Eff no. Are you kidding me? The fact that you can find a wealth of anonymous opinions is amazing. Get real. And what evidence do you have of this emotional detachment? The fact that I can find information about anything that's happened on a global scale in seconds makes me feel more in touch with the world, if anything.

The problem of materialism isn't something new to our generation, as our parents and grandparents also participate in its teachings. The problem is our society teaches us to be avaricious.

A new issue Canadians are faced with is that the majority of us no longer have any savings. When we were little, we were taught to save our money so that we could afford an item we really wanted. We were taught to work for our money, but not to save it, unless it's to purchase something unnecessary. Do we need to travel? Do we need that new iphone or computer? Do we need an ipod or those new earrings?

Honestly, we have too much that we don't need, and thus are unhappy as a result.

The Great Depression negatively affected people, causing them to be more conscious (or frugal) with their spending. Why can't we be like them? Isn't it nice to have that $57,000 sitting in your bank account for no particular reason?

I wish we could live in simpler times when we didn't need a whole lot. I would like to be free and walk from Ottawa to Montreal for fun, without worrying about money or my job. But I have to because I need to spend my time working to earn money just so I can pay my bills for something that is really overpriced.

In Gascony, I'm reading, farmers used to enjoy a beautiful, healthy life. They worked proudly in their fields and produced great foods and wines. They were relatively rich and happy because they lived off their efforts. But governments interfered by forcing them to fulfill a quota for the gain of other people, that they had to use new technologies to plow their fields. Originally, they used bulls and horses to pull a plow, which also allowed for the soil to be fertilized by their dropping manure. But machines are more efficient, but cost so much and don't last long enough. Farmers now are very poor. Even in Canada, they don't earn enough and have to rely on the unpredictable weather. In Canada, farmers are known for dealing with depression and high rates of suicide.

I don't think it's so much a problem with out generation, as it is with our current society. We're all about material pleasure and looking out for ourselves. We do care about others, but not as much as the people before us. We're also not as active and explorative

I want to change that. I won't buy things I don't need. I won't use the computer unless necessary. I will read books, go out and experience nature, and see what entertainment the world and our people have to offer.

So basically you want some sort of legislation attached to every little thing - and no, society doesn't need it extended that far to keep everything in tact. If you constrict stupid things, like what is being said on the bloody internet (like, seriously), then people are going to get annoyed and take extreme actions.

Violent video games? The vast majority of people don't take this stuff seriously, so no, I don't think it's worth trashing an entire form of entertainment for the very odd nutcase. And I don't see what the problem with this "desensitization" is anyway. If you're able to stomach violence better after being exposed to it more and more, than so what? What's the alternative? Ignoring what violence is entirely?

The Japan thing bothers me the most. Natural disasters and death are a part of life, people need to quit being a complete baby and deal with the jokes. Most of them are made because someone out there is going to get offended and have a negative reaction anyways, so relax. People don't go crazy when there's no direct punishment for their actions, and the Army101/email situation is a good example of this. Everyone knew they were being complete trolls over the situation, and no one was buying it - as a result they both got a ton of flack which was their own natural consequence.

I think a huge issue with our generation is that we aren't pursuing what we enjoy. It seems like if you look at kids these days, you'll find that more and more of them are now inclined to choose careers for the wrong reasons (glamour, prestige, money, etc.). Of course this isn't news to anyone, but I feel like it's getting worse.
One major reason for this is that students are forced through this linear educational system where they feel they must know what they want to be right after high school. Often it is too early for kids to make such a crucial decision because they haven't really had a chance to explore or uncover all of their talents. Also, we see now that the notion of attending university is held very highly and so students believe that a university degree is the key to success. This is really all due to pressure by society and parents; students feel like they have to live up to certain expectations set by others and not themselves. So for these reasons I think that students are almost streamlined straight into fields that do not interest them, and they end up not realizing their talents and passions.
We're really just growing up much too fast. And we're being bombarded by society with ideas on what we should become, being lured every which way by sudden impulses, so much that sometimes we forget to think to ourselves what we really enjoy. I feel like the Arts are gradually being overshadowed by the Sciences and Business now more than ever. Don't get me wrong, Science is undeniably valuable for our society (in fact, I am pursuing Health/Life Sciences), but I feel like more and more students whose talents lie in Art would rather choose Science or Business because these fields are more appreciated and valued. Of course, this is really not the case; if you think about it, art is probably the most exclusive to humans than any other field. It may very well be what separates us from extraterrestrial species.
Anyways, there's a lot to say about this whole idea of students as premature adults, but I want to hear what you guys think.

Oh really? I get that Japan suffered a huge, incredible tragedy, and i'm not being hard-headed about it. I know it sucks - Im donating money. I'm simply acknowledging that people can and will make jokes about Japan, and that it's not something to get worked up over. Chill

and to chatmike, I can't remember what you wrote at the moment, but I still don't think that making all kinds of consequences to quell apathy from technology is some sort of reasonable solution.

The thing is, you can still live this life by moving to a third-world country. Work for a few years in Canada, save up lots, and then buy a place in Guatemala.

I tire of this line of thinking because I know quite a few hippy-ish people who think that way. It's entirely possible to save up enough money (especially if you're not "materialistic," as claimed) and then move to a country where the people live a pretty similar lifestyle as the one you described. The reason many of those hippy-ish people do not do this is because they want a computer, 21st century medicine, a TV and digital cable, a car, etc, etc... I don't like calling people hypocrites, but that's basically what these people are.

You are so out of touch with both reality and morality that it is not even funny.

@ Jesseyeeahh:

Yes, it's way too soon to be making jokes about Japan or even talking about making jokes about Japan. Give it another 6 months, and you'll be good to go. Things get more and more "moral" as time goes on, you see. At this point, the jokes are too real. A lot of people died, you know? Who are you to say that I should just deal with the jokes that some people make about the whole disaster? There's a special place in hell for people like you. But maybe that might even be too good for you.

^ It seems to me that people these days are just not reasonable any more. I mean, look at some of the people in this thread being totally unreasonable. Must be the internet or something, or the toxins - yeah, probably the toxins. Everyone was reasonable back in the olden days, you see. Or at least I'm pretty sure they were. Yeah, I think I read that in a book somewhere.

Here is a list of things that are wrong with our generation:

Facebook
Laziness
Poor spelling/grammer
We like to gather information but we never act on it (i.e. global warming, poverty, etc.)
The school system
Crime
The authority gap between children and adults has virtually disappeared
Many young people abuse their voting rights by not using them
Incompetent young parents
As we get older, the limit of this list approaches infinity...