Did Generation X fail as parents?: RE Millennials

Me and a friend of mine were talking earlier about this subject due to a lot of the things we are seeing TV lately with the protesting/riots etc happening here in America. Now keep in mind, i'm not painting Millennials with a broad brush here, but this last generation is awful in a lot of peoples eyes and I am not alone in thinking this. Millennials are called Snowflakes by many. The Instant Gratification Generation by some. Participation Trophies came to light because of Millennials. Safe Spaces became a thing due to Millennials too. Millennials feel like they are always entitled to something.

I have noticed a phenomena with Gen X you didn't see much in prior Generations. Gen X parents tend to push their kids on THEIR parents (kids grandparents) a lot more then other generations did. Maybe that has something to do with it. Maybe Millennials are the most coddled generation ever due to that. You hear so many stories of grandparents raising their grandchildren from the 1990s all the way up until now. Its common. More common then some realize.

So what are your thoughts on Millennials? Did Generation X fail as parents? What went wrong?

a reply to: Bloodydagger

My kids are barely teens, (I'm Gen X) the millennials are from both the oldest Gen X and youngest baby Boom.

My kids know about dressing a deer, change car tires+brakes, know that it's OK to punch some one if they touch you in anger, target shoot, raise chickens...........

It is an individual problem with the supposed millennials being lazy or un-motivated (I don't buy it).

The millennials have seen their parents get screwed by corp America, and they are suspect of it. Good for them.

a reply to: Bloodydagger

Most of what we see is a reflection of all generations right now. Many things take decades to change, so alot of what we see may be from a compilation of decisions going back some time.

I think the exaggerated efforts of political correctness is partly to blame. I'm not for people just being blatant a$$holes but when you go to far down the path of political correctness than you actually start separating people by groups to cater to them which turns into discrimination (ironic).

Lastly one of the big issues is critical thinking is no longer taught. People are expected to trust establishment education, media, and policies without question. Should you question you look like a freak or an antagonist.

We all have to wake up, we are born into a social contract many people don't participate in, what's left is an apathetic government selected by a few that only benefits the very few.

Edit : Just a disclaimer I am 27 and see many sides to this coin. I am by no means a snowflake nor are any of my friends. We all make up different ideologies and are tolerant and supportive and open minded to each other. But we aren't afraid of opposing viewpoints and all welcome it.

Gen X overlaps with Millennials.

Both terms are used interchangeably.

wwwwindowsmetafilec.org...

According to that chart, it gives what I said in my OP some credence. It says "Typically grew up as children of divorce" which is why I mentioned above of the Grandparents being the actual mom and dad instead of the real parents. That was so common back in the 90s and into the 2000s.

a reply to: Kettu

Nah, my understanding is that Gen X stopped at 1980 and Millennials started at 1981.

a reply to: Bloodydagger

Numbers vary a little bit, but most consider 1980 the end of the GenX.


And this of course is another dividing tactic so we can point fingers and malign the "others". Divide and conquer works every time it's tried.

Yes just like every generation the next one is always worst.

Cant we just go back to my dads generation, so we can beat are wives, hang minorities and have gay bashing festivals.

I have a Son who is a millennial, and he has never been wrapped in cotton wool.

He is upset that we have chosen Brexit, but he realises it is the will of the majority that could be bothered to actually get out and vote.

He doesn't feel inclined to protest, but appreciates the right of those that have chosen to do so.

Some Millenials have been wrapped in cotton wool, mainly the average achievers. Why? Well, I guess that many middle class families refuse to believe that their child might just be average.

originally posted by: Kettu
Gen X overlaps with Millennials.

Both terms are used interchangeably.

No, we used to be called Generation Y until somewhere around the late 90s when they coined the term Millennials.

originally posted by: dukeofjive696969
Yes just like every generation the next one is always worst.

Cant we just go back to my dads generation, so we can beat are wives, hang minorities and have gay bashing festivals.

That didn't dissappear, it evolved. We just changed enemies, there are always enemies. So now it's the middle east and was almost Russia. People still die in high numbers, so not much has changed.

Another thing to consider are these Alt-Left and Alt-Right political groups that are shaping up right now that the Millennials are behind. I think these two groups are bad for America. These two movements are going to do away with grass roots Democratic and Republican ideals in another 2-3 decades once the old guard dies out. These two new ideologies are taking each political wing and pumping them with steroids.

