posted on Jul, 22 2011 @ 10:24 PM
This is a subject I have thought a lot about over the last few years. Are today's children preparing themselves for a future that is never going to
come? Going to school and college, to get a degree for a profession that isn't going to exist in 10-20 years? How probable do you think this is?
I doubt there is anybody on ATS that isn't aware of the dire straits that the US, and by default, most of the world is currently in. Most everyone is
broke, the US, parts of Europe, Africa, and the Middle East are engaged in a pretty much never ending conflict.
The costs of food, medical care, energy, education, basically the cost to survive and succeed is skyrocketing, while the income rewarded to you for
your labors is dropping at an ever increasing rate.
Things have changed drastically even in the short time since I was in school (~15 years) Back then, it was a pretty simple process. Do halfway decent
in high school, get even a 2-year degree, and you were almost guaranteed an easy job that pays well enough to have a house, cars, family, etc. Even if
you didn't go to college, you could get a blue collar job without much trouble that would afford you almost the same lifestyle, albeit with more
physical work demanded of you.
This was the way my parents, and all my peer's parents had it. Everyone owned a house, some were construction workers, some plumbers, some managed
warehouses, or had mid-level office jobs. They didn't have much education, but still had jobs that afforded them the ability to support a family and
live in a pretty decent level of comfort, with one parent working.
Not now. Those same positions these days allow you to have the pleasure to support only yourself, and that's if you share a 2 bedroom apartment with
someone else. The future of these jobs is most likely a pay cut, increased work load, or lay-offs. No bright future at a company that actually cares
for it's workers, and rewards them for years of dedicated hard work. Not anymore.
It seems the education system is still preparing young people for a world that doesn't exist anymore. No longer is it easy to come out of college and
score a high-paying job of your choice. Now you leave college with tens of thousands in debt, and then take a job at Wal-Mart of McDonalds because
nobody is hiring in your field. Or if they are, but they aren't paying much better than Wal-Mart or McDonalds.
My nephew is 13 years old, and he's under the impression he'll go to college and get a job as soon as he gets out. He thinks he'll be a valued
commodity in the job market. He's smart,and I love him, but I don't have the heart to tell him he'll most likely be worthless by the time he gets
out of college. Am I wrong? Am I just being negative?
It honestly appears that things will keep going down-hill for quite some time. The education system is supposed to prepare young folks for their
future, but in my opinion they are failing horribly, because they have had the same idea of what the future will hold for decades, and it just isn't
accurate anymore.
They instill this idea that everyone is going to go to college, get some high-paid corporate job, and everything will be fine. They aren't preparing
them for the reality, that things might NOT be fine. That maybe your WASTING money by going to college. Maybe your wasting TIME by going to college.
Maybe the USA, and maybe the world might not even be anything close to what it is right now, by the time the current middle-school kids get out in the
world.
I'm not going to get too deep into conspiracy theory as far as what the future holds. I'm not going to say the Illuminati are going to turn the
country into a police state with slave workers. I doubt that would happen. But you don't even have to get that crazy to realize that the near future
is going to be a lot different than yesterday, and even today is.
Anybody have any ideas? I just can't stop thinking about the future my nephew is going to have to endure. Total economic collapse? Or just a job
market so poor that almost nobody has a job, and those that do can't even afford basic things in life?
Sorry if it sounds like I'm rambling, and I won't be surprised (or offended) if this gets moved to the rant section. I just thought I'd get some
other people's opinions on the future, and how they think the younger generation of today should prepare for it.