average, we want him to be better..average is the hoodied, smart ass, knowitall damn younguns’ we need him to be better than that.
I may not be 40 yet (not much longer now) but I have learned plenty these last few years of my 30’s…including but not limited to the fact that I was once a smartass, knowitall teenager who caused my father and stepmother great anguish during those unworthy years of my life. Apologize have been given..
Many thanks hisqueen,
Raising young ones is a challenging business, there is little doubt about that. Your lad’s fortunate to have a family that isn’t willing to settle for average and in the the long run I’m sure he’ll thank you for it.
But god have mercy on you ’til then.
All the best,
Don
I’m presuming by now you have taught him how to look something up in the dictionary. If he doesn’t know how to, how can he?
Yes Miss Lily,
We even bought several dictionaries for him (so he won’t have to keep carrying the big one up and down the stairs doing homework)and a few reference books also. He is quite the wonderful intelligent lad with many possibilities in live. He has recently hit 9 yrs of age and is testing his boundaries in several ways. He was told he reached and crossed several boundaries and is now working hard to get himself back in line. In fact we are so proud of him that we are trying to have one of our own. (I have 2 older ones and the younger one I speak of is my Stepson)
That is excellent. It’s surprising the number of people, adults included, who don’t know how to use a dictionary properly.
That was a laugh riot!
But seriously, the new residents coming to us these days are exactly the know it all types that you describe – all hell-bent on proving that their seniors are old fogeys and quacks who should be equated with Hippocrates : reverend but irrelevant. Some of them don’t even talk to the patient or touch him but are very prompt in ordering expensive and unnecessary diagnostic tests. The patient is not a person to them but only an entity in a protocol flow-chart.
Many thanks Doctoratlarge,
Interesting comment. And more than a little frightening. I’m very fortunate to have a long-standing family doctor. He may not be up on the latest theory or the newest technology but he’s a decent old duff and he knows how to treat people (in both the medical and personal sense).
Having been around hospitals more than a few times, I have some familiarity with the protocol flow-chart type of doctor and hospital administration staff. It can be a damned chilling experience. Fortunately, they don’t appear to me to be in the majority (at least not yet)
Always good to have you stop in Doctor.
All the best,
I have been most fortunate to have found one of the wonderful doctors who actually listen to the patients heart and lungs and will touch them if needed to see what may be wrong. He even listens to what they say instead of just nodding and writing a script for whatever he thinks they want. He was the astonishment of the residency program almost 8 years ago.
Liked him so much I decided to marry him.
Telling you that I knew what you were talking about would be pointless since I am only in my 39th year. If I was a year older, I would try to add psychiatrists to the list of people to blame for making everyone think ANYONE cares about what they think or, God forbid, FEEL.
I have no intention of defending my old profession against any and all genuine criticism. BUT, I think you might mean psychotherapists, many of whom are not medical but usually psychology graduates who intone some theory they learnt.
I recently ranted about this at Claire Collins blog, feel free to view at;
it’s comment 23, rather down the page!!
Sorry to divert traffic Donald!
Never a problem Dave. Thanks for the link.
Don
Nope. They usually try to put words in the mouths of people they are talking to instead of actually listening…thanks for making my point for me…I meant psychiatrists…
Brilliant.
Thank you morethananelectrician,
Good to see you lad. I trust all is well in the world of wiring. Not sure if I ever thanked you for the electrical advice but it was greatly appreciated. Despite my reservations about modern technology, I replaced the last of my beloved knob and tube and am now able to turn on my bathroom light without an accompanying shower of sparks.
Personally, I feel television has done more damage than psychiatrists and psychotherapists but I’d agree that people spend too much time trying to get in touch with their damned feelings. There was a time when people repressed (suppressed?) their damned feelings and just got about their business – and we were all better for it.
Thanks for visiting.
Don
And in my day Ding Dongs were known as KING Dongs. Guess the Ding Dong youngens took over that too.
Thank you Bearman,
I wasn’t aware of the switch from King Dongs to Ding Dongs. Personally, I think “Ding Dong” is a better name for any treat designed with young people in mind. The name King Dongs would most certainly lead to delusions of grandeur and puerile penis jokes.
I see, however, that the company still has a produce called “King Dons.” I have no objection to that.
All the best,
Don
Well said, Don! And you certainly won’t be hearing any argument from me. In fact I was just complaining about this very issue last weekend.
You see, last Friday night my friends and I ended up at some kid-infested frat party down at the University Campus. (Trust me, had we known that the crowd would be so young, there’s a small chance we wouldn’t have gone in the first place.) Anyway, while I was there, this young frat boy came up to me and started trying to talk Politics.
I couldn’t believe it! He was all like “So what do you think about Stephen Harper’s trip to India?” And I was like “Who?” And he was like “You know…the Prime Minister?” And I was like “Dude, you’re a kid. And I’m Canadian…what in the hell do we know about politics?”
It was pretty brutal, Don. I mean I still let him feel me up and all, but the whole time I was thinking to myself, “I can’t believe I’m letting such a naïve kid who thinks he knows it all feel me up!” Needless to say, had I not been extremely drunk and lonely at the time, it definitely wouldn’t have happened.
Anyway, stellar post as always, Mr. Mills. Your word is like a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Your friend,
Bschooled
Many thanks Bschooled.
I’ve said it before but nothing good has ever come from a visit to a Canadian University.
That’s quite a disturbing encounter you describe. Who the Hell tries to pitch woe using Stephen Harper as their opening line? Rene Levesque I can understand but Stephen Harper???
It really makes you wonder about what the Hell they are teaching these young pups. In my day, we didn’t know who the President or Prime Minister or Grand Poobah was and we didn’t care. We were taught blind obedience, patriotism 101 and advanced conformity.
I thought India was part of Belgium until I was 35 and I was a better man for it.
Thanks for visiting with me.
All the best,
Don
I think these god damn kids need to get off the facebook, xbox, my space..twitter…ecstasy…..masturbating in the closet with their friends….late for dinner cause my buddy is at a skateboarding party…why do i have to walk the dog…..and so on and so forth……but don what is with the under 40 comment…lots of folks i know under 40 are some of the hardest god damn workers i know…i think your getting riled up is getting the best of you….get a country time lemonade..a martha stewart book and go sit out back in the shade under the big oak..but take a blanket in case you get cold…zman sends
Masturbating in the closet with their friends?
Exactly how big are kid’s closets these days anyway?
One wonders why they chose “twitter” and “tweet”; presumably an analogy to birds. More like a raucous cacophony of murderous crows to me and quite frankly it’s an insult to birds.
Nice to hear from you Zman,
I had to draw the line somewhere, Zman, and 40 seemed the logical place. I’ll admit that there are some decent hardworking folks under that age but in general, I don’t trust anyone that doesn’t have 4 decades of experience under their belt.
Perhaps you’re right about me getting too riled up. But making Martha Stewart cracks doesn’t help! I’m going to take your advice but substitute Mr. Zane Grey for Ms. Steward, a short rye for the lemonade and red maple for the old oak.
Thanks for visiting lad.
Best regards,
Don
Hi Donald,
I appreciate this blog because you seem to be of the generation of my parents. However, the world has open up tremendously and if you tell a child today men are from mars, just a google search can tell the truth.
as young people we think we know everything because everyone wants to be an expert on a topic these days…even on twitter…so people like being the go to one.
I appreciate these times to yours lol
I don’t know, Corve…
Having a Google search is all fine and dandy but there’s just one thing missing from it. Critical thinking. We can all Google “Did Aliens Kill the Dinosaurs” and “Professor Fringe” is happy to share his government conspiracy theories with us… But that doesn’t mean it’s true. Google can get you the facts — just not always the right ones.
http://tinyurl.com/yh7p7u5
PS: I did a fast search on “Men are from Mars” because I have no doubt there are people who believe it to be true… I was completely blown away to discover that not only are Men from Mars BUT woman are from Venus.
My God! It’s an alien invasion!!!
Oy, Truitt, back to your own blog, we’re waiting…
Hee hee…
Give him Hell, Dave!
Nice of you to visit Corve,
Always good to hear the views of a well-dressed young person.
I tend to share Mr. Truitt’s views on the issues you raise. I’m also a tad skeptical that Twitter is fostering an atmosphere of expertise but as I’ve never actually had any direct experience in that area, I’ll take you at your word.
Many thanks for visiting.
Don
maybe the problem is that they were taught to speak at much too early an age. they shouldn’t be allowed to say anything (other than telling us they have to go potty) until they are at least out of junior high (and then only to ask if they should take out the garbage). of course, we were too winded to speak when we were young, having to walk to and from school, in the snow, uphill both ways (anyone else go to m.c. escher elementary?).
Thank you kindly Nonnie,
I fully support the notion that children should be seen and not heard. In fact, back in the 50s I was involved with a political organization that was pressing to have the saying amended to read “child should kept hidden in basements and remain mute until 25.” The phrase never really took off and we were unsuccessful in moving the idea forward.
Sadly, I never had the opportunity to attend M.C. Escher elementary. A shame but I heard the stairs were a bit of a challenge.
All the best,
Don
I’m fifty next week and I’m sending you a big raspberry, you crabby old thing. Perhaps a little laxative might make you feel better, dear.
Many thanks Syncopated Eyeball,
Happy upcoming birthday and congratulations on turning 50.
Given your advanced age, I’ll gladly accept your raspberry and consider your advice with respect to the laxative. It may not help, but it certainly can’t hurt.
All the best,
Don
All the more reason why the “Know-it-All” has to be included in the card set. A young person’s solution to running a business: “Pour more money into advertising.” As a marketing professional (when not campaigning for President of the United States), I appreciate the sentiment. However, the business owner in me knows that in order to pour money into something, you need money to pour. You also need to spend wisely and get a return in your investment. Sometimes I think these kids are running our government.
Many thanks Ahmnodt,
Always good for a presidential candidate to have a fall back career. Sadly, the know-it-all didn’t make it into the next round of cards. It got bumped in favor of “the raver”, “the assclown” and “the heavy metal moron” (plus a rare and collectable group card).
It’s on the list though and should be slated for the round following that.
All the best and thanks for visiting,
Don
Heavy metal moron?
Nothing personal, of course, downcastmysoul. I know you fancy that particular brand of music (despite my best efforts to introduce you to the classics!)
I suspect you might also be disappointed by the fact that despite your comment on the last set of cards, I do not yet have any completed which include people of color. I am working on it however.
All the best,
Don
No probz…I want to see the Heavy Metal card anyway.
Hell of a post, Don. Couldn’t agree with you more.
Or maybe I could.
