Parental Guidance in the 21st Century
Posted by Olympus at 04:32, 09 Jul 2010We are living in a time of mass technological advances, instantaneous international communication, and profound discoveries in medicine and biology. In my mid 20s and having the privilege to travel all throughout the United States, I've come across a wide variety of individuals all with separate backgrounds, some from the country, some from cities, and some from suburbia. One thing we all hold obviously certain is that we all have parents, my parents being from the 60s-70s generation.
Now, it would take a hermit of grand scale to not see what this up-and-coming generations aptitude is like... text messages up the ass, word-mouth filters all but obliterated, angst towards God knows what, passive aggressive smiles, and attention spans that rival gold fish. Is it the drugs? the music? the internet?
What about the parents?
Every generation, of course, has its run ins with the up-and-coming. But when viewed over a larger time scale it seems a primordial bond is being slowly but oh how severely severed. If we imagine what parents 12,000 yrs ago would've passed on to the next generation, I would see much more information handed down then, compared to now. That's a strange thought, but it holds true in my mind. When taking into account our hunter and gatherer society, ancient religions, life-lines/family trees, etc were all passed down. Whereas many people I know can't name their own genealogy past a few generations, better yet recite the 10 commandments. Why is that? Logic would seem to dictate that more information would need to be passed on. Excluding, of course, this bullshit of an education system we have. Where does that information go? I for one am very saddened by this.
Why are these issues happening? Well, with job loss and materialism at an all time high...one can see a trend opening up there. Of course that goes without saying the expansiveness of levels one can view such problematic thinking of this God given responsibility that is called 'Parental Guidance'. Dealing with internal and external influences a parent may be held back some. But to what extent? I think it goes without saying, just how little parents teach their children now-a-days. So I won't go into much detail on what is and isn't being taught.
On a personal scale I view this as THE true cause of mass hysteria and the out-right loss of our true callings. If any of you are like me, this post could literally go on forever, I view everything as interconnected. All answers are 50/50, I could easily write this post about the younger generation themselves and their inability to question and learn more so than their predecessors. But how can they be expected to do so when surely the latter lack the ambition. Are we losing compassion? Are we losing touch with our fellow man? Are we giving all our intelligence away to silicon and filling the void with instinctual emotion?
Bookmark/Search this post with
- Olympus's blog
- Login or register to post comments
Comments
10 August 2004
7 hours 10 min
Olympus, your blog raises so many valid points. I will reply properly when I've had time to get my thoughts in order. I hope many post replies, as I am quite lost when trying to understand those that my generation raised, and I may gain some understanding of the gulfs that seem to exist in so many ways, not to mention finding a way to bridge them.
Regards, Kathrinn
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
Patience is my middle name.
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
24 April 2009
1 week 5 days
In my humble view, the discussed phenomenon boils down to necessity and adapting to the changing environment. Most of the technological, as well as socio-economical, advancements throughout the history of mankind have a beginning in need of something better/more “suitable” than what has been previously available. The data which no longer serves a direct purpose is disregarded and forgotten. Parents try to give their offspring the best possible tools to operate in the environment they happen to operate in. The skill-set parents hand down to children is very different in Darfur than it is in New York City.
One has to remember that the Contemporary Western World, where everyone has a possibility to become anything they can dream of, is a very new metaphysical structure. The notions that “all men are equal”, and that (at least in theory) everyone is entitled to “human rights that cannot be taken away” are a relatively new ones. They are only about 300 years old. I am sure that there have been individuals/groups of people throughout the history that have had this view, but when looking at the history, actual human rights and freedom as we know them became recognized, and truly manifested, in the 1960’s. The seed sown for these manifestations was as late as in the Age of Enlightenment, the era of intellectual, scientific and cultural life, centered upon the eighteenth century.
But, what about slavery, apartheid, concentration camps? These were a reality only a few decades ago in the Western World and the same kind of monstrosities are still in practice throughout the world.
How much has actually changed in the last few thousand years?
If we look at the Roman Empire they had taverns and temples for nightclubs, huge arenas for blood-sport which were a combination of reality TV, Xbox and a multiplex in one neat package and wall graffiti as Twitter. What is the common nominator here? An advanced, civilized and orderly society, and here comes the punch line, with enough gold/wealth/money to pass around.
Underneath the mystique and religious practices of the ancient empires lurks an early form of capitalism. That is only a few steps away from colonialism and world domination. We are soooo materialistic nowadays? No, the only reason we can even discuss materialism is the fact that we have enough material and wealth to actually whine about it.
