Article by Cameron Spink

 

Kevin Rudd has told us today that he is overwhelming impressed by Generation Y young adults and how they have rallied to help in the wake of the disasters of Brisbane.

 

Rudd's tone sounds surprised as he cites his Gen Y stereotype as "locked up in their bedrooms, on Facebook 24 hours a day, playing computer games, comfortable in the world of anonymity". This is a ridiculous concept that speculates that those of you who are in your twenties do not know what is going on in this world and do not care.

 

This is a myth! Those who qualify as Gen Yer's are more up to date than any other generation. They have the world at their fingertips and can process more than three types of information at any one time. Our minds are open books.

 

The problem is that we fill it with any number of unnecessary and quite dangerous things. When Kevin Rudd mentions Facebook and computer games he is only really scratching the surface. The type of lifestyles that many young adult lead on campus is, quite frankly, abhorrent. Facebook and computer games are meaningless joys which do not compare to the dangers of drinking, drugs and blatant sex.

 

As individuals, we get so involved with what we are interested in. It takes a substantial national crisis for us to chip in. There are significantly more serious disasters that are facing Australia that don't get any attention nor any of Gen Y's efforts.

 

For instance, we have declining moral standards and increasingly damaging laws being passed. If the future of this country rests on the shoulders of Generation Y then we need to stand up and take control of what is happening within parliament, within our court systems are within our lecture halls. If you want to do the "grotty" jobs start doing things that no-one else wants to do.

 

Kevin Rudd kept mentioning "social responsibility" as an important factor in Generation Y's mission. But what is our "social responsibility"? I'm sure that what I believe is important to society is completely different than what Kevin Rudd thinks is important to society.

 

So Kevin Rudd can applaud the sacrifices of Generation Y through the times of floods. But, as created beings, we are inherently connected to our fellow man and should respond with compassion and love to their plights. It's what we do when there is no world watching us that really says what kind of person we are. We are not defined by the generation, or the times, we are born in. There are many things that are permitted to the young adult that are not particularly beneficial and it is the individual's responsibility to make the right choice then. Only after we've worked on our own individual responsibilities can we start contemplating our social responsibility.

 

We may be praised for our humanitarian efforts but in this politically correct age Generation Y have embraced the concept of tolerance. We have become post-modernists and delight in skepticism. In the end we have a lot to account for.

 

http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/i-believe-gen-y-are-the-future/