I’m 35 at the moment and still on the shy side of 40. I’ve already been besmirched by Steve Dahl for my Internetting and Mouthing Off. Perhaps I could do some extra credit work or fake a limp for awhile or something to get on the right side of 40 without all those extra birthdays.
Please advise.
Many thanks CLT,
After reading your assault on Mr. Dahl I’m not sure I particularly want to promote you to 40 and be subject to any disagreement. Nevertheless, if it is extra credit you seek, I have a few instant aging techniques that you may wish to consider.
First off, hitch those pants up a notch or two. If you can still see your belly button you just aren’t trying hard enough.
Next, amend your weekly shopping list to include mentholated rub, digestive biscuits, a copy of “Jumble Weekly” (large print addition), assorted hard candy and 3 different forms of bran (e.g., muffins, cereals etc.,)
And finally, hoard newspapers.
Follow my simple advice and you’ll be 80 before you know it, lad.
All the best,
Don
Dearest Don, you are talented, incredibly funny, clever, entertaining and informative!! I am greatly honored that you even noticed my renderings. I have now subscribed. I think I have, anyway. (this newfangled form of communication befuddles me) but hopefully, I will be advised of each and every one of your future posts.
Thank you for making yourself known to me!
Your fan,
Marge (Marjoram Fennel)
Thank you kindly Marge,
I appreciate the very kind comment and am pleased you’ve taken the time to visit. I hope to hear from you again.
All the best,
Don
p.s. if you figure out the subscription issue please do let me know. I’ve been hesitant to try it myself for fear that I’ll end up getting copies of the Readers Digest, Field and Stream, Playgirl, Better Housekeeping and Vogue mailed to me as a result.
I have the utmost respect for the elderly. There is no way I could compete with them mentally. That’s just how I was raised, “the elderly know everything, if you listen you might learn something.” However the internet does benefit us young-uns. What else would it be used for if not for us? The internet is a learning tool. Seeing to the fact that the streets are no longer safe for us to wander, as they once were in your day, we must turn to the only outlet we have to the world. But that’s just how I feel. Don’t think I’m not aware of those know-it-all’s though. I hate that people my age (15) will say the rudest things to adults. Wikipedia is the worst website ever. Any information I need I check my mothers book collection for.
Many thanks Willowbatel,
It’s always nice to hear from a decent young person and one who has their priorities straight.
I appreciate you sharing your thoughts but continue to question how many young folks are actually using the internet for educational purposes. While I have no doubt that you use the resource wisely, a quick review of the most active websites in America would suggest that educational content isn’t a high priority for most.
All the best and thanks for visiting. If you plan on returning to this site, I would respectfully ask that you make your mother aware of your presence here. At times, the content may be not entirely appropriate for someone of your age.
Best regards,
Don
No, they don’t understand consideration for an alternative point of view. Hmmm, wonder where they get that attitude…..
But this is wrong. The only thing that comes with experience, maturity and age is, well, experience, maturity and age.
Knowledge is the purview of the educated. The wealthy and gainfully employed are just that, those conditions do not endow one with knowledge.
That was due to the threat of physical pain, a tool used by ignorant fools.
Yep, this is how we should treat other human beings. Nice. Oh, and you spelled sympathizer wrong.
Again, the threat of physical violence. So, you learned it from you father. Nice.
Yes, because before the advent of television young people were perfect.
This ignorant rant is supposed to be funny, but fails miserably when the undertones are dredged to the surface with careful reading.
Many thanks Steve,
I appreciate your taking the time to complete such an in-depth dredging and analysis. You’re obviously a smart lad and not one to have the wool pulled over his eyes. That careful reading pays off every time. Well done.
And you are right about the piano teacher. In retrospect it was damned ignorant of us to run the man out of town, especially since it turned out he wasn’t a communist at all – he just had an unconventional career and a bushy moustache. Oh well, the folly of youth.
Drop in anytime lad. I’m always anxious to hear opposing views. Especially when they are well thought out clearly articulated.
All the best and thanks again for visiting.
Don
p.s. nice damned formatting too.
“If my old dad told me the piano teacher from down the road was a communist sympathiser, I didn’t offer up some lukewarm retread of the First Amendment in response – I shunned the man in public, pelted his house with crab apples and joined with a mob to run him out of town.”
Ummm that was the reason I didn’t immediately respond to this post. It’s the ultimate evil to ostracize and harass another person based on rumors and lies…even if it were true the man was a communist, dosen’t the First Amendment protect his right to feel the way he does?
Not in America, it don’t!
The 1st Amendment is there to protect your right to attack him.
Steve seems to have had a complete sense of humour failure…
Comes with being a Y generationer 🙂
This curmudgeonly young fellow might be playing the irony game. Difficult to tell with the young folk of today.
Thanks Wilbur,
You could be right but as you point out – you never can tell with these damned young folks.
Best regards,
Don
Hey, Don spelt sympathiser perfectly! You’ll be saying next that colours should be spelt without the ‘u’!
Thank you Catherine,
I confess to having an unfortunate hybrid of American, British and Canadian spelling.
All the best,
Don
Hey! Nancy (aka Steve), I read your comments and I too have seen the error of my ways and the evil that masquerades in this site in the form of humor. I too will dispense truth and god like wisdom, showing these miscreants the error of their ways and the true path to enlightenment and godhead for I too have come to the conclussion that I am omnipotent, omniscient and well, always right with no room for any other opinions or insights but mine because, lets face it, the world keeps getting better (mostly because I am in it). and it’s only a matter of time before I rule the universe and fix it all. This will happen as soon as I take a short pause to take care of a certain piano teacher, but don’t you worry…
Ditto to Steve on the remark that age and experience doesn’t create Wisdom:
When I view a persons’ wisdom and maturity I don’t go by age. I go by attitude.
I’ve seen very immature and ignorant people in thier 50+ claiming to be “old” and therefore wise. (don’t think 50 is old at all unless you are obese and/or destroy your own body and mind with a narrow persnickety attitude)
Wisdom doesn’t come automatically with age; nor does it shun the young. Wisdom and age are not synonymous.
You see nasty young people with ignorant views and lots of arrogance who learn nothing . Then they grow into wrinkly nasty people with ignorant views and lots of arrogance!
Not everyone “learns” as they grow older and some go backwards-getting more out of date, haughty and bitter.The old age just exaggerates bad habits already formed, adds to a stubborn personality and if they abuse ignorant, narrow thoughts they may just be getting more stupid by the year as they kill their brains off.
The beauty of the written word is no-one can see your face or have a bias against you.
I’ve posted some very old writings of my own I dug up which were better than anything I could think of right now. The age I wrote them was 14 and without the young face attached to the anonymous text people thought they were beautiful and would never suspect they were written by someone younger than 30.
Another important point is that Wisdom is not only seperate to age- but also separate to Intelligence. People often assume that to be Wise you must be academically intelligent or have an accute mind.
Well I believe a young, mentally retarded boy or girl could be very wise. They don’t have age or socially acceptable intellect but I have seen such people be wise. The concept of wisdom is not truly understood by the mainstream. Wipe the idea out of your head that only a wrinkly, clever person could be wise.
Unfortunately you need the old face to have your words taken seriously. This is a attitude in society that needs to be changed.
Dear Donald,
I have noticed a few people express their dislike and disdain of Wikipedia and I’m writing to counter these remarks because, for the record, I love Wikipedia or Wiki as I affectionately call it.
I have always loved research and have an extensive home library with many many books I have collected over the years, including encyclopedias and ever since I was a child (many moons ago) I have visited the local library and have always borrowed books regularly.
One of the really worrisome aspects of growing old is that, and especially if you have always been a hard worker like I have, is you can lose the strength in your hands and arms and to pick up, let alone read a heavy book like an encyclopedia, can be and is for me, excrutiatingly painful. It becomes physically impossible.
So I am more than pleased with the advent of the Internet and Wiki .
Wiki is an excellent starting point for any research, in my opinion, and I do not have a problem with it, so I am not sure really why people are so down on it. They say things like “anyone can edit it” etc. But seriously, have you ever tried to edit Wiki? Believe me, it isn’t as easy as it sounds.
your wiki-loving
Lily
Thank you Lily,
You raise a good point and I too have been known to consult Wikipedia with some frequency. My concern, and I suspect you may agree, is that it’s dangerous for young people to use a single source document for all information – and especially dangerous when the choice of source document is largely motivated by convenience.
All the best,
Don
You know what I like about Wikipedia?
You can look up your favorite TV stars from way back, and find out what they’re up to.
Take Frank Cady, for example. He’s still around. He’s 94.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Cady
He played Sam Drucker on “Green Acres and “Petticoat Junction”. I remember watching those shows when I was just a tad.
That was some mighty fine programming, back then. With good, healthy small-town family values.
Thanks Friar,
I enjoyed both shows very much. Especially Green Acres – that damned Arnold the pig was too damned funny. My favourite character was Mr. Haney (though Hank Kimball came a close second).
Glad to hear that Frank Cady is still with us. I just checked wikipedia and apparently both Pat Buttram and Alvy Moore are dead. Not sure about Arnold the pig but I’m guessing he’s no longer with us either.
Fine programming indeed. And funny as Hell.
Don
I always had a crush on that Mary Jo.
Or was it Bobby Jo? Or Becky Jo?…whatever. I could never get them straight.
But stunning women, all of them.
You know, I love Wikipedia as well and use it far more often than is probably healthy. And yet, I feel compelled to slam it in print quite often, using pithy phrases like, “according to the crowd-sourced hacks at Wikipedia…”
I’m sure that says several things about me, none of them particularly good.
IMESHO, any research on the web should include wiki’s take on the matter, because most of what is there will save one a whole heap of effort.
Know-it-all kiddies…. I can’t think of anything more annoying. I teach elementary school and some of my 5th grade students think that they know everything, including how to teach my class. But somehow when I offer them the opportunity to come up and actually teach, they never seem to want to do so.
I’m a mere girl of 25, almost 26, and I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know jack-shit about a lot of things. But I’ll be damned if I’ll sit there and let some little 10 year old punk tell me what’s what. I’ve sent more than one of those kids up to the office for a paddling. (Thank God I work at a school that allows paddling still!) I know enough to know that listening to my elders is in my best interest. I think I’ll make a tee shirt saying something along those lines as an answer to the kids’ shirts with smart-ass little comments on them.
Many thanks Mary,
I enjoyed your comment a great deal. You seem like quite a smart 25 (almost 26) year old to me.
And it sounds like you’re doing a fine job keeping those little Hellians in line. (I admire anyone who selects teaching as a profession – it’s challenging work and God knows I couldn’t do it). Keep up the good work and keep your eyes open; those 10 year olds can be damned slippery.