What gives and what has actually changed? I would say that it is the values. What parents ultimately teach their children are values and, repeating myself here, how to operate inside the given system. To be more accurate; the parents have their interpretation of the system, and they visit these subjections upon their children. It is up to the children to make up their minds if the old folks were full of shit or not. My advice? Take what you can and run with it. The biggest difference in the world we live, compared to ancient times, is that a son/daughter of a carpenter can become a president. We are not bound to the social restrictions of a class-society. Well, the Hindu-based fascistic tradition in India, and other theocratic dystopias in the surrounding areas have upheld this abomination to a degree.
Everyone who dreams of the spiritual greatness of the ancient empires forgets the fact that only a handful of people out of those nations actually knew how to read or write. For everyone else but the very privileged echelon of the society life was exceptionally hard labor. If bringing food to table every day is a fight and a struggle, there is hardly time for any kind of higher education. Africa in the 21st Century, anyone?
The education systems in the Western world are exceptionally good. It is the responsibility of the students to get the most information out of the system. And yes, it is the responsibility of the parents to kick their fat, lazy and disobedient teenagers away from the TV-screen, to confiscate the controller of the Xbox, and kick their arses to meet and greet the real world.
--Cuisvis hominis est errare; nullius nisi insipientis in errore perseverare
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
I like what your saying there and it makes sense to me. The idea of parenting probably hasn't changed much in the past centuries, but there is still an underlying problem that I can't exactly put my finger on. You make a valid point about taking what you get and running with it(very little arguing there) and the point on parents teaching values. I guess my major issue is the amount of ill-equipped parents now-a-days, I've seen too many and that leads to a downward spiral like no other for the children. Even if they do become what they dream of, what level of quality will they achieve? or understanding? More and more it seems people are building irrational ideals and qualms that they forget what basic understanding is and the meaning behind it all.
Edit: I have to disagree on the education system. I don't believe it's good at all! I got more educational opportunities working for a company than I had in the public's arm.
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
10 August 2004
7 hours 10 min
I apologise.. I’ve written and rewritten a reply, but none of them seem to come out right or mean what I’m actually trying to say – hence the delay in answering.
I guess when it comes down to it, I really don’t know what the answer is.
To be quite truthful, I don’t understand the generation that follows mine. Their values are so different, and quite different from those which we as parents tried to instill in them – but then I guess the world has changed. The younger ones have changed with the world, and my generation, although adopting much that is new, still hold what the young consider ‘old-fashioned’ values.
I don’t understand my own children. In many ways I feel sorry for them as their lives are full of stress, of feeling they are defined by what they have and not by who they are, of the constant need for more ‘things’ to fill the empty spaces inside them where compassion, tolerance and enjoyment of simpler pleasures should be. I am quite sure they no longer understand me and I often wonder if I am a total embarrassment to them!
They don’t need to know the things that I know, as they don’t fit into their current world. Were that current world to vanish before their eyes, they might find that I actually know things that they would find useful – things that help me to survive on an extremely limited income filled with friends that are true friends and enjoying occupations and pleasures that cost next to nothing.
So is ‘parenting’ actually a waste of time? Each generation seems to develop a bigger gap between it and the one before which now seems to be so big it is almost impossible to bridge. My generation was much closer to that of my parents than the world of my children is to mine.
I probably haven’t put all this as well as I could, and there is no doubt much I have omitted. Hopefully it goes some way towards answering your question.
Regards, Kathrinn
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
Well put! You raised a good point on a larger gap being generated probably with every subsequent generation. Very curious! I'm not speaking from experience as a parent but as an older brother to 4 little sisters with a 10 year gap between the oldest and me(the oldest being a junior in high school), it seems hard to lose the established ideals their generation is going for. What I'm seeing is emotionless drones that have been filled to the brim with every type of fervor a materialistic world could offer with no intervention(it seems) at all(or at least the right type of intervention). This reminds me of a post I made to an older DG Blog entry, I try to imagine what my life would have been like if I was given The Kybalion at 12 yrs old, among many others. But we deal with the cards we're dealt.
Thanks for the reply :D
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
14 April 2009
35 min 41 sec
---------
All that lives is holy, life delights in life.
--William Blake
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
one of the most genius presentations I have ever seen. Thank you for posting it!
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
28 June 2006
2 days 10 hours
Olympus,
Do the youth of today have the survival skills to survive major change? That is the most relivant question in my opinion and I think that the answer is no!
