It sure has been awhile since I've been on Progressive U. I plan to start posting regularly again and to start off, I want to post a topic that I really feel is necessary. I posted this on HubPages, and I think this is the perfect place for the article:
It surprises me how little my generation knows about politics, those in the news, or anything in general that doesn't have to do with what Lauren Conrad or Paris Hilton are doing. Back when I was a junior in high school I asked one of my classmates the simple question, "Why do you like George W. Bush?" I was pleasantly shocked with the answer, "Because my parents do." I have found that this is the similar answer amongst other people in my generation.
I am not the biggest political aficionado, but I know enough that I felt I made the right decision for the 2008 election. However, when asking my other friends and classmates who they voted for they said things like, "I didn't really look, I just picked the top one" or "I voted the same way my parents did."
What surprises me more is the lack of knowledge of the world outside of MTV or VH1. After Peter Jennings' death, I was shaken up. This man was the highlight of my family's night for almost two decades and none of my friends recognized him. A few years later, the beloved Tim Russert passed away, and again, none of my friends or classmates knew who he was. To me, that is shocking and appalling.
I don't know how my generation can go through college without knowing who any of these political analysts or news personalities are. I believe that every person should know who these people are, no matter it be Tom Brokaw, Peter Jennings, or even some of the future presidential candidates. I hope I'm not the only one who sees the laziness of my generation and hopefully something happens that can help shape our future. We are the future, right?
It is not just your generation. Most people of all ages are shockingly ill-informed.
But it may be getting worse. Ignorant parents tend to raise ignorant kids. The schools have sucked for a long time now and so there are a lot of ignorant parents out there.
I sometimes wonder if I'm living in a different world than most of Pro U. I've gotten into discussions about politics on numerous times. Lot's of my classmates read the papers and weekly magazines. Those who don't are usually trying to make sure they do well in college. Honestly, I don't think I know anyone who knows what paris and Lauren Conrad are up to. Even if they did, there really isn't much wrong with celebrity gossip, as long as its not a priority.
Maybe its who I hang out with, I don't know but I don't really fear for our future. Especially when I look at what my parents' generation was like, and the eighties, whose children are just beginning to rule the world.
Like what you've read? Well, then here's more:
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/tricia0711
Maybe its who I hang out with
The people who you are hanging out with are obviously a cut above the greater mass of humanity. Just the fact that they are in college makes them a small subset of the total population.
Except it was often the same in high school, in a different part of the state. I think that there is room in a person to care about the news and current events and still watch the hills and TMZ. And I'm not sure I agree that being in college makes a person better than someone else. It could be argued that they will have better chances of getting a better paying job, but there are always exceptions.
Like what you've read? Well, then here's more:
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/tricia0711
I would hope the same is true with me, but I find a lot of college students aren't as bright as you'd like 'em to be...
And I honestly have no idea who the heck Laura Conrad is. :)
You wonder how this generation is getting through college? Simple answer: the majority of them won't. Around 27% of people in the U.S. have a Bachelor's Degree. The majority of people in this country did not complete four years of college education, and the majority of this generation won't, either.
I think the problem isn't that people are getting stupider and- to me, more important- more apathetic. Rather, I think things have always been that way. It's just you don't notice it until you're the one receiving an education and everyone around you is intellectually dependent on TMZ.
If it makes you feel better, I don't know who Lauren Conrad is.
Apathetic is a good word for it. And lazy. Everyone seems to want good things to happen for them...without working for it.
I hope I never have to depend on TMZ for intellectual stimulation.... then I know I'm doomed mentally!