All the best,
Don
Bet Steve has a comment on this comment…
Hi Donald, I’ve just landed here (on a suggestion from my friend Ivan) and found your text really funny and apprpriate. I too hate young people, modern young people, post moder whatever… but there’s something that bothers me too, almost in the same measure: don’t old people think they know too much either, in an even more catastrophic way, since most are very sure of their own experiences and dogmas settled down like dust with time? I had a teacher who said to me a long time ago whiele we were discussing about music: you are very arrogant…I have probably listened to more music than you will ever do in your whole life. At the time, I found two big mistakes in that sentence: the stupid certainty of something tha that he couldn’t have the least idea, and was probably wrong (he was a mathematician, not a musician or something), he didn’t know my rate of listening to music. And the other was that he was showing some kind of despair, some exhasperation simply on account of my youth. I did know as much as he did about music and he provoked the discussion, but he was angry of the result. And he was full of prejudices again everything, including youth. My youth was a healthy one, but I was ahead of my time. Listened to Shostakovitch and Coltrane while my friends were only rocking. I suppose he didn’t bear that but he shouldn’t have started the argument…and worse: shouldn’t have shown the anger he was feeling, that diminished the respect I had for his grey hair. By the way, he used to flatter young ladies in a very pathetic way. But he thought he was a genius (besides math teacher, he was a poet, a good one) so he had the right to say things not always respectable and act like an old mister when he wanted, and like a ridiculous boy in other times. He was too sure of himself.
I’d rather say I hate old people too, sometimes.
Of course I won’t say how old I am.
That was just with the intention of adding something to think about i all this subject. You are absolutely right.But there’s more.
Many thanks for the visit and the comment, Cecilia.
You make a valid point. I’ve known more than a few pompous seniors that seem to think they damned well know everything. I admit that being a snotty know-it-all isn’t exclusive to young people but it does seem like they are working hard to corner that particular market.
That damned teacher of yours sounds like a jackass. (Probably a communist too. Those music teachers are shifty and subversive). I can’t stand old people that refuse to act their age, dress inappropriately and chase young girls. It’s ludicrous and it gives respectable old men a bad name.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that old people should refrain from active living – I’m just suggesting that there comes a time to hang up the bell bottoms and stop going to discos looking for young girls to woo. (York, if you’re reading this…)
Anyway, I’m likely rambling now but I do appreciate your stopping in to chat.
All the best,
Don
Hi my dear friend!
I’m back. The best day ever to return to comment in your place. Young Arthur just left my office after we had an argument. He said he is old enough to start learning how to drive [my car]. I said he was probably right, but I added that I was not dumb enough to handle him my keys.
Hope you are doing alright!
Um grande abraço velho amigo!
Ivan.
Ivan!
So good to hear from you my friend. I trust that life is good in sunny Brazil and that you and your family are keeping well.
I think you made wise decision with young Arthur. I can only imagine what kind of mischief that boy might get up to with a car at his disposal. Tell the lad to walk – it’s good exercise, much cheaper and safer for everyone.
All the best and thank you for visiting.
Poço e estada do sustento no toque
Don
Dear Don,
How old are you? because, I presume that I am accurate in my assumption that you will probably succumb to senality in a few years, so with that in mind; if we stifle young people, whose to take up the small stores ans large companies once you are drooling? who would make your tombstone, or your coffin? Because, we cannot deny the ever approaching death onto our doorstep, so young people with opinions are what we really NEED in this society, because who knows, one day, we might even find the cure for being an old-fashioned, grouchy, fart.
p.s. I’m 13
Thank you Miranda,
I appreciate you sharing your views. I assume, however, that when I am senile and drooling I really won’t give a rat’s ass who’s managing the small stores and large companies. And I’m almost certain I’m not going to care once I’m dead.
Regards,
Don
Sure, but once we dump your corpse to rot amongst the atmosphere destroying tanks you call cars, who will be left to contribute to your memory? who would be left to push you around in a wheelchair? or take care of you in hosptial? or feed you? face it, the older you get, the more depndant you will become on us.
Miranda! You’re my new favorite young person.
Just to clarify, after you’ve dumped my corpse I likely won’t be needing anyone to feed me, push me around in a wheelchair or take care of me in hospital. Although – if someone is volunteering, I suppose I have no objection.
Now, as for dumping my corpse to rot amongst the atmosphere destroying tanks we call cars? I really need to object.
I specifically asked to have my decaying corpse dropped into the morass of pollution-spewing smoke-stacks we call factories or, at minimum, flung into the radiating core of the post-apocalyptic nightmare we call nuclear power plants. I paid a $500 damned deposit and everything.
No one can get anything straight these days.
Thanks Miranda.
Don
Dear Little Miss Miranda,
Firstly, hasn’t anyone taught you that it is considered very bad manners to ask an old person their age?
Secondly, 13 is far too young to be on this website.
Thirdly, don’t you have homework and/or chores to do? and last but not least,
I sure as hell don’t want to be wasting my time reading what some snotty nosed little kid has to say.
So run along little one, stop wasting time and go read a book or clean up your room.
Lily.
If you define wasting time as halting the slanderous woes about my generation than I think that you should not “waste your time” by halting my commentary on your generation, in that case… why even post a response? since you find expressing your opinion (as I simply did) a waste of time, why don’t you get off the computer and take some of your medication, or bore some children, or whine about your pitiful life to a drooling companion in a wheelchair? Please, take a nap. If you don’t want to waste your time; don’t read my posting and certainly don’t call me snotty-nosed and computer obsessed, for all you know, this could be my homework! I do have access to tissues, and do read daily! I’m fine with your opinion,but as I have been reading since the age of 2, never insult my status on reading ithout proof.
Hi Miranda!
I’m Alan. And I like your moxy. I’m 4 years old and have been reading since I was an embryo. I have to say that you old timer tweens really do go on and on, but I guess that’s to be expected. And when you’re like, really old, and my generation has to take care of you… Well, let’s talk then.
Hi Miranda!
I’m CLT. And I like your gumption. I’m currently edging towards being a “viable” fetus and have been reading since I was a zygote. I have to say you old timer tweens and preschoolers do go on and on, but I guess that’s to be expected. And when you’re older and my generation has to take care of you and be saddled with your Medicaid and Social Security bills… well, let’s talk then. (And by talk, I mean I’ll be taking your wallet.)
Originality is wonderful isn’t it?
That’s what we in the business call a “remix.” It’s what Clive F. Cussler does with each new novel. Rearrange a couple of letters in the title, grab a new boat picture and rubber stamp his name across the cover in 128-point type. And look where he is today: the proud father of an up-and-coming author, Dirk F. Cussler, whose books you can find under “Nepotism” in the card catalog. (Now there’s an old-timey term.
Either a remix or the latest hiphop song…
Oh NO, CLT does Cussler here as well!
Thanks alot for your sarcasm.
It’s a WordPress comment thread. The “sarcasm” HTML tag is on by default.
Ah, young Miranda.
You make me yearn for the days of yore, when a youthful Steven was trolling the comment threads with his immaculate formatting and well-thought-out arguments.
Or perhaps the brief, shining moments of badly spelled chaos that we knew only as “S.NO.MAN.” Quite the sharp tongue that fellow had, although it was somewhat blunted by his misspelled obscenities.
I normally wouldn’t step into this sort of fracas, but I was trying to enjoy a late-evening scotch and a final reading of my neighbor’s newspaper when I was roused by the boisterous noise of a flamewar being fanned.
Of course, I was also roused by my irate neighbor, who harbors some truly “old school” beliefs in personal property and wished to reclaim “her” paper. I informed her that “information, especially yours, wants to be free.” It was to no avail, but I did manage to secure the Opinion page before she viciously (and slowly) yanked it from my grip.
I have no other useful advice other than possibly rereading this post, the About Me page and any other random post to perhaps grasp the overall tone of this fine site. I think the constant angsting is detracting from the perfectly normal complaining of those with a lifetime of experience behind them.
I hesitate to encourage the continuation of forced military service, but it did me and my fellow men a world of good. Nothing like proximity mines and whistling shells to help put things in perspective. No sir. A non-stop threat of violence and STD flareups turned us into proper citizens and gave us a healthy respect for our elders, who had walked proudly through a hail of bullets and penicillin shots less than a decade earlier.
Sincerely,
C.L. Tanager
I do absolultely grasp the tone of this site, I have read the about me section as well. Your comment was well written, thank you. But I must say to all who still persist in insulting me, that my comments may well be a simple source of enrichment, two sides to the story. Of course I understand the purpose,for if there is a downside to blogging it is that you, Ms. Lily and and alantru are not staring me in face as I type this and therefore cannot gage the weight of my comments. You all treat Mr.Mills postings with a grain of salt, why not do the same with comments?
I really and truly do gage the weight of your comments, Miranda. And please believe me when I say that I not only take Don’s posting with a hefty measure of skepticism (aka: a grain of salt) but yours as well.
You’re 13 and I’m 4. Remember? We’re young. We’re spunky, kooky, zany, zippy, gormless, explosive, fresh faced, fashion challenged, not quite there yet, and can be easily felled by scotch that’s 10 years older than us. We have a lot to learn and yet, ironically we know it all.
Plus, not only am I 4 years old. I’m a dog head. But that’s my issue. And I’m working on it.
Never have I claimed to know it all, for instance: I had absolutely no idea that I would have my opinions attacked by four seniors and a sarcastic dog-headed toddler. Had I known that seniors knew what “jailbait” was, I would most certainley prepared myself for such insults.
I really think we should be best friends, Miranda. You’ve got moxy. I’ve got a dog head. You’re a tween. I’m a toddler. I’m really seeing road trip possibility here. We’ll need food, and a car. Can you drive? I can. I’ve been driving since the day I was born. Life is a highway, and I know how to navigate it. And I can parallel park. We’ll also need a wacky premise, a sidekick, and to prepare ourselves for insults. I suggest we bring lacrosse rackets.
Look up and to the left.
You see me there? Waving my arms? I’m flagging you down.
I’ll head out with you on this road trip, under one condition: we take badminton rackets instead. This way we’ll finally have an excuse to say “shuttlecock” repeatedly.
Miranda! Grab a badminton racket. We have our sidekick!
ps before I get REALLY cranky.
My Dear Mr Tanager,
May I extend a most cordial welcome to Donald’s blog and be allowed to introduce myself and do please call me Lily.
Your arrival is most timely; the place is being over – run with these opiniated whipper snappers and frankly I am at my wit’s end.