As a 28 year old in a business that works with people from 18-70s and during a rush can handle over 100 people in an hour at one register, I may have some insight. Everyone has hit the nail on the head with the sense of entitlement but everyone forgets where it came from.

While the age of parents is a factor, so are the standards of living. We grew up being told we lived in the future, everyone is equal and is fully capable of achieving their potential. We were told we were fixing the planet and leaving consumerism with the Cold War. But the harsh reality is we were cultivated into what we are by a system built and maintained by an out of touch generation.

We polute more than ever, race relations are at an all time low, and when you used to be able to build a life with minimum wage, you can't even build one with the completely devalued degree from any of the hundreds of diploma factories in this country.

To make things worse, after having our ears filled with all of this nonsense for so long we start to believe it and get pretty pissed off when we "grow up" and find out it was all a lie. What the hell did you think was going to happen when you started giving out participation awards and turning all of our tv programming into commercials for toys and cigarettes?!

Now what we have is boomers and gen x are seeing that it is a lie too, but they blame the generation that hasn't been around long enough to do anything. Because for some reason if you survive passed your usefulness that somehow makes you more valuable than the still functioning young people that used to get entry level positions. I can't tell you how many of my peers are using their degree to teach the same old people how to do the most basic jobs. Let's face it, a senior citizen can't use electronics or perform manual labor as well as a young person can. This isn't new, it has always been that way. And while we are being honest, if you are 60+ and working at a gas station, YOU screwed up, probably more than a few times. This actually makes you less valuable than someone with no work history with plenty of years of productivity left. The job isn't owed to you, you are just stifling a generation that doesn't have the solutions to your generation's mistakes. To me, hearing an elderly person saying "I'm 60 years old, I shouldn't have to..." is no different than the lazy teens you see screaming for a safe space.

Now if you are a millennial reading this and getting all amped up, slow your roll. Just because they screwed up so bad doesn't mean we are entitled to a free pass. We have to do what everyone else did; grow up and make something of yourself. I went from homeless to the owner of my own business on top of a conventional job all from literal garbage. If I can sell jewelry made out of pop tabs and road kill you can do it with anything. And you don't even have to learn how to do icky stuff like hunting and farming (since millennials don't get that Walmart is not the natural habitat of vegetables and chicken).

Everyone just needs to admit we all screwed up but we can all still fix it from nothing. Because nothing is exactly where all of this came from (not looking for a religious argument).

I hope someone reads this and makes some changes to their life like I did.

a reply to: trollslayer

Excellent post there!

originally posted by: Bloodydagger
Me and a friend of mine were talking earlier about this subject due to a lot of the things we are seeing TV lately with the protesting/riots etc happening here in America. Now keep in mind, i'm not painting Millennials with a broad brush here, but this last generation is awful in a lot of peoples eyes and I am not alone in thinking this. Millennials are called Snowflakes by many. The Instant Gratification Generation by some. Participation Trophies came to light because of Millennials. Safe Spaces became a thing due to Millennials too. Millennials feel like they are always entitled to something.

I have noticed a phenomena with Gen X you didn't see much in prior Generations. Gen X parents tend to push their kids on THEIR parents (kids grandparents) a lot more then other generations did. Maybe that has something to do with it. Maybe Millennials are the most coddled generation ever due to that. You hear so many stories of grandparents raising their grandchildren from the 1990s all the way up until now. Its common. More common then some realize.

So what are your thoughts on Millennials? Did Generation X fail as parents? What went wrong?

I understand your quandary. I found definite differences in the generations that to my mind, did not seem to be a positive move towards the future. But like many have said, every generation has doubts about the next generation.

Quite a while back I attempted to tackle this observation. It didn't go anywhere, but I thought the article I included to be informative, even if I didn't agree with everything it said.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

NO.
NOT SPANKING your children and giving "TIME OUTS" can create the spawn.

I think the blame for the entitlement generation lies in a combination of the indoctrination within the public school system (from kindergarten through college) and parents who are not staying involved with the education of their children enough to undo the indoctrination.

originally posted by: BlueAjah
I think the blame for the entitlement generation lies in a combination of the indoctrination within the public school system (from kindergarten through college) and parents who are not staying involved with the education of their children enough to undo the indoctrination.

The schools indeed contributed to the problem, but that is also the fault of the parents. The schools would never have gotten away with this level of interference when I was attending school. Parents in those days would have never allowed it.