I'm not a parent; but, I have worked with children off and on for years. And for 11 years, I taught Junior High School, Senior High School, and Women's Junior College. {In Japan, there are no Junior Colleges for men.} My observation is that without their high tech devices children would be lost and survival would be impossible for most children.
The world is going through a major change and things are going to be very different. When I was in high school I had a transistor radio with an ear plug attachment and I was as high tech as I could be. But, today the proliferation of devices is ridiculous. My point is that these high tech devices don't teach children survival skills and blind them to the need for survival skills. My transistor radio attracted women and, in doing so, guaranteed the future of the human race.
In conclusion, I think that we, not just parents, ought to try to do two things; because, the future of the youth in the world is everybodies responsibility. First, I think that we need to find ways to make them realize that they don't have the survival skills that they need. After they realize this, I think that we need to teach them the survival skills that they need.
{The one major advantage that people in empoverished areas have is that in a worst case scenerio they have the skills necessary to survive.}
What do you think?
cnnek
{You Can Teach People How To Think Critically Or What To Think; But, You Can't Do Both! It Is Better To Teach People How To Think Critically!!!}
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
How can we keep up wit'em all? :D
Hey hey Cnnek :D thanks for the reply
Personally, I'm not big on survival skills. Unless your talking about survival in the concrete jungle? In which case I would flourish :D
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
22 November 2004
2 weeks 14 hours
Ok, a good opportunity to bring up Jamie Oliver's quest.
There are large numbers of large people who can't cook. And I mean "can't cook" as in they don't know how to boil an egg.
Normally you would think these people are headed for starvation - these days they eat prepared food that they buy in supermarkets. Since this food is loaded with sugar, a sizable percentage of these people ends up being fat. And I mean really fat, a life-threatening level of fatness. Because they can't cook.
Then we have folks that say leave them alone, they are beautiful in their own way. That is completely irrelevant, aside from being false. The relevant part is that these fat people die young because of their fatness.
It is a novel, modern way to die from ignorance.
----
We are the cat.
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
"It is a novel, modern way to die from ignorance." I laughed out loud. That's a perfect line right there XD
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
7 August 2004
25 weeks 1 day
Olympus, this is long as hell, and I'm sorry, but I think it is all relevant if you'll stick with me here.
I've rolled this exact topic around in my mind for the past couple of years. I'm going to start this rant by giving you a birds eye view of my situation. I am a parent of 3. I have a 14 year old daughter, a 12 year old son, and a 3 year old son. In my household we have an xbox 360, and xbox, a ps2, a computer, 2 laptops, 2 nintendo ds's, a psp, 4 cell phones, 3 iPods, 3 tv's, NO CABLE OR SATELLITE TV, just video games and movies approved by me...and we've got a lot of them. I use a Olympus(ironic no?) digital voice recorder as my journal, uploading daily MP3's onto my Western Digital 1 TB hard drive...you get the picture, we've got a lot of technology.
I'm 36 years old. When I was their age, Nintendo had just come out with the NES system that I RENTED from the local movie rental store along with typically ONE video game. We had one phone in our house, one tv, and my older brother had a commodore 64 computer and was constantly talking about upgrading to an Amiga. No internet, and our cable tv had 16 channels.
Just in the past 20 years alone technology has infiltrated nearly every aspect of our lives. It is creating a social structure that HAS NEVER BEFORE EXISTED. With this gigantic influx of technology, childrens minds are changing in way's that we cannot possibly understand. We have no precedence. We don't know what is happening inside their heads as a result of growing up inside all of this technology.
Like you, I am deeply concerned as to where this might lead, and here is where it gets a little weird for me. I have a couple of conflicting meme's that find there way into my thoughts concerning this new age phenomena, and if you'll give me just another few minutes of your time, I'd like to discuss them.
First, I have the Ray Kurtzweil meme. Technology as the savior. I've read his book, "The Singularity is Near", and it is very difficult under the amount of data that he provides to disagree with his major premise, which that technology is advancing at an exponential rate. Now Ray is very optimistic about this trend(or perceived trend), and I can easily get on board with him. A rapidly improving technologically advancing society could easily create a generation of humans who's minds work, think, and act radically different from anything that you or I could possibly understand. I can agree that a technology which is rapidly becoming more intelligent, just might be able to solve a lot of our larger world issues.
Maybe this is what is happening now. Just maybe, what we perceive as a detached, strangely emotional yet emotionless techno children with ADHD, Emo music, and "text speak"(R U 4 reelz? instead of: Are you for real?) is actually a transition state from "homo normalis" to "child of the future".