Thankfully CLT and Alan have been holding the fort with their extensive credentials and biological knowledge. Personally I’m in favour of aborting these zygotes before they evolve and learn to speak.
May you enjoy your time here,
Best wishes,
Lily
Ms. Lily Fossil
Thanks very much for the warm welcome.
I can appreciate being overrun by young whippersnappers. Just the other day I was at the mall, looking for some suspenders and Brylcreem, when the first showing of “High School Vampire Musical” or somesuch let out.
I ducked into the nearest shop to avoid being trampled by a swarm of immaculately coiffed cheek-suckers. Unfortunately, the nearest shop was Hot Topic and only a swift dive-roll (which I perfected during the Korean Unpleasantness) kept me from taking several Doc Martins to the kidneys and parts beyond.
A helpful security guard helped me find my wallet, pipe and what was left of my left hip. My dignity was nowhere to be found.
I like the general unhipness of this site. I may visit more often seeing as we have someone as feisty as you guarding the gates.
Indebtedly,
C.L. Tanager
**opinionated**
Well, at least I’ve been upgraded fronn “snotty-nosed” to “whipper snapper” … and its the teens who obsessivley use slang.
Dear Miss Miranda,
Correction: I have not upgraded you to anything but seeing as you suggested it, I am now downgrading you to “jailbait”.
Lily
If you really want to go down that path viagra-addict…
I believe none other than Robert Frost called that “the path well travelled.” Of course, I hardly understand his poetry. I took his “road less travelled” to mean something akin to the Jonas Brothers and their purity rings.
I may be reading too much into the piece, but when he compares the “path well-travelled” to Paris Hilton, I think there’s no denying the symbolism. When he continues the metaphor with the words “well-worn, covered with footprints, used condoms and dental dams,” I think there’s no mistaking his intentions.
I do take issue with his insistence on making allusions to “darkened tunnels” and “bushy overgrowth.” At this point, we might as well be reading Updike.
of course I was referring to the 1937 Buster Keaton comedy movie, “Jail Bait”.
Dear Mr Tanager,
In my younger days during the Blitz I was moonlighting at a Night Club where I was affectionately known as “the Door Bitch from Hell” which possibly explains my heavy handed tactics with under age patrons.
Lily
Ms. Lily –
I think I remember you. You often wore a shirt that had “OPINIONATED” emblazoned across the front. Those were the days. Good drinks, good entertainment and not a single youth in eyesight or earshot.
C.L. Tanager
Of course,in your time, they were much too busy hunched over sewing machines in cramped factories.
Miranda –
You make an excellent point. The quality of clothing has seen a marked decline since child labor laws went into effect. I also hesitate to bring that back, but it is more than a little upsetting to have to purchase more than two pairs of slacks per year.
And try finding a decent set of suspenders these days. You’ll spend several hours fruitlessly searching and end up at Goodwill, looking for something that hasn’t been stained or given a “festive” pattern. On the plus side, they are usually well-stocked with C-90 cassettes and the occasional 78.
Nostalgically,
C.L. Tanager
FAO Ms Miranda.
If you are truly 13 years old then you have demonstrated great strength of character in withstanding the comments of those who were upset by your intial contributions to this blog.
You are right, communing by words only in this anonymous way, without facial expression or body language to assist the listener, inevitably leads to misunderstanding. Well over half of communication is non-verbal, so if all you have is the words, get them right.
So, blog commenting is fraught.
But back up a bit. How did you find this blog in the first place? Did someone suggest it as a place to learn from or be amused by, or THE only voice of aged persons you need to know about for some project?
If we could know that, we, the regulars here, might now how to react to you ideas.
If you opt not to say, fine. This blog is one way that many folk of certain ages try to make sense of a world that is rapidly getting away from us.
Best to you, dave
Aged 55 years, an honest one.
I did stumble upon this blog listed under “humour”. However, like I said before, you cannot gage the seriousness of my comments, they may well be sarcastic.
I would also like to add that seniors are not the only one suffering from our rapidly expanding world. Here as students, we have to find jobs in a recession, we have to be cool by spending $500 on shoes and buying the latest iPod so you won’t be called “stupid” or “gay” or “ghettoe”, “cheap” etc. Also even our chances of getting into the schools down the street is compromised by the hundereds upon thousands of people from across the world vying for our spot.
So perhaps, although I initially stumbled upon this website for some humour, some comments and statements pushed my buttons and willed me to write the comments I wrote.
Thank you Miranda,
I appreciate your comments. However, I think we have likely exhausted this subject and would suggest we leave matters here.
Again, thanks for sharing your views.
Best regards,
Don
I don’t think Miranda knows how to play nicely with others.
I’d say she needs a Time-Out. (Isn’t that what they do to kids, nowadays?)
No. Nowadays, kids listen to the cacaphony of clicks as their parents type furiously away on thier blackberries without a glance at their children.
The kids wouldn’t notice, anyway.
They’d by too busy sexting each other, and deciding which part of their anatomy to pierce next.
don, i blame tv too, oh and the government for sure. this line really cracked me up!
“When I was a lad, young people were ignorant – and we were smart enough to know it.”
Many thanks Lynn.
I hope you’re well. Thanks very much for visiting.
Don
Oh my God, don’t you have anything else to do? Leave the toddlers without sense of humour who want to be in the eye of the hurricane showing how smart they are, provoking meaningless discussions, and let’s have a drink.
I have some champaign. Who wants some?
A great movie to see, a documentary about Joni Mitchell, and a book by J. Coetzee. Let’s leave the computers and crying angry children a bit for the sake of our eyes, backs and necks, please. 😉
By the way, I am young (though not a teen, thanks God) and I was not offended by anything that was written here. I thought that wasn’t necessary to say since it’s a blog with (a lot of) sense of humour. But I suppose Donald must put a warning above, like those sites made by alcoholic drinks companies, asking whether you are under or over 18. That might work.
Thank you for the comments Cecilia,
I’m inclined to agree that there isn’t a lot of value in sniping back and forth but sometimes I admit that I simply can’t resist. The notion that there would be no one left to feed me once I was dead, for example, was simply too tempting to pass up.
Still, I agree. Time to move on.
I’ll give that warning some serious thought. While I have no objection to the young folks popping in now and again, I think 13 is far too young an age to be “surfing” on the internet unattended.
I won’t join you in the champagne (the bubbles play havoc with my stomach) but will certainly pour my self a small glass of rye.
All the best,
Don
Dear Donald,
This statement “you cannot gage the seriousness of my comments, they may well be sarcastic” of Miranda’s from above precisely sums up the arrogance and know-it-all attitude of the very young people we are discussing.
They are so blinded by their “know-it-all” ness, they cannot see that yes, we CAN gauge the seriousness of comments and yes, we CAN gauge if they are sarcastic or not.
Lily
Thanks Lily,
I dare not provoke further comment but must say I am inclined to agree with you. That and the “atmosphere destroying tanks you call cars” type language tend to get me more than a little wound up.
That Mr. Tanager is quite something isn’t he? Funny and never at a loss for words.
All the best
Don
Sorry alantru and CLT my badminton racket is already packed and I’m halfway to college… thank you all, you have superbly proven my point; If provoked, the you exhibit defensive tendancies found in the most surly of teens, re-read your comments and I sincerly hope that you do not find yourself proud of viciously attacking the views of lone 13 year old.
I’ll be the mature one here and leave.
Thank you Miranda,
I appreciate your taking the mature route. (I had a send off “link” but it keeps disappearing on me…probably for the best.)
Take care and best of luck.
Don
I saw it, Donald, but now it has disappeared?
So… The roadtrip is off? Ah well. Happy trails, Miranda. Or whoever you really are. It was fun while it lasted. And who knows, maybe one day, like the song says…
Ouch, nuked eh!
One can possibly expect an invasion of opinionated 13 year olds now?
and one for the road…
Dr. Strangelove and Leadbelly are both excellent choices.
Let’s try mine one more time.
Don
Hahaha! That has got to be one of my all-time favorite movie scenes!
I’ll sit through hours of the movie, just to see that young lad sing:
“Adieu. Adieu…to yieu, and yieu, and yieu”.
Cracks me up every time I hear that.
there you go!
As long as we’re saying goodbye the old-fashioned way (via Youtube), here’s a classic that pretty much sums up the back-and-forth of this post’s comment thread:
Oh dear what have we started
Well, ASCAP should be here any moment, panhandling up a storm…
Great. Now my boys think this is an appropriate website for the 2-5-year-old set.
And, yes, I know most of these lyrics…
hang on who’s leaving?
Lily –
I, for one, am going nowhere. This “blog” thing really brings out the gumption and zest in everyone. I haven’t had this much oxygen in my bloodstream since the effervescent days of the Coolidge administration.
Now here’s a bubbly blast from someone else’s past:
That was a breathless merry-go-round of fun! Sorry to be boring and drag up the topic again but my youngest is 13, and so are her friends who were here today (Saturday). Being of a cynical nature I asked them to give their opinions re Miranda. Unanimous verdict is that she is a he, definitely not 13, much older than that, has anger problems.
So there you are, from some genuine 13 yr olds. The clues apparently were the spelling mistakes, some of the words used, and the way the commenter “banged on” about his age.
By the way, Don, said 13 yr olds think you are hilarious, and so do I. Would you like to have an affair? I’m partial to older men.
Ouch, being a tempermental middle-aged man is almost worse than being called jail-bait, thanks for your suspicions but I really do try not make spelling mistakes and the only reason I “banged” on about my age and used the language I did was to dissolve streotypes by presenting myself as something different. If you spoke to your kids more instead of commenting about them behind their bakcs then maybe you would find that they are unique and don’t always speak in acronyms and use like, like in like every like sentance!
p.s. thank you all for the songs, nice picks!
Dear Miranda,
So you admit that you are in fact a middle-aged man, posing as a 13 year female. This is what pedophiles do isn’t it?
Let this be a lesson to any real 13 year olds reading this blog.
Lily
No, I don’t admit to being a pedophile or a middle aged man, before insulting me again, please read the whole comment because I did say that I WAS NOT a middle aged man but simply a different thirteen year old. This is just too much, haven’t we all had enough of this immature sniping?
OK I am prepared to admit that I am now a bit confused and apologise if I have offended you. The topic of this thread is “Know – it – all” young people, so perhaps we should get back on topic?
(I have noticed you have made a couple of references to young people being neglected by their parents, who are probably young too, who spend too much time online and not enough time with their children. This is something I have also noticed. Reading between the lines, I would say, those children who feel neglected by their parents in this way, possibly attempt to seek the attention of other adults online. If this is the case in your situation, I am sorry.)
