Tuesday, January 27th, 2009
#A Changing World – A Generational Divide?
In the recent inauguration of President Elect Barack Obama, he said something in his speech that truly struck me, and ironically reminded me of a recent issue that I have been pondering over in my head. Obama said, “For the world has changed and we must change with it.”
It seems as though there is a reluctance to change though and a growing generational divide, especially among baby boomer generation and those prior, where the new is shunned. For example, some believe that those of Generation X and Y have adapted a technological way of thinking, causing us to lose the nature of our intellect. In a conversation with my family over the holiday break, someone mentioned how frustrating young people can be about communicating – “Why can’t you just pick up a phone instead of sending an e-mail or a text message (source-personal conversation)?”
There was a recent news story on Sunday Morning about a published book entitled “Why We Hate Us: American Discontent in the New Millennium” (author-Dick Meyer). Essentially, it talked about yearning for the simplicities of the past and why today’s world is at a disadvantage. Some of the things mentioned were bringing back the romance of dating, or the elegance of ballroom dancing.
As a youth on the verge of graduating college, this generational generalization is somewhat offensive. While I agree that life might have been easier before we had eight different ways of communicating with someone, I think all of the wonderful changes things like technology has done for us. We may dance differently than other generations and embrace rap lyrics, but let’s face it, we need to listen to the words of our newly appointed President, “for the world has changed and we must change with it.”
What are your thoughts?