Now for the opposing meme, and please before you laugh me out of court, just hear me out:
If there really is a small cabal of ruling elite, whose goal is complete world domination, and this ruling elite wants to be able to turn every man woman and child into the perfect slave, technology is the way to do it. Through technology human kind could be hypnotized into becoming mindless slaves, and this generation of techie born children could actually be the first step in complete domination of the human race.
I've also read a book by William Cooper called, "Behold a Pale Horse". In this book, Cooper claims to have come across a document which he includes called the "Protocols of the Wise Men of Zion". Now, I don't know if you've ever read this, but it's scary beyond anything I can explain. In a nutshell, this document explains how this ruling elite, or Illuminati, is going to go about subjugating the entire world. There are many relevant passages, so I'll only quote a couple:
"In order that the masses themselves may not guess what they are about, we further distract them with amusements, games, pastimes, passions, peoples palaces...these interests will finally distract their minds from questions in which we should find ourselves compelled to oppose them."
And:
"Growing more and more dis-accustomed to reflect and form opinions of their own, people will begin to talk in the same tone as we, because we alone shall be offering them new directions for thought..."
Now, I consider myself a pretty straight forward thinker. I try not to form too many "beliefs" about things. I try to keep an open mind, and not get caught up in conspiracy. BUT, you've got to admit that today's children do seem to be retracting into themselves. They don't have very many political opinions. They always seem distracted, aloof, and distant. It seems to me that if a superpower wanted to turn humans into mindless slaves, this whole technology infused new millennium could actually be the beginnings of "homo zombie".
I just don't know what the answers are(if there are any answers to be had at all), but I think this topic is an extremely important one.
Dustin
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
When I'm finished drooling over your amazingly juicy reply I will most definitly write up a response, unfortunatly, I don't have time at the moment. Great write up :D
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
12 April 2007
1 hour 47 sec
I was agreeing with pretty much everything you wrote, Dustin my man; right until you mentioned the "Protocols". Arguably the most successful hoax document in human history, since it continues to bamboozle people into thinking it's proof of a secret Jewish plot to rule the world (but that is a topic for another discussion.)
As for the main topic for the thread, I dunno... I'm no one's parent and I have no intention whatsoever to becoming one —I'd feel pretty guilty into bringing an innocent life into THIS world anyway— But maybe we shouldn't fret so much about the values of the younger generations.
There's this idea that what we call human values are timeless, but this is highly debatable; after all, not too long ago women weren't considered capable of making correct political decisions, and hence they weren't allowed to vote —and this is just one example amid plenty of others we could mention...
So, we might not like the kind of values the younger ones might regard as important, but on the other hand the world they'll be facing will be SIGNIFICANTLY different from the one you or your parents had to face.
Obviously this is not an apology of every single kind of stupid, dangerous or addictive behavior of the modern age. But my main point is that older generations have NEVER agreed with what their offspring like or value.
Just think of this: Parents might suffer because their kids prefer to spend more time in front of the TV than reading; yet there was a time —believe it nor not— when social authorities condemned the reading of novels(!) because they "had a bad influence on the minds of impressionable men and women" or some other lame excuse like that.
Same goes for Waltz music, Theater, Rock & Roll, and a long long etcetera...
So, this is my lame advice as a non-parent to all you mom & dads out there:
* Try to expose your kids to as many enlightening experiences as you possibly can —books, museums, camping trips, etc.
* Cultivate in your children a sense of wonder and curiosity toward the world.
* Do warn them about the dangers of the world, but explaining the reason —what's better: to watch a young child coming closer to the kitchen stove and yelling 'DON'T TOUCH THAT!!' or to say 'the stove is lit and it's very hot' (note that you don't say it's going to burn the kid; after all you're not a prophet or fortune teller).
* And finally, step away and let them make their own decisions. It's THEIR life, not yours —if you did a good job with the first 3 steps, then even if they make mistakes, they will eventually appreciate your input when they ask for it... or at the very least recognize you were right all along ;)
It's not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me...
It's all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!
Red Pill Junkie
22 November 2004
2 weeks 14 hours
If I can add to the list:
- try to give your kids something that educates them, as opposed to just entertains them
----
We are the cat.
12 April 2007
1 hour 47 sec
Dude, when I wrote "enlightening" experiences, I didn't mean this :-P
It's not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me...
It's all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!
Red Pill Junkie
7 August 2004
25 weeks 1 day
Great advice from both of you!
Okay so the Protocols were a really bad idea to add, but seriously, just go to prison planet, conspiracy planet, or above top secret, and you'll get the same idea...I'm not saying it is true, or that I even buy into a planet wide conspiracy, I'm just saying that when I contemplate how kids are today, my mind tends to bounce between those two extremes...I usually land somewhere in the middle...