Lily
Don’t patronize me, thank you for your apology, but don’t reduce my arguements to the sad rambles of an attention seeking child. They’re not, I’m simply presenting another side to the story.
And as an afterthought, the young ladies mentioned in my previous post are your typical rude teenagers. For lunch, I made the ungrateful little wretches smoked salmon omelette, and a salad with tomato, cucumber, lettuce, feta cheese, and olives. Dessert was fresh mango and home made chocolate icecream. The complaints, my goodness! Now when I was young I would never have dared complain about my mother’s cooking and if I was a guest, well, good manners dictated that a person ate whatever was put in front of them and if necessary pretended to like it.
Evolution moves on and the young can now eat only junk food.
Thank you very much for the comments Kate and welcome.
I was growing suspicious as well but it’s nice to have one’s doubts confirmed by the genuine article. Please accept my thanks and pass them on to your daughter and her friends as well (ungrateful though they may be).
A shame about the lunch – I hope it didn’t go to waste. It all sounds quite delicious (I wasn’t aware that people even made homemade ice cream anymore)and would undoubtedly have been wasted on young people raised on a steady diet of Count Chocula, soda and Pizza pops.
Now….I have to say that your offer of an affair was quite startling. I haven’t had anyone speak to me in that manner since the Nixon Administration. I’m flattered, of course, but will always be faithful to the memory of my wife Aggie. Besides, I’m too old and set in my ways to be pitching woo.
Many thanks for visiting.
All the best,
Don
A smashing collection of pieces, yep even AT’s ditty. May I offer up;
I hope Donald doesn’t think we are all leaving and saying goodbye….. fat chance !
Here is my contribution for the all-timers Top 40 Miranda’s Farewell Hits. Sorry, no subtitles available. If you pay attention and keep listening there will be a short male solo in English during the performance. The lyrics are easy and short for you to sing along:
Vai tomar no cú, vai tomar no cú, vai tomar no cú, bem no meio do [olho do] seu cú. [on and on]
Translation??
Ask Don. He’s got the perfect tool to move from English to Portuguese [brazilian].
Many thanks Ivan. That’s quite the musical number!
All the best,
Don
p.s. I’ll start working on the translation now.
Mr Mills
Love that Wayne Newton ..reminds of my las vegas rat pack days…
Thanks Zman,
It was a good choice. Clifton knows his music, no doubt about that. You’ll have to tell me about these “rat pack” days of yours sometime. I’m guessing there are a more than a few colorful stories in there somewhere.
Don
Hey Don,
The comment string is huge on the post I didn’t comment on! Go figure. I was just skimming up from the bottom but need to take the time the read the whole thing..from what I read though, it sounds like you are quitting the blog??? You just started! You better not be! In another year you will have a million hits! Your blog will “go platinum”.
Many thanks downcastmysoul.
No, I’m most definitely not quitting – you just arrived in the middle of a protracted argument. It has been an odd week. To the point you made earlier, I completely agree. Harassment is never warranted and free speech is (and should be guaranteed).
Always good to have you visit. I hope you’re well.
Best regards,
Don
Had me worried with that last post. People tend to forget what kind of hatred and prejudice went along with the McCarthy era on into the end of the “Cold War” for anyone that was even suspected of being left of center
Oh…a flame war…should’ve known. Hard to know if Miranda is really a 13 year old or a much older person, but, I for one could not write that way until I was much much older. Sounds like you had a troll infestation.
No, no. Just a young person seeking some attention.
…though, I must admit, Miranda is like an honor-roll student, compared to Frosty from last week.
Hello Sir,
Been such a long time since I visited your blog. Was busy with studies and exams. But now I have a lot of reading to do on the topics I missed out on and that’s a damn excellent thing I’d enjoy doing.
Coming back to the topic of discussion, I think the know-it-all types are way too many we see nowadays. That shows some kind of obnoxiousness about them. I believe if you have an opinion to give, first important thing to keep in mind is to know what you are talking about. If you are just trying to comment by taking into consideration the information you read on the internet, then that does not even count as opinion. And yes, I agree with television and media doing this to kids. I’ll give you a fine example Sir, which is Nikola Tesla. Now, the media and television [cartoons and almost all of media] have made Thomas Edison such a celebrity of a scientist who is synonymous with light bulb but it saddens me to the core that such a thief in the name of Science is celebrated and a true hero of mankind, Nikola Tesla is kind of unknown in this world where even little kids know Thomas Edison. All the blame goes to television and other forms of media who forgot the Godfather of the modern world the way we know it today, who is Nikola Tesla. Sir, I request you [and others viewing this blog] to please, please watch this video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt8Y93k0pB0
Sorry about drifting a little bit offtopic but I thought that was necessary to be told and a fine example of how television has blinded people into believing a load of crap.
Many thanks Ravikant,
I’ll pop over and watch that video immediately. I’m afraid to admit that my knowledge of Mr. Tesla’s work is quite limited indeed. I’m anxious to learn more.
Always nice to have you visit, Ravikant. I do hope that your studies are progressing well.
Many thanks,
Don
May I crave everyone’s permission to develop a long-winded question.
The vast majority of bloggers are anonymous. That’s fine. I choose not to be because I had a bit of a public profile and knew that if I went undercover, did something daft and got foundout, all hell would break loose.
Blogs are either factual or fiction. A rather obvious point but quite essential. If the former, the blogger has some responsibility to be balanced, accurate, honest; all those boring concepts. In fiction, providing one doesn’t slander anyone, pretty much anything goes. Always has been the way in fiction publishing, but now we can all do it, not just the highly selected who got print published.
If so, my fiction is just that, my made up story. Am I under any obligation to justify it to anyone else? Do I have to change it to appease someone else’s opinion? I think not.
So, why tolerate the likes of Miranda on this blog? S/he is patently not what she claims, whatever s/he actually is. S/he is being rude and beligerent knowing that she can get away with it behind anonymity. Would s/he ever say these things face to face in private or public?
Thus, eventually, should fiction bloggers use “comment moderation” to screen their work from those who clearly don’t like what we have spent many hours compiling and that they can trash in 15 seconds?
dave
Many thanks Dave,
Over the course of the last 8 months a lot of comments have been posted on this blog. Some have been kind, some have been humorous, some sincere and some damned rude.
In general, the comments section becomes a better read than whatever nonsense I’ve posted.
I’m open to criticism, opposing opinions and angry tirades. I generally find them interesting and they often provide valuable insights into the minds of young people. In most cases, folks who object to the blog tend to leave one or two comments, call me an asshat and then move on.
The problem with Miranda is that her comments have become tiresome (at least to me) and distracting and she just won’t leave. I’m hesistant to screen out anyone but if she doesn’t move and starts popping up on the next post it may well be the next logical step.
Just my two cents.
Don
Ahem….
In order to return to the matter in hand: How the hell can young people claim to know everything?
The only person who knows everything is me, and in my capacity as knower-of-all-things, one of the things that I know is that young people don’t know everything.
There you go – argument over.
PS – I also happen to know what next Saturday’s winning lottery numbers are, so if any attractive young ladies wish to cash in on this opportunity, please contact me immediately. Clothing optional.
Thank God you’ve put that issue to rest once and for all Nobbly.
If only you’d shown up 190 comments ago you could have saved us all some considerable grief.
I’ll be sure to let the ladies down at the seniors centre know about your offer. Marion Grimsby is always hunting for a man and often forgets to dress herself before wandering out into the diningroom. Sounds like she meets the criteria.
Don’t be surprised if you get an email from marrymerrymarion@gmail.com
All the best,
Don
My God Mr. Mills, so many comments… you have stirred up a ruckus here… I will add nothing to the brilliant, angry, and thought provoking tirades that come before this post… Keep up the great work and do not cut those inexperienced, ignorant and inexperienced and ignorant young ones any slack… or else they will become slackers…
Many thanks CatGod (aka Ornery Frank),
Indeed, it has a been a busy week on the comments front.
All the best,
Don
By the way, have you had a chance to put in a word with my neighbors Persian yet? Damned thing was into my flower beds again this afternoon. How about a little fire and brimstome?
Why I’ll get right on that… I’ve been training one of my many cats to be an attack cat… he may be useful here… Currently I command him with “Brady Attack” and then I point at the little play mousie and he immediately jumps up and runs to the food bowl and eats a bit and then naps… But I’m persistent… and hopeful… someday…
You are not just a blogger. You are a God.
Thanks Kindly Zeusiswatching,
Nice of you to visit. Hope all is well. The God you are referring to is, I believe, CatGod. Although he’s been a little lax on taking care of my request for divine feline intervention.
All the best,
Don
Dear Donald,
After this palaver, hang it all, let’s go for 200 comments!
Your fragrant in repose,
Lily
Thank you Lily,
Palaver? A fine word. Apparently even an old fart like me doesn’t “know-it-all.” I had to look that one up.
Best regards.
Don
Yikes! Gadzooks! and Zonkers!… I formally request a “to” to be inserted into and in betwixt the “nothing” and the “the” in my prior statement… Can you help me here, Mr. Mills?
…and keep the heat directly upon those young punks… maybe… just maybe… they’ll learn something… that is, at least the few that can read this have a chance at learning something…
Happy to oblige Catgod.
And I have every intention of keep the heat turned up. I’m wearing an undershirt, a shirt, two sweaters, have the furnace roaring and and I still have a chill.
Regards,
Don
Dang! I couldn’t read all the comments; I don’t have time. But as an old fart myself, having hit just about every bump in the road, paid my dues, earned my strips and other platitudes about being old, I agree with you. I have read blogs written by young people, giving advice about life in general, and I’m amazed they have the balls (or ballettes) to post baseless crap like that.
Bottom line, I love satire. This is really a fun read. Keep it going.
Many thanks Hal and welcome,
I appreciate the kind words and do hope you’ll drop by again. The comments aren’t usually anywhere near this lengthy but they generally make for an entertaining and informative read.
Best regards.
Don
200!!!
(Sorry Don, but…well, you know.)
Nevermind…
Sorry Bschooled….Pending comment and all. But you’ll always have 400.
Every generation disparages the youth that follow them. They seem to forget the old codgers who sat on the porch talking about how thing were “back in my days”. The kids are no different today than ever have been, they still have the same propensity to do stupid things without thinking things through that we did when we were young.
The problem today is that we have failed the younger generations by removing structure and placing too much technology and negative media in their lives without equipping them to cope.
It is the kids today who have figured us out, they realize that we don’t have the answers. In many ways they view us as hypocrites and just try to slug through it on their own.
