Posted by … or Why “Old” People Need to STFU
Some people need to banish the phrase, “when I was your age…” or “when I was growing up…” or “when I was little…” from their lexicon.
“When I was your age, children respected their elders,” says the former anti-establishment hippy baby boomer parents to their children… or some of my friends that have become parents. No, old hippies, no, old friends, they didn’t. Children have never respected their elders. Disrespect has been their job since time immemorial. And perhaps the newest crop of so-called disrespectful kids is only waking up to the realization that the world your generation is leaving behind is falling apart.
“When I was your age, journalism and TV were in their golden age,” reminisces the baby boomer. No, journalists covered up major stories for the sake of staying chummy with politicians and shows like Leave It to Beaver or Different Strokes were ridiculously corny, sophomoric and/or crude.
“When I was your age, there wasn’t so much damn political correctness around,” laments the good ole boy. It’s not a shame that the majority are made to consider the impact of their words. Political Correctness doesn’t necessarily force us to abandon talking about difficult issues such as race or religion. It recognizes that perhaps the (former) help don’t have the same appreciation for having the terms of the debate dictated to them anymore.
“When I was your age, athletes were role models and respected the game,” says the old sports fan. Since when has that ever been the case?! Babe Ruth was a noted womanizer and drinker. Ty Cobb was probably a murderer. Michael Jordan gambled a ton and was generally a jackass to his teammates.
“When I was your age, music was so much better,” says the musical hipster. No jagoff, hip hop isn’t worse than it used to be. Pop isn’t worse than it used to be. Metal isn’t worse than it used to be. You know what the classics were before a previous generation’s young people got old and started calling them classics? POP music!
(Incidentally I don’t know anything about Florence and the Machine but I can do the same comparison with Hip Hop now vs Hip Hop “then”).
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