What in the world is up with kids today?!
Ok, so really, every generation says this about the next one, and sadly, they're all right. Each generation does seem to get collectively more obnoxious on some level. When it comes to my daughter's generation, I have a theory. I'm no child psychologist, but I think reality TV is warping these kids.
The Princess was telling me tonight about how she and her girlfriends are having this misunderstanding right now, and how it all played out. They were all at a friend's house after school, and two of the girls were whispering about something. My daughter joked to the other girl (whose house they were at) that the other two were talking about her. She meant it to be funny, but the girl ran to her mother, told her that these two were talking about her, whereupon the mother let loose with both guns on the other three girls, saying that they didn't need to be there if they didn't like her daughter. The Princess also filled me in on the mother's use of several curse words during this and earlier conversations.
Needless to say I think the kid overreacted, and in turn the mother overreacted, leaving my daughter shaking her head and wondering what in the world was wrong with both of them. We all have our moments, but I think we're doing a fairly good job of raising our kids to be level-headed about these kinds of things. I talked to the Princess about the whole situation, including how this child's insecurities may have led to her reaction, and that it's important to pray for everyone involved. I don't know where the friendship may or may not go after this, and hopefully I can talk to the mother at some point and sort this out.
But back to my original point, about reality TV..... I have no real scientific basis for this, but if you watch much of how people act on 'reality' TV, it's all DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA and it makes me think that it's making our youth think that this is how normal people behave. The Princess is always telling me about this situation or that situation, yadda yadda, or these students who are headed for the guidance counselor's office at school to work out one disagreement or another. Seriously? Did anyone my age do this in elementary school? It's so bad at age 10 that you need a mediator? I don't think I even once met our school guidance counselor in elementary school or was even aware of his/her existence.
All I can think is that these kids are watching shows like Big Brother or Wife Swap where the producers are looking for the most mentally unbalanced or extreme people they can find to put them in outrageous situations that would never happen otherwise. So kids are watching this and thinking that this it's normal to interact with people this way, where every little thing is a big deal and must be over-analyzed and over-reacted to.
All I know is that my daughter is completely baffled by her friends' behavior, and I don't let her watch those shows. So that is my unscientific, completely unproven theory on what is wrong with kids today. Take it as you will.
3 comments:
hmmm interesting theory. Yeah, when I got into disagreements at school, we'd make an appt w/ each other to meet behind the dumpsters at school and slug it out...(don't I sound like a boy?)
I think that its societies 180 to turn to psychology for everything too. Its totally acceptable now to go to counseling whereas before people may have hidden that fact in fear of being ridiculed. But you're so right about TV loving 'real drama' and creating it out of extreme situations. Sometimes I watch the clips from The Soup! and I'm like, are these people for real? Do people really act like that? Craziness.
Sorry The Princess' sarcasm fell on insecure ears...I've been victim to that so many times. And I always wonder where people's sense of humor went.
how's that for a comment. LOL!
You've been reading my mind? How? When? LOL.
All of these situations have been going on in my life over the last few months...minus the cursing at other people's kids, of course.
I've seen drama queens, I have a drama queen and I am a drama queen. Well the true drama mama, that is.
I agree with you about reality t.v. It's garbage. Garbage all around.
Did I have a guidance councelor in elementary school? Well, I guess I did. But I didn't go to them in middle school or high school either. I think I had the mentality of working out my own problems.
Sorry to ramble on! Thanks for the post.
not sure where the drama is coming from, but I'd like to add that nastiness has been on the increase.. I dealt with my own "mean girls" in school, but Beck seems to be in the counselors office more often than not with girls talking about "shooting themselves if they were as fat as her" and whatnot. I'm surely glad someone with there head on straight is there to talk to my dd when I'm unable to be there!
Liz
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