We are just mad because the kids don’t listen to us anymore and don’t show us the respect we feel we deserve, maybe we should try earning that respect back.
Many thanks Carl,
A reasoned and well-stated argument. I don’t buy a damned word of it, but I appreciate your sharing it with me.
Sorry, but I’m not doing one damned thing to “earn the respect” of some snotty, overindulged, know-it-all slacker with one finger up his nose and the other on the keypad of his cell phone. Once they start showing me a little respect, I’ll give some consideration to reciprocating.
All the best and thanks for commenting, Carl. I do appreciate it.
Don
We’re speaking in generalities aren’t we? Who gave the kids the cell phones, and the technology but failed to give them the coping skills to go along with all this wonderful technology.
Bottom line is that the kids today are screwed up because we are screwed up. The world is allot more complicated today than it was when you or even I were children. We eternally wise and wonderful adults fail to cope with the world we have created, how can we expect the teens and tweens to cope with it.
I hope you are speaking for yourself, young man. I cope very well with the world as long as young people keep out of it.
I am not young. Our generations created the mess that exists today and it is patently unfair for us to stand back and toss stones at the younger generations.
Mysoginy, racism, ageism are all wrong. Ageism is wrong when when a 50 somthing individual is denied employment for due to age and it is wrong when you make statements such as the one above.
When you make statements like “I cope very well with the world as long as young people keep out of it” it proves you are a bigot. That statement goes beyond lamenting the troubles of our youth to pure and unadulterated bigotry.
Evidently I misunderstood the tone of this blog, time for me to bow out. I have been on the receiving end of bigotry all my life and I won’t be a part of it.
If the “young people keep out of it” who is going to pay taxes to provide your SSI and Medicare? Maybe you should send that money back since the tax base is so full of young people.
Don,
You’ve touched on a subject dear to my heart. These young people think they have invented logic, and it gets intolerable if they join debate teams. I should know; I did this many years ago. Nothing irritates a parent more than hearing their offspring enumerate their arguments with numbered points. Debate enables one to delve deeper, providing lettered subpoints.
My son has expressed interest in debate. I am concerned.
Regards,
FF
Many thanks Fantastic Forrest,
Debate team? Good God, Forrest, buy that boy a playstation immediately,order him a pizza and a case of soda and lock him in the basement. If he turns that interest into action you’ll live to regret it – make no mistake.
All the best,
Don
Damn! You make me proud to be 52, Don! I’m getting my groove back . . . oh wait! I never had a damn groove, and I don’t ever want one. I’m just getting solid confirmation from a damn smart ‘old guy”. Keep the pedal down; I’ll be reading, agreeing, and laughing my gravity-challenged parts off!
Many thanks Invasive1.
52? You’re but a pup! And grooves are for damned 78s, not people.
Thanks again for this and your earlier comment. Much appreciated.
All the best,
Don
The only thing i can see when i look at your comment is that YOU are the one who thinks that knows everything and accept the idea that age gives you a step forward to the ladder of wisdom in life, further than a younger member of the society.
An old body is like an old ship, there are a lot of old ships, some traveled once in a while, some still travel, others have never traveled before!
A young body is like a new ship all with the best advantages to go where its predecessors haven’t been, will it travel though? or will it end up being a travel-less old body because of some ships not sharing the maps?
All together and everybody on his own will we reach to the goal.
I don’t know you and i don’t know what went on in your life, you surely have a lot of stories to tell with a lot of moral meaning and ideals, this is what i want to read, this is what will stay in the minds of people, knowledge in the form of story.
i am 21 and see a bright future, don’t blur the picture for me, help me see further!
Believe me, we miss mentors.
Andreas
Mr.Mills,
I think, perhaps, the thing that distresses me most, is that I feel disconnected from the category you would eagerly put me in. I’m a lass of 22, but I certainly know how much I do not know. I am a PhD candidate, which really is only mentionable in that it means I graduated from college and knew that I did not know enough. I knew that to enter the work place with such a pitiful lack of knowledge as my only tool would only lead me to despair. So I didn’t. (Which is not to say that I haven’t worked my share of part-time jobs and paid taxes annually since I was 16 in the name of living expenses and occasionally eating food other than top ramen.)
You despair for the future of this world because of the wiggers, the potheads, the skanks, the asshats…but the stereotyping of youth into silence is rarely justified. My cheeks may still be chubby, but I have learned a great deal about what I do not know and know my own limits. I do not propose to know all of the answers about the big problems in government, but I damn sure know when something is simply wrong. The other day, I saw a poll about the reactions to a recent Presidential quote regarding the fact that the United States is not a Christian nation. Some of my generation rebelled against this statement hard; their reaction is that of the knee-jerk right. The beautiful thing about America is that it isn’t a Christian nation, that it is a nation with separation of church and state. Understanding the principles that my nation was founded on is terribly important to my ability to participate in the government now that I am of age, and the concept of simply accepting the “Commie bastard down the street” mentality is appalling to a young American.
I fear that I am trending off topic. While I followed the link to your blog from a blog I rather enjoy, I fear I will not be subscribing to yours. Though your statements and humor ring true, the overarching generalizations only further cement into your readers that the youth of the world are disturbed failures and the darkness that casts on the future is too much for my own finals-racked mind. I sincerely hope that you will perhaps consider that the exceptions to the rule need guidance to repair this poor society rather than being told to sit down and shut up until they are ‘old enough’ to understand.
Sincerely,
Tia
Many thanks Tia,
An interesting comment. I appreciate your sharing your thoughts.
Don
😆
😈
I blame the adults for making the kids like this.
When I see my Grandchild I smile, when I see children playing I think it is wonderful. When I see a bunch of sniveling old people blaming all of their problems on our youth, I see the people responsible for the current state of education, technology and all of our problems trying to deny responsibility.
As I said before, send back your SSI checks and medicare, those are young people paying the taxes now and we can see you want nothing to do with young people, so don’t except their money either.
Thanks Carl,
Jesus but you have good vision for an oldster. Seeing young people, seeing old people, seeing the people responsible for all of our problems. I can barely see my feet. Well done. If you see my brown socks drop me a line – they’ve been missing for weeks.
And it’s not their damned money! It’s mine. I paid into the tax system for 60 plus years with no complaint. Their money….honestly…how galling.
All the best
Don
It is there money, our money, that we paid, was “loaned” to the federal government by the people that we elected. Our money is gone. Blame the people we put in office, not the kids.
The kids these days are rightfully termed the entitlement generation but they were raised by us and our children, it is OUR fault.
When children are born they are basically a blank slate, everything that happens to form the person they become is the responsibility of adults who surround them. When you point your finger at them you may as well be standing in a mirror pointing back at yourself. Your complaints are valid but you are putting the blame on the wrong people.
“Their money….honestly…how galling”
You should be galled, we voted in the fools who wasted ever red cent that we paid in, now the kids you grouchy old fools want to criticize have a debt they will never be able to repay. They have no money, there is none left.
Donald
you know your a man when when you quit trying to act like one.
Quit acting and point that finger somewhere else.
Thanks Carl,
I agree with you. I’d also add that you know you’re a man when you learn how to stop taking yourself too damned seriously.
All the best and thanks for the comments.
Don
p.s. I haven’t done any acting since I understudied as sheep number 3 at the Pleasantview Senior Centre’s Christmas pageant. I was damned good too.
Donald,
You remind me of Oscar Wilde when he said “I’m not young enough to know everything.”
The best way to teach those young bastards a lesson is to let them feel they know everything, and when they grow old enough to realize that they don’t, just say in a condescending, barely audible whisper while smiling to yourself: “I told you so.”
If you are a reader, you might remember the episode from Catch-22 when Nately talks to the old man at the whorehouse?
Regards
P
I’m a 16 year old teenager. I’ve found your site just now trying to look up a term and have been reading it and I think most of it is quite funny. However, this is an entry I can’t read silently. I know my limits, and I know what I have. I don’t know everything, but I know when something is not right.
How can you possibly build a strong nation if you discourage the people from voicing their rights at an early age? For issues, such as education, simply letting the “adults” decide would lead to disastrous effects and only negatively affect those who are still learning, and do not have a voice. In my state, they are cutting down education costs, to fund inconceivably stupid projects.
Not all young people are ignorant know-it-alls, and the majority of my game-playing, tv-watching peers know enough to protest intelligently.
God damned know-it-all-old people make me furious. Seriously listen to yourself and then you will know why the younger generation does not respect you.
Now this is pretty ridiculous. I’m not going to shut up just because you’re an adult. If I have an opinion on something I’ll voice it, and if I have an opinion that obviously means I do have knowledge in the subject. I won’t argue with anybody if I don’t know what I’m talking about. You can argue with me all day about the fastest way to fix your computer, because I know a lot about computers and technology mainly because I use it every day and I know I know what I’m doing. But no, I’m not going to shut my mouth and let you think you’re right just because you’re an adult. No, I don’t know everything, but there are things that I know more about than most people and no one’s going to tell me I don’t because I’m only a teenager. I’m a smart teenager. But I do think that there’s no reason to be rude about it. When someone gets rude, then there’s an issue. I just know that when I know I’m right, I’ll be sure to let you know — but respectfully.
Mr. Mills,
Once again you’ve made me want to counter this topic. Although your are most likely right, there are some things that I know much more about then my parents. In fact my mom loves hearing my opinions on neurological health and physical well being. My dad on the other hand is a bit harder to tell facts to since he is a math, chemistry, and physics major, but when I surprise him sometimes. My dad and I connect through sharing opinions of science, he usually wins in the math category but I must say I have the high ground on biological facts. My point is Mr. Mills is that yes teenagers do think they no everything but some of them have a opinion based relationship with there parentals. I try to keep my mouth shut but to tell you the truth I am socially awkward so I connect through correcting others and explaining things further. Se call me a smart ass but things like that I just don’t really understand or pick up on. So Mr. Mills I am only saying “certain” people actually cannot help but being a but of a “know-it-all.” And that’s why we have therapists, haha.
Stay healthy,
Cole
These are the same kids who are fighting two of our wars. The same kids who are paying into a social security system that won’t be there for them.
The baby boomers on up the line are the most selfish generations in the history of our country and thanks to you our kids and grand kids are seeing a worse standard of living and shorter life expectancy.
If our kids are screwed up today then it is the direct fault of old fools like you.
Thank you boilerman,
Last time I checked, the only thing the idiot young people at the end of my street were fighting was a massive hangover, crack addictions and the urge to make a second trip to McDonalds.
I’d suggest that rather than using the mistakes of previous generations as an excuse to give up, sit back and spend their lives playing Madden Football, they use it as an impetus to get off their duffs and make the world a better place.
