[…continued from Part 1 published here yesterday]

In the last ten years we’ve been subjected to the Millennium generation’s view of the world and their obvious tendency to not grow up – rather like and for ‘like totally different reasons’ the boomer generation refuses to grow old (but that is something else). I’m just going to ‘flex’ (show off my knowledge here – well not really I had to look some of this up on this Google and internet thingy  just to let you see that old dogs can learn new tricks). As some of the Millennials were when the coronavirus hit, hopefully they were not irreparably ‘shook’ by events which older hands would have known as shocked or stunned even. ‘Shook’. I’m told is the joining of the two words for greater effect, which I’m sure you’ll agree with me is awesome. Recent events have created a big ‘mood’ on social media, apparently especially if you are unwilling to be gender-specific when greeting another ‘person’ (is that still alright to use? I’m not sure). You can, it seems, be unsure whether to say ‘Hi Guys’ or ‘Hi Dude’, but you can bask in the knowledge that ‘Hi Fam’ is quite acceptable.

Now, if it seems to you that many of our younger generation have not yet left the safe spaces of the parental home, sixth form or university common room, you could well be right. Apparently, their behaviour and slang is due to their problem accepting and reacting to things that bothered previous generations – like being conscripted to fight in a war for example, or actually doing their own research from something you may find in a library that older people knew as reference books, or having to find a job after school or college as few went to university to study media, performing arts, the history of art or some other humanities degree.

Leaving home, finding a job, paying the rent or working with others on some boring job without many prospects as many did, had one unifying effect: IT MADE YOU AN ADULT. Millennials appear to be slow to develop into adults because, apart from worrying about debt, gender, the environment and all the other ‘isms’ and virtues that they apparently care about, they only do ‘adulting’ such as responsibility and work when they deem it necessary. It’s only part of what you are, apparently. Now, all this may well be down to how they have been ‘coached’ while in education, rather than ‘instructed’ which is something quite different and as it happens very effective, something that is becoming more evident as their various abilities are shown to fall short, particularly in these difficult times. It maybe that movies and social media groupthink driving attitudes and language of emotion rather than ability was not such a good idea after all.

Perhaps much of the population has never left the security of the world of education, which could be why we have seen medical staff behaving on video in hospitals in a way older people have found bewildering and offensive. After all, are these people not in highly-skilled, responsible and professional positions? One would assume so, but they are also of a generation that believes that responsibility and adulting is something you do when necessary. It could also be the reason that the political class, mostly generation X + Y, who have also lived for the most part secure and comfortable lives, are now calling for an ‘adult conversation’ during this present health and emerging financial crisis. They better ‘dig it’ and ‘dig it soon’ because the effects are likely to be ‘far out baby’ if they don’t.

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