While commuting home this evening I was thinking about the youth of today, as a few junior high kids had joined our ranks on the bus, and how different things are now from when I was their age. I could argue in favor of certain items for nostalgia’s sake, but there have been definite improvements. For instance, the lo-fi mix tapes of my distant youth have been replaced with CD burning, filesharing and ipods. It’s also encouraging to think that the ambivalance and/or outright discrimation I was raised with have been outmoded…that these kids have been brought up in a manner that fosters greater tolerance, and a disdain for discrimination in any form. The snippet of conversation I overheard was enlightening, to say the least.
teen girl: Where you going?
teen boy: Over to Fat Jordan’s house.
teen girl: Who?
teen boy: You know, Fat Jordan. He’s fat.
teen girl: I don’t talk to fat people.
I suppose the cruelty of children is a timeless thing.