It’s been done in the past and with rather good results. But I suspect this generation doesn’t have the damned gumption.
All the best,
Don
This is quite true. I remember thinking I knew everything. I don’t.
Teenagers aren’t the only people that think they know everything.
In fact, it looks like certain adults (such as Donald Mills and Lily Fossil) think that since they are older, they automatically know everything. Maybe I should even write an article named “God Damned Know-it-All Old People Make me Furious”. Anyways, I’ll now present my arguments.
Let me tell you something. Yes, you pay the bills, tax and keep a roof under our heads. I am not going to deny that. You’ve clearly had a lot of experience in life, and I respect you for that.
However, do you really think you know everything and children are completely stupid and clueless? What about today’s technology? You may be somewhat competent when it comes to computers, but a LOT of adults in YOUR generation seem to be really slow to catch up with today’s technology. Trust me, I’ve seen my aunties, uncles, grandparents, friends of family, etc, fumble with the remote, or constantly criticising technology, or struggling to catch up with the latest gaming consoles.
Yes, this is all very trivial stuff. However, there is one example which proves that adults DON’T know everything, and children are NOT completely stupid and clueless.
That is all I’ll be writing for now. I definitely hope you at least read this reply that I left. I welcome ALL answers from ANYONE of ANY age (as long as it is constructive, and not a bunch of insults against old people or young people).
What about today’s technology? You may be somewhat competent when it comes to computers, but a LOT of adults in YOUR generation seem to be really slow to catch up with today’s technology…I’ve seen (older people) fumble with the remote, or constantly criticising technology, or struggling to catch up with the latest gaming consoles…Yes, this is all very trivial stuff.
You’re right. It’s completely trivial. But now that I think of it, if there’s one place where young people may have an advantage, it’s in things that are completely trivial. Meaningful things, however, are another story altogether. For example, despite her being in the “news” more than Obama, I have no idea what Lindsay Lohan does, nor do I care. However, I do know how to avoid bankruptcy and homelessness, a pretty important skill these days.
But you’ve got the completely wrong attitude toward technology. Short of drooling imbeciles, if anyone can’t properly use a technology, it’s not the fault of the person. It’s the fault of the technology. If an ordinary person can’t master something with minimal effort or gives up trying, then that thing is poorly designed and/or does something that isn’t worth the effort required.
Take your remote control example. I have 50 buttons on my TV remote but, other than the on-off button, only the volume button gets used. It’s right beside an identical button that does nothing but make my TV blast static on full volume. I must use my cable remote to watch TV but, for some reason, it can’t control the volume. It also has 50 buttons. Half of them do absolutely nothing and others do nothing but serve as a minefield for the thumb. Only 15 actually do anything you’d want to do, Between TV, cable, DVD, DVR and VCR remote controls, you have literally hundreds of utterly useless buttons and several remotes collecting dust just to watch TV. It’s straight up BAD design, especially when watching TV didn’t even require ONE remote for the first few decades of its existence. Something incredibly simple has been made difficult purely due to bad design.
Let’s compare that to a well designed technology that hasn’t been touched in over a century and still works perfectly, sidewalks. You don’t need to buy the right “platform”. You don’t need to learn a program, or download an “app”. You just set foot on it and walk in the direction you’re headed. No more slipping in the mud, no more dirty clothing, no more twisted ankles, no more getting run over by vehicles. Brilliant and seamless technology. Unlike learning how to blather about your latest bowel movement on Twitter, sidewalk technology actually achieves something useful with no learning curve. You don’t even realize you’re using it. Even these twits can use them http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSqkdcT25ss THAT’S good design.
But who is the Master and who is the Slave here? Any technology that’s held up as a god and demands you sacrifice significant time, money or mindspace to learn how to use it is rarely worth the effort. It’s supposed to work the other way around. Older, wiser, folks know it. That’s why old people don’t bother much with Atari systems, MySpace and the like. They have better things to do than dedicate so much to a program or device that will probably be obsolete in 6 months.
Dear both Donald and Lily.
I’m 18 years old, I do not believe I know everything. I work full-time as a carer for those with learning disabilities. I pay tax and national insurance. I also have another “job” where I volunteer using my qualifications as a carer at a residential home, nursery and various youth clubs to ensure they get taken out on activities instead of just left where they’re put and forgotten about. I live with my partner, he’s a deputy store manager at Lidl, training to have his own store currently. We have three cats we brought up from birth who are loving, cheeky and the sweetest things. We’re waiting to live with each other for a few years before getting married and bringing a child in to our lives.
So I pay my own rent, council tax, income tax, national insurance, pet insurance, Mobile phone, everything.
And I can’t help but have an opinion of both of you. You both clearly have some kind of chip on your shoulders. Tell me, are you both living the perfect lives? Because you both seem a bit down on the world, like you’re bitter about something. Well. As a young person, I will tell you something YOU didn’t know. Its not our problem that you both aren’t quite happy with your own lives and that you have so much time to spend blaming the world on the young. We’re encouraged our entire lives to have opinions, yes. Is that wrong? No. Every single breathing person has a right to an opinion.
And I believe I may be speaking for most of young people in that if you don’t like us, and don’t like our opinions, stay off the Internet yourself. Take your bitterness somewhere else. I know misery likes company, but don’t infect us with your miserable life.
Now go get back to your nonsense, and I’m going to go back to work as my break has finished.
And by the way, Lily, secrety hoping a two year old gets ran over by a car by playing in traffic – you do realise there is medication and therapy that can sort that thinking out, right?
This describes my youngest son to a T. At the ripe old age of 21 he believes he is far superior and knowledgeable than the rest of the world. It is hard to even have a conversation with him, because he wants to argue with you about everything and explain why your not only wrong but stupid. If you make him mad he proceeds to remind you of every single mistake you made while raising him. I feel bad that most of the time I cannot stand my own offspring.
When I was young, I knew everything… and old people knew nothing… and I didn’t care anyway!.. 40 was such a long way away.
But now I realise that wisdom from age is something to be grateful for, and I’m glad that the internet was not around when I was throwing around ill advised youthful opinions!
I think we should congratulate the internet for giving us an insight into the ideas and opinions of the youth of today, and also for putting their comments into a time capsule that will create untold amounts of embarrassment for them in the future 🙂
I believe it’s called evolution and you are just mad because you’re part of the problem? We are an exponentially growing population with smarter and smarter generations. Your generation is the reason my generation wont have as good as a life as you got to experience. We all have a massive job on our hands, of which is to clean up your generations mess old-timer. Don’t be ignorant, and do us all a favor and re-educate yourself before your next post.
Thanks and have a wonderful day.
To anyone, why single every 15 year old out from the rest? Maybe that is your experience with out generation and that may be. But until you meet every 15 year old on this planet I would suggest you don’t criticize all of us. It would be like me meeting an old racist fool and say that all Elderly people are racist. And I understand where you might be right. There are some teenagers that are brainless, but every generation has them. Please take this into regard before you criticize an entire generation.
Sincerely,
R.A.
Things I hate about SOME old people (notice I have avoided a fallacious sweeping statement):
1. They expect respect for the simple reason they are older. I’m sorry but I will give you as much respect as I give everyone else upon meeting them for the first time. If you do anything to lose that respect then that’s your own fault. if you do something to gain more respect then fair enough.
2. They are too easily influenced by the majority of the sensationalist and biased crap that is on the news. It’s not as if they are going to put the day to day average people on the news, because that wouldn’t sell.
3. Many do not differentiate between Knowledge and Experience. You can experience something a million times and still know less about what you experienced than someone who spent 5 minutes reading a book or webpage.
4. They don’t like that children can get access to knowledge greater than themselves simply by using the internet. This leads to an attempt to discredit the child with an ad hominem fallacy such as “your only a child you don’t know what your talking about”.
5. They refuse to accept that a teenager could have more experience in something than them. This happened to me recently at a camp I was volunteering at, when an old woman was speaking to a clearly distressed little boy telling him that words don’t hurt and that he should just grow up and stop being so pathetic. I stepped in seeing that she was not helping and began speaking to the boy. She then pulled me aside and began shouting at me that she was more experienced because she been around working with kids for longer. Having had experience and having knowledge of working with bullied, cyberbullied, abused and suicidal children I pointed out to her that I had far greater relevant experience and knowledge. She then proceeded to tell me I was not respecting her authority. Which in this particular case I had no respect for her authority on that particular subject, as I had experienced her methods of dealing with such cases from the point of view of the boy. From this I knew that her methods were having a detrimental affect.
6. They think that by admitting a child/teenager is correct and that they are wrong will be detrimental to their perceived wisdom. Yet it would actually work in their favour if they could admit that they are wrong. Adults, or in my example teachers, who realise this and actively discuss issues with children are more likely to be successful teachers. I once had a woodwork teacher who would simply tell us the task giving only the most basic of warnings and criteria. He would then walk round the workshop giving people hints but never fully answering a question, only giving enough hints for them to solve a problem themselves. He correctly realised that people learn better when they given a free reign to solve their own problems. He accepted that sometimes someone would find a better way of doing something, learning from the children as he taught them. Every single student, even the low achievers and the lazy children achieved full marks. There was a second woodwork teacher who answered fully and in detail every question he was asked by students, he would also refuse that a better way could be discovered by students. He fully controlled their learning to make sure none of them made mistakes that had been made before. The problem is we learn from mistakes, so stopping children from taking risks and experimenting (unless there is a high risk involved) is actually counter productive. The second woodwork teacher had student who achieved a very low grade.
7. Some old people are just plain ignorant, bigoted, lazy, ‘know-it-alls’.
8. They don’t accept that the majority of teenagers are perfectly good members of society. I get old people crossing the road to avoid me and my friends, even though none of us look like the sort of teens shown on the news, nor do we behave like them.
You must remember that the young children you pay little respect to now could very easily be the ones in charge of your care home.
I am 13 and I agree. We all our afraid someone will step on our shoes, or we will not even know how to write a damn paper. I do my own laundry, my own dinner, and anything else I need to do for myself. My mom sleeps half the day so, yes, we our know it alls. Damn….I hate people. (Includes myself)
dude this post straight out sucks
Uhm can’t you uhm “know it all” adults just realize that its all your fault because you “adults” must raise us we can’t raise our selfs
P.s. – Pure Stupidness ” to you all
Quite an entertaining read, although I feel you, sir, could use a blog in more constructive or creative ways. I do think you should not generalize about young people’s way of thinking, which has been influenced and shaped mostly by you self-righteous adults.