Dustin
ps RPJ, I'm not anti Semite, just so you know...I ALWAYS interpreted the protocols, ruling elite, Illuminati, whatever, as being able to be from any race or ethnic group...rich people who want to rule the world will come from every color of people.
12 April 2007
1 hour 47 sec
True dat :)
It's not the depth of the rabbit hole that bugs me...
It's all the rabbit SH*T you stumble over on your way down!!!
Red Pill Junkie
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
RPJ posted on my blog :D Ive been coming to this site for over 3 years now and since I have recently started posting comments and such, getting comments from
you, Earthing, Dustin, Kathrinn and all the above simply tickles me. People I've seem posting stuff on here for years are replying to me teehee :D
Anywho, you seem to be on the same track as me on this topic. Simply put, I question parental guidance now-a-days through and through. It's never a childs fault for their lack of knowledge but rather the parents inability to translate well.
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
10 August 2004
7 hours 10 min
Why are you surprised that so many have commented? It was a pleasure! I don't comment a great deal, only if I think I can contribute something worthwhile. Your topic was one that interested me greatly as so many of my contemporaries feel as I do that we do not understand the children that we raised and whom we tried to parent.
Dustin's comment gave me some food for thought as to a possible answer. Our children live in a world where they spend a great deal of their time interacting with machines. I think this is causing them to view people (their parents in particular) as machines also, hence their apparent lack of emotion towards others. Machines do not have emotions and when not required can be switched off and put away in a cupboard without those machines feeling neglected or sad, unlike people!!
Perhaps my youngsters view me as something akin to a 286 PC with a small hard-drive (brain) which can't store much useful information, a slow processor (age factor), and outdated software (ideas and life-style). (Actually my own 286 PC was a vast step up from my original computer which predated a Commodore 64!!)
I will try not to feel so excluded from their lives and more understanding as to my perceived place as an outmoded machine and not feel that somewhere along the line I failed to do a decent job as a parent. At least they grew up to be hard-working, honest and decent citizens albeit in a world I don't fully understand.
Thanks everyone for some great insights and thanks, Olympus, for introducing the subject.
Regards, Kathrinn
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
Dustin,
Your post raises great points and nothing better than hearing from parents themselves. Reflection is and can only be a good thing. What has been peaking my interest more and more from this blog is the recurring theme of children being the impressionable ones, when the true underpinning lays with the parents themselves. Maybe it's the older generations inabilty to cope with the changes. A problem I have come across is... Let's say we place our blame on technology and ones parents who don't want their child to surrcumb to it's addiction. But what is a parent to do when their kid goes to a friends house to play xbox? Do they lecture them on disipline everytime this happens? Or just let it happen? Blah blah blah Ya'll know what I'm getting at. This is one among many scenarios that calls for clarity. It's at these little moments that, in my opinion, parents needs to learn, learn to adapt, learn to percieve, learn to change... All the same but all with unique qualities. All those little moments are the untouchables, each parent is driven by thier own accord and in those times, parents show who they really are.
Now, on the topic of rich elitists I don't have much to say. I am one who believes in evil and the abundance of it, but I am also one who believes that through time mankind will overcome all of it and blossom into what we should be. Rather than pointing blame at them I only point at myself and my fear of martydom :D Through that I realize... Only time will tell. Thus my iron grip of optimism.
P.S. Children are the perfect slave.
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
7 August 2004
25 weeks 1 day
But what is a parent to do when their kid goes to a friends house to play xbox? Do they lecture them on disipline everytime this happens? Or just let it happen?
That's my house...I'm the parent who has hundreds of video games...my house is the one in which kids come over to play "M" rated games that their parents won't let them play. BECAUSE I play all of the good games, my house is the shrine to the bad influence of technology. Shame on me. *slaps face*
Dustin
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
<-----gamer all the way. I would be the same way too :D so maybe that was a bad example. I figured it would have been a good one since we wee on the topic of technology too. Anywho thanks for the replies!
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•
9 May 2010
48 weeks 1 day
Explaining things is so important for me. It's so important that when I can't explain things even on the simplest matter, I cringe. Even when things are so black and white I'm constanlty thrown into the bowels of human fallibility.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/08...
"We're all puppets, Jesus. I'm just the one that sees the strings, the stage, the puppetmaster, and the audience." Exerpt from a dialog Jesus and I had in your kitchen a week ago • • •*• •°•