Are all of today's teens/20-somethings dealing with entitlement issues?

[marianne202]

As a community college instructor and a mother of a 17 yr old, I see this all the time. My older students are eager to get back to work, while my younger students, most but not all, are trying to figure out how to stay in school for more grant money and not have to go into the job market. I preach to my students to take a "foot in the door" job and be happy about it when they are entering a new career area. No matter, how old you are you have to start somewhere. Once in the door it is easier to move up, than get in from outside. The kids at my son's HS are such a mix from 50% on free lunch to kids with brand new BMW's or Jags for their 16th birthday! Wreck one, get a new one! I hate it. My kids do chores to earn money and have to pay for things they want. My son got his first job shortly after turning 16 and we made him save 50% of each check the rest could go into his checking account for gas and things he wanted. When he needed new tires, he had to share the cost. He got a 10 yr old car with 100,000 miles on it and he is proud to have it. A lot of these kids were raised during the economic good times when their parents just charged whatever they wanted without worrying about the cost, so now they have no basis in reality. I had my son sit down with me one day when I paid our bills. I only get paid once a month, so I usually pay the bills the day after payday. He thought I made great money until he saw it disappear in less than 30 minutes paying bills online! It made him realize the value of money and earning money. But some kids never get any exposure this "real life" until they are on their own. My neighbors sons are 25 and 22 both of them have dropped out of more colleges than I can count and the older one can't keep a job for anything. The younger one just doesn't want to go to school to become a PE teacher, he just wants to teach. Both have moved back home more times than I can count and even when they are moved out, the parents are paying most of the bills. It is sad, that they don't know how to live on their own. I worry about the state of our country when I'm old and feeble, will these types of kids be taking care of me and ensuring my kids have opportunities and a country to call home? Sometimes I think the good life ruined us all in some ways. I watch a lot of retro television shows from the late 60's & 70's and it amazes me how simple they lived and how little they made. Maybe we need to find a way back to simpler. We are trying it hear and it's nice. I can show you my freshly burned hand from trying to make my own plum preserves the other night! It isn't easy, but we want our kids to know you have other options besides buy, buy, buy!