You, esteemed blogger, must have felt ignorant and unconcerned about great world issues in your youth probably because you simply did not care enough to inform yourself, and instead hid yourself under the secure blanket of your father’s authority and your mother’s own apathy and lack of concern.
A great number of young people today actually give a damn about what will happen to them and their families, how the world will be affected by everything that’s going on around them, and thus they have an opinion. The very nature of democracy promotes free speech, a right you would deny to young people, and which you take for granted.
Not every youngster is intelligent or involved in their community, and not every youngster’s opinion is valuable, but know this- the young are trying to fix the shit you previous generations got us into in the first place. So please, do not expect respect from us whilst disdain is your default stance.
Sincerely,
An irate youngster
Here here! Old folks seem to be intimidated by the younger generations ability to keep informed and make decisions independent from their parents and grandparents archaic views. It is best for us to start now, because we are about to have a whole world of crap dumped on us when the boomers are no longer in control. Thanks for making my future bleak you old farts =D
Brilliant.
I…why are all of the young people on here morons?? My generation…am I doomed, guys? I mean, sorry for the exaggeration, but I know that I’m ignorant, and it sort of seems like the young people, or at least the ones on this site, are self-important fuck-wits. Do you think it will work out? Or is today’s society going to screw my future?
Thanks for listening.
-Brendan
Ahem, might I retract something? I posted this, but the way it was worded simply wasn’t how I intended it to sound. I only meant this for some young people. The only reason I said this was because at my high school, the curriculum is based on testing done on children who are not very bright. I am often labelled a “smart kid”. Upon learning this information, however, I learned that I am of only moderate academic intelligence, and the children who do poorly are rather ignorant, and in some cases quite stupid. This is my logic behind the aforementioned comment I posted.
Hi. I’m 16 and agree with what some of what you’re saying. Yes, you were ignorant and yes, some people my age won’t listen to advice or logic when it is genuinely offered, In fact most. I think that what is needed is a balance. It drives me crazy that this generation can be so stupid. Though we can’t forget that every generation has problems and this is ours. When there is truth involved in a matter however I believe either side should listen and consider. Example: I am extremely passionate about the issue of global warming due to the fact so many are uneducated about the extent of this issue. Because I have a strong opinion on this issue means I may disagree with you but it doesn’t mean I don’t respect you. Unfortunately this is not true for all. -a normal teenager.
Okay, so I’m not 40, I’m almost 17, but I completely agree with you. A lot of people I know think they absolutely know everything about everything. If they have an answer or an opinion they’ll jump right into the conversation, only because they know a little bit about it. I have to say when in class(on group projects) the part I like is when they find out they’re wrong and I’m right. Though, I’m not one those know-it-alls, I believe you learn something new everyday. With thinking you know everything, you won’t learn anything and won’t get anywhere in life. I’ve been raise on respecting elders, doing what I’m told, and other things like that(though, I have to say I’ve got away with a few things), so I’m not really one to be one of those teenagers you dislike. Therefore, not all teenagers think they know everything some of us actually give a little respect. We do have opinions on subjects, but we can be open-minded and learn more about it.
Culture and School indoctrinating is the cause of most if not all of the young know it alls. They are practically taught to defy their parents with stuff they know nothing about. I call them the “Good Will Hunting” syndrome They learn a few things and have some head knowledge but haven’t experienced a fucking thing in their life and want everyone older than them to listen to their philosophy of how smart they are when they dumb as shit.
I’m not going to read this whole blog for today as I will just slip a word. Thanks in advanced for reading me out.
First, they fooled you. The educational system is wise. You have to put yourself into a student body, tediously sitting and listening to the teacher in front having everything right and unmistaken as his roots are funded to instructions, and to this not far book on the desk, plus that he revised. A lesson is learned but forgotten after a week, month and depending on how wise that memory works in that teenager. After many lessons have been forgotten from the teacher standing high; sadly they remember his/hers attitude and how it all made sense.
Now, as they listen to you, your words could subconsciously remind them of lessons that they forgot. In addition, a frustrating emotion could build inside causing a misunderstanding of your telling. Then, inadvertendly, your student has to speak. Why, because sitting there, in class the whole days “as we know the human is a moving machine,” listening to teachers most of their important growing life, they have endured it all? A rage had built inside. Listen to your student (child, kid, toddler, teenager etc…) They need it, its healing.
Secondly, probably the most important of them all is health. It is important that the brain had no malfunctions from organs that could go inflamed. Biological food are less pollutants and to consume less is best because it nourishes more mineral. Master it, love it and colloidal it to. Go with silver and end with gold. Path to intelligence? Exercises…
Thirdly, I hate being human. Its revolting because of our limitations. Sadly I have to tell you this, “monkey sees, and does.” Did you see the video of Charlie bit my finger? Many people imitated this for fun. Doesn’t that counts as a fact? As I’m writing this, I’m looking down telling you this, I’m not smarter than anyone and consider myself the moron of the family. Because I’m slow understanding. But I let you know this, we all want to be the teacher in front, because it was right and peacefully learned. Everyone thirsts for teaching, but just like any song that is learned by heart becomes easy to say.
Lastly, when you say something to your student, say it slowly and really smooth and listen to them. Because sitting as a student in the class they would have had an opinion said for every lesson learned from theses teachers. They have endured that. It’s all psychological. You can be a healer, just listen.
Good luck.
God bless you.
Hi there Donald,
Don’t you think that the reason why relations between the older generations and the younger ones can be so negative and critical, is because of the lack of communication and understanding? Yes, I’m only 16, and you’re probably going to call me a fiscal conservative and say that you’ve been on this Earth for almost a billion years, so therefore that renders me a cheeky upstart; but don’t you think that it’s very narrow minded to suggest that kids these days shouldn’t have an opinion on anything?
I agree that there are certain individuals who may go around with a lot of confidence and sometimes arrogance, however I think every person will go through this at some stage. You finish high school and you think you’re a grown up, and then you realise you’re still a kid, but hey, thats life. We realise our place and move on, we make mistakes and move on, yes we cringe at some of the things that we’ve said and done, but the important point is that we grow up to be well rounded individuals.
I don’t know about you, but where I come from, the local authorities work really hard to improve relations between youngsters and those of the older generation. I think your biting, and venomous attitude simply undermines and discredits this, and makes the void between generations even wider. How do you ever expect to be treated with any respect by us foul-mouthed ignoramuses, if you don’t try to understand us? I try to understand you. I realise that there are people where I live, who don’t treat older members of society with respect. But i also realise, that there is work being done to stop this. That there is an inter-generation programme to stop this anti-social rude behaviour. I realise that being loud mouthed and cheeky is a stage that most young people, in this time, go through and come to regret. Yes, i say ‘in this time’f, because I agree, this is a different society to the one that you grew up in when you were a lad, but there is hope; and what you say just stamps it all out.
You may tell me I’m a deluded fool, but I’m sure as hell a 16-year old deluded fool, and therefore I happen to know a lot of other 16-year old deluded fools. I happen to go to college with them.
I know I probably seem like an outspoken 16 year old who thinks she knows everything-so you can save your breath-but I am proud to have an opinion, and I hope that young people should never have to grow up in a society that forbids them to speak.
Kind Regards,
Sophie
(P.s. Did you notice I haven’t sworn like a sailor once, in this post?)
Just curious as to why you believe people deserve respect just for ageing, a process that requires no skill and minimal effort? I am interested in reading your response.
Its a shame somebody who claims to know so much spends time bitching about the younger generation. You are just a useless relic from yesteryear comparable to a rotary phone. Blah blah blah I bet you voted for Obama you old white piece of shit. If you baby boomers know so damn much then why didn’t you buy a pack of rubbers and limit yourself to one kid so you could have saved a decent retirement and not have incompetent 70 year olds in the work force keeping their grandkids out of work. Oh yeah if your so damn insightfull then why did you buy the American dream on credit and inflate everything’s price 15 fold? Middle finger to all you old fvckers.
Not sure I get ya, Dave. A car was equipped having a vinyl leading due to the fact which is how it was ordered. In a Superbird of which this is certainly significantly removed the vinyl leading was accustomed to hide the seams.
To be fair some of you older people are kind of the same. Some of you think you’re always right and we’re just a bunch of idiots when here there are young people out there who are really smart,nice, and respect most of you. So instead of just taking respect why don’t you also give it as well? Some of us young people aren’t a bunch of punks we can be very respectful if you aren’t disrespectful towards us only because others give us a bad name. Don’t act like none of you have been know it alls yourselves or don’t have flaws.
And maybe you guys are right about most things but why blame most young people?
I’m sorry, but you do realize all these kids are the next generation of adults. We are not going to dress and talk exactly like our elders. Telling us we can’t do what we want may make the future a less nice place. Maybe you could help us be better instead of hating on us? It’s a bit of a put down when someone tells you that because of your age you are worth nothing.
Many years ago, a group of Baptists in the States lined their TV sets up in a field and shot them all. Way to go!!!
Right on,I can’t say one thing that my 19 teen year old agrees with. She’s knows everything. Example yesterday the wind was blowing 30 miles an hour, we have horses and she was to give a lesson to a lesson to a eleven year old girl, who had only been on a horse one time. I said maybe you should can’cel the lesson the horses are acting up with this wind. Well I knew! what was coming “;mom I know what I’m doing you don’t know anything ” ;thank goodness the mother called off, but this is what I get on anything I have an opinion about, or she just tells me to shut up.
Wow. This has been an amazing string of comments to sift through and digest, and for all of you over the age of 40, KUDOS. I have been teaching in the public school system for the past 22 years, and every damned year, a new crop of teachers comes into the system with ALL the answers. Anything I have to say on topics that will never go away (Math, Reading Writing) are met with disdain from the young bucks. I am not saying that some of their ideas are not worth looking at, but sometimes it’s best to listen to someone who has ‘been there’. I am continually frustrated that these newbies are enabling the students and every year, when they get to me in the 8th grade, I need to start at the basics because teaching them to multiply to 12, and I quote,”…is not in the curriculum and I don’t have time to teach it.”. is ignorant. NOT teaching them the basics cripples our students. No wonder they think they know-it-all, their teachers think they do, too.
What about when 19 year olds go on about how mature they are coz they been teaching a class of kids like them?!
I remember at 19 having a tutor who was younger than me and asking for a price a professor would take for the lesson; all because he has 10 years of experience teaching.
The worst part is that they think they are mature because they do this one thing like teaching, but outside of that the slunder others and laugh at crude jokes they invent. Very annoying indeed.
Actually the more annoying thing is that they find way to fill their mouthes with useless words, as if having meaningful conversation, where as in reality they talk either junk and nonsence or talk about others.
AJ, 28