Q Dub: Youth Ambassador?

"Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them." James Baldwin - Nobody Knows My Name. 

My age bracket, mainly people that were born in the 80s, where stuck in generational purgatory. We are right in the middle of the ones that had to break down walls for the betterment of us, and the youth of today who got it easy with the internet, cell phones, and the best thing ever, internet porn. The kids these days don't know about stealing the Black Tail out the store and hiding it in the mattress. They don't know about using a payphone and a calling card to call home. These lil' muhfuckas just don't know!!!!!!

*gathers myself*

Like I was saying, my generation is caught in the tug-o-war battle between them. There are people my age that complain about how kids are disrespectful and don't listen to authority. Then I ask:



"Well what were you doing at that same age?"


Them: "the same thing BUT it was different though."

What's the difference? Did we not have to hear the same things too? Shit, I'm only 10 years removed from being in high school and I'm not saying I was a bad-ass but I know I did my fair share of cutting class (ed. note: we here at I.S. do not condone or encourage cutting school or anything of that nature. KEEP YA ASS IN SCHOOL, IN THE LONG RUN ITS WORTH IT TRUST ME)in my day. Oh damn there I go again sounded like old folk. See what I mean, I'm in generational limbo.






"Well these kids don't listen to nobody these days"

Real simple because I'm saving this for another topic: If a child is under the age of 21 (the hell with that 18 shit) and he or she does not know how to behave when engaging in society. Blame the parents.



What I'm getting at here is that the youth of today don't even have anyone to look up to because the generation before me wrote them off as outcasts and we are stuck in the middle of should we lead them, or write them off as "fuck it, they not going to listen anyway." If you get a chance, sit back and think about this. We went from not even think about riding a skateboard (old heads), to riding them on one knee (my bracket), to these kids riding it doing kick flips and Indy 720s all over the place. But what do we do, we knock what they're doing, "they just biting, got a skateboard just to be down." Like we didn't wear jerseys in the 00s, Hilfiger in the 90s, Jeri Curls in the 80s, Afros in the 70s, etc. We all been the sucker to what's hot in the streets to say you haven't is to say you finger yourself anally, with no lube.

The generation of now is supposed to learn from past generations mistakes so that they should never be done again. The equation is all messed up now because the past generation feels their strides for equality are not being respected by my or the younger generation. So because of this "lack of respect," the older folks don't even socialize with the younger folk. This is where the game is fucked up, the knowledge isn't passed. Only talks of "back in my day…" instead of "learn from my mistakes" are happening. More people in my age group went to college than the older heads. So we should be schooling these kids about how college is and how not to get caught up. Because if we don't, these youngsters REALLY going to believe that nigganess on The Nigger Network as true. Let them know about keeping up with financial aid, look for scholarships, go out on college nights because the beer is only $1, and that you can get most of your school books in the school library. For people in their 20's to complain about teenagers yelling and screaming after school on their way home, makes you look like you had no friends in high school.

So where does this still leave us, the ones in the middle? You got that right, exactly where we were before, in the middle. It's either we are the stubborn ones who will just complain and not do nothing to change it. Or, the ones who pull a few to the side and help them out a little. 


Decisions, Decisions...