This old folk rant makes me want to rant!!!

I just received another email from grandmother, which was forwarded to her. It's another one of those "young people these days" rants that i'm growing really sick of.

I was told to respect my elders by default, and was told to earn their respect. But it's near impossible to do that when many of them have sentiments like these:

"Back then, we had one radio or TV in the house - not a TV in every room and the TV had a small screen the size of a big handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of Scotland."

I didn't realize moral fiber was determined by the the size of your TV.

And then there's this: "Back then we exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity."

Of course, because everybody under 35 works behind a computer, I guess all the young plumbers, gardeners, builders and laborers are just robots piloted by a youngsters through a computer. Every job I've had I've busted my back for some old folks in one way or another, and if i went home sore and sunburned it's " because I didn't work hard enough".

And he's some more: "And we didn't need a computerised gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pub!"

That's cuz we is stoopid, everyone of us youngsters fall to bits when we don't have a GPS, it's a miracle we can find our way to work every day.

"In the kitchen we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to
do everything for us."

Damn right. Every time I want to cook the electric beater flies straight out of the draw of it's own accord and creates a dish for me. And the last time I checked one of the new fangled microwaves cooks food, just like the ovens of yore, only quicker.

And I saved the best for last:

"We don't like being old in the first place, so it doesn't take much to piss us off...especially from a tattooed, multiple pierced smartarses who can't work out the change without the cash register telling them how much it is!"

So there you have it. All us young people are just tattooed freaks who drive our sportscars home (with the help of GPS) and arrive home to our people movers, multiple big screen TV's and electric beaters, then we jump on the treadmill while using a computer.

I could make some generalizations of old folk as well but that would be disrespectful. You have my unconditional respect, so why are some of you old timers quick to dismiss our efforts to earn your respect? We are not all entitled, slovenly cretins that you make us out to be.

It's a rite of passage. It happens with every generation.

I had to walk 5 miles to school then back home... uphill both ways... in the snow when I was younger. Taking the bus has made you soft.

I think Monty Python said it best -

Someday you will reach the age she's at or the age I'm at, which is NOT where she is....but enough to relate far more with her than younger people today.

When, someday, you reach that age? Well... I'd say you'd understand, but that's not true. You'll be too busy saying the same things about the smart aleck kids of that eras younger generation to remember how you saw it, when you were younger and hearing it said.

I think that's one of the few constants in life. When young, we know it all and elders are silly old coots from another time. When we are the coots, I think we come to see nothing is ever that simple and something of culture and character is lost with each new generation of high tech. Mine lost a piece too.

I agree with your Grandma, you tattooed buffoon.

reply to post by Thecakeisalie


Fortunately...not all of the older generations think the way your relative does; many seniors have embraced the many changes; and have leaned and accepted those changes in life and technology. Many, many seniors are (young at heart) and are thankful that in some ways...life is easier than it was for them.

Unfortunately, some of it is all too true. I was in Hawaii a number of years ago when the power went out in part of the city. We were about to start dinner, but with no power, what could we do? But we saw that a part of the city did have power, so we drove over to a McDonalds and went inside only to discover long lines.

It turns out the computer used by the cash registers was, you guessed it, in a part of the city without power, so the registers were down and the employees had to make change manually. But they couldn't do it because they didn't know how. The registers did it automatically, so now they were stuck. So the "supervisors" tried to work the front line and they couldn't make change either.

So a couple of "old ladies" came back of the counter and began helping these youngsters count out change manually.

Now I don't think these people were stupid, as in having a low IQ, but they were definitely ignorant, unschooled, or both. My guess is they didn't know how to drive a clutch either.

The problem with letting technology do your work for you is that you lose the ability to do it yourself. A GPS is a good example. How did you ever get anywhere before?

So yeah, it may make you mad, but your elders know a lot more about surviving than you do.

reply to post by Thecakeisalie

HA! Wait. One day It'll be you and you'll be the one shaking your head at the young ones. Then youll get it!

There is a saying...not sure to attribute it to but it goes..."Child is Father to the Man". One day your child will be a grown adult...and treating you like the child." It happens to us all sooner or later.

reply to post by Thecakeisalie


I understand what elderly people are coming from when they say that kind of thing. But then again, they have no room to talk because each generation takes full advantage of current technological advances. In my grandparents' young days, their grandparents probably said, "We didn't have any TVs or radios or automobiles in my day!" And THEIR grandparents probably said, "We did just fine without that fancy electricity and phonographs you young people can't live without now!" And so on.

And besides, how many people in their 80s, 90s, even 100s, have we seen using cellphones and computers, etc.? Not saying all of them do, but I know the number has to be quite high.

When young people of today are old, we'll be complaining to our grandchildren about something crazy, like how we actually had to use our fingers to type instead of using a brain-powered keyboard- or something.