In their defense, what the next generation has now / has to deal with is the result of the actions / policies / practices of the previous generations.

They may be seeing only the negatives and may not be aware of the positives because people tend to take the good things for granted.  (I've met a lot of older people who lived through socialist countries who always say that gun control is always one of the first thing their despotic leaders do when taking power.  They are often glad to be living in the US.)

I admit that this is  a generalization, but I believe that some millennials are willing to work hard and do appreciate the value of working together but may just not be as willing to "put up and shut up" with poor leadership.

Older generations tended to work the same job for the same company for a longer time.  The newer generations tend to have more jobs and move around more.  Hence, a culture clash.

Aloha Robtmc,

You are absolutely correct.

However, even nations who practice capitalism, albeit crony capitalism, also are prone to restricting gun ownership.  The Philippines under the US backed Marcos regime did not allow gun ownership to its citizens.  Consequently, I will add to your point by saying any nation that has a big government, even a nation that practices capitalism, does not necessarily translate to citizens having the right to bear arms.

By-the-way, I am not a leftist, but a political and economic ideological pragmatist.     


Kuleana

While the US government is not perfect, the founding fathers knew enough about human nature to separate out the powers of the government into three branches that are supposed to check and balance each other.  When the checks and balance no longer works, then it is where we find more corruption.

You rightly point out that the culture may have changed but what about the working environment as well? How many people nowadays can get a job that will support a stay at home wife and two children? This used to be a standard a few generations ago but now it seems to be a bit rare. So while the younger generations do benefit from the hard work of their parents, they are also facing a different set of challenges than their parents and grand parents. It is more than just a single variable equation. I do think that being spoiled, or more appropriately "overindulged," causes problems in how people face reality in the world, but that is only one factor at play.

The free market is both a blessing and a curse in that sense. It will give us more for cheaper but will also send away our jobs and pay us less. So while a previous generation may have made it easier for this generation, in other ways life may be harder as well.

I think one only has to look at the disposable income to see that one generation worked harder than another to get where they are.  Today's kids have so much more than I did growing up.  If that money was being put aside for things that my parents thought were worthwhile compared to what a lot of today's parents think are worthwhile................

I think there is merit to what you are saying, but we should also consider that many items have gotten a lot cheaper so while they might have more disposable income the same level of income can also buy a lot more luxuries which might make one think they have more disposable income than they actually do.

I think if you look at the CPI between now and when I was a kid it would not account for the throwing away of the disposable income.

Just look at this past New Years Eve.  It was back to Baghdad this year.  I saw thousands dumped on fireworks.  Same goes for all the stuff the kids have now.........or maybe my parents just pinched their pennies harder than most, I dunno but what I see nowadays with the younger parents I find mind boggling.

When things used to be "Made in the USA", they were quality made.  Now "Made in China", not so much.

China has really advanced into the modern world though. While they do still make loads of cheap crap, they also have Chinese companies that are making quite high quality items these days. Flashlights come to mind.

Some things are certainly made more poorly but advancements make some things much cheaper.

Take block for example, the advent of the polymer molding means that they can make a frame in seconds at a fraction of the cost of a metal frame without any loss in quality. A 1911 seems to run about a $1000, a Glock is $400 - $500.

Similarly, one of the the upsides with the electric cars is the low maintenance of their parts. The electric motors are low maintenance and easy to sway, there are not many mechanical linkages to go wrong, and many of the parts you normally need to change are absent (oil, air filter, transmission fluid, spark plugs, gaskets, etc) This is a bad thing if you are a parts supplier.

my 1911 would pummel the crap out of a Glock.
Like a pencil fight except my pencil is a steel pipe

Even in the 1990's cars could be fixed, but it seems like lately with the advent of plastic uni-body, sealed transmissions and over-complicated electronics

A Guardian investigation into the prospects of millennials – those born between 1980 and the mid-90s, and often otherwise known as Generation Y – has found they are increasingly being cut out of the wealth generated in western societies.

Where 30 years ago young adults used to earn more than national averages, now in many countries they have slumped to earning as much as 20% below their average compatriot. Pensioners by comparison have seen income soar.

It is likely to be the first time in industrialised history, save for periods of war or natural disaster, that the incomes of young adults have fallen so far when compared with the rest of society.

Experts are warning that this unfair settlement will have grave implications for everything from social cohesion to family formation.

“Current working-age, middle-class groups are increasingly concerned with their and their children’s job prospects. An increasing number of people think children in their country will be worse off financially than their parents,” he said.

For the first time in France, recent pensioners generated more disposable income than families headed by a person under 50. In Italy the average under-35 became poorer than average pensioners under 80. Using the most recent US data, in the midst of the downturn in 2013, average under-30s had less income than those aged 65-79. This is the first time that has happened as far back as the data goes.

Across Europe, the issue centres more around jobs – and the lack of them. The numbers of thirtysomethings still living with their parents is stubbornly high in countries such as Italy and Spain, with grave implications for birthrates and family formation in places whose demographics are already badly skewed towards elderly people.

“We’ve never had, since the dawn of capitalism really, this situation of a population that is ageing so much and in some countries also shrinking, and we just don’t know whether we can continue growing the economy in the same way we once have,” said Prof Diane Coyle, an economist and former UK Treasury adviser.

Millennials are picking up the tab for the western world’s most stunning accounting disaster to date. No one expected people to live as long as they are, and in such great numbers. Pensions that were promised in the past, and seemed ordinary at the time, are now onerously over-generous, and that is hurting young adults today.

Pensioner demands are not just beating down the financial prospects of new employees. Retirees are also winning more from governments than they did a generation ago. Our figures show double-digit, real-terms growth in social transfers – what governments give out – over 30 years to pensioners aged 65-79, ranging from as low as 26% in Germany to 146% in the UK.

And once again, young people are the ones paying the price. Laurence Kotlikoff (baby boomer), a professor of economics at Boston University, is astounded at what has happened, especially in America. “The US is out to bankrupt its children.”

However, this has all been turned on its head by globalisation. In the past 30 years, liberalisation has allowed companies to outsource aggressively. Everything from telephone helplines to legal services to computer programmers are now being provided by outsourcing companies in countries such as India or China.

“That global workforce is easier to tap than ever,” said Pomeroy. “That means it’s not so good for your ‘in-demand’ 25-year-old.” The result: a slump in real wages over the past three decades for 25 to 29 year olds in several countries.

Once again it is only Generation Y suffering this fate. Using figures from 2010, most five-year cohorts from 40 to 65 posted positive pay growth compared with people of the same age 30 years earlier. In the US, Spain and Italy, the older you are in the workplace, the higher those wage increases have been.

Pomeroy added: “If you have a load of people who are 20, 25 and they are becoming your core consumer over the next 15 to 20 years and they are less well off than the current crop of people in that age group, then that’s not great for growth … you’re in big trouble.”

“We just don’t know whether we can continue growing the economy in the same way we once have.”