Did you know that you are considered part of the first generation symbolizing the decline of the nation? Generations are labeled all the time by historians, novelists and journalist in an attempt to capture the spirit or essence of an era. But the term Generation X carries all the negativity of propaganda and stereotype.
The term Generation X has become a derisive media batchphrase, a snide put-down for those 80 million people who, like me, were born between 1961 and 1981. They are the children of the baby boomers and the 13th generation since the pilgrims landed in Plymouth. This group is, were told irresponsible, materialistic, abnormal and apathetic. So how did the term Generation X originate, what are some of their characteristics and why is there so much controversy of the term Generation X?
How did the term originate?
Back in 1991 a 28 year old named Douglas Coupland wrote a book titled Generation X. The book was about three fictional characters who decided to withdraw from society in order to find themselves. They then moved to Palm Springs, CA where they lived in bungalows and worked at the bottom of the food chain. The book received no publicity and almost no reviews. But that summer a Texan released the movie Slackers, which was filled with overeducated and underoccupied oddballs who loosely paralleled the characters in the book. And at the same time in Seattle, a new form of music was exploding. Its attitude had everything to do with withdrawal, contemplation and seeking new margins. As the media goes, two’s nothing but three’s a trend. Thus were born the most abused buzzwords of the early 90’s Generation X, slacker and grunge.
The meaning of generation x
Generation X is also sometimes refereed to as the Latch key Generation. With no one at home after school. Generation X has become a negative term to describe their generation as aimless, unfocused, disorganized, unmotivated, lazy and distrustful of ideas and institutions. X’ers were labeled monsters. Their protestants became whining, being mellow became slacking and the struggle to find ourselves became apathy.
Stereotypes portray generation x as transfixed by MTV, Beavis & Butthead, wearing baseball caps backwards, safety pins through nipples, rings through noses and wearing flannel during summer. They are characterized as deadbeats who lack the personal ambition ...
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...m large government programs.
Conclusion
Although there is still much conflict and uncertainty about Generation X. You now know that generation x refers to a group of people born between 1961 and 1981. Generation X is perceived by the media, government and others to be a generation that lacks depth or direction or to add value to society. Many suggest that they are the lost generation. They may in fact be the generation that has learned from our parents mistakes and now have a different way of thinking and adapting itself to a changing world. Yet they continue to be discredited.
Society need to understand that X is a term that defines not a chronological age but a way of looking at the world. Generation Xers are working to make a better life for themselves. They want to ensure that the interest of their generation is looked out for and they are committed to improving the public’s perception of their generation. Generation X is most certainly not a lost cause. Contrary to popular belief, they are intelligent and are very concerned about their future. They will in fact be the most influential and important generation in the next century, they will make a difference.
The founding fathers stated in the constitution that individuals are allowed to possess firearms. Ownership of firearms is essential for the general population. It is much better to own a gun and not ever need to use it than to be in a life or death situation in which a gun could save your life, but not have access to one. Home burglaries are a real occurrence and a firearm can ensure that you and your family aren’t harmed. If there was ever a larger terrorist attack, gun owners would be more appreciated. Those in favor of gun control would realize that firearms aren’t so bad after all. Also, the government should not have to regulate how many guns a person can own. There are many gun enthusiasts who enjoy weapons and collect them living in the United States. America is a free country and that is what makes it so great. If an individual wants to own a crazy amount of guns, he should be able to as long as the law is not being broken and no one is being harmed. Just as other citizens are allowed to have extensive collections of random things, gun owners should be allowed to do the same. Firearms help prevent freedom and liberty from being taken away from the American
We need to continue creating new legislation to regulate gun laws. As previously pointed out, there are loopholes in our current set of laws that allow for people to bypass the background check system completely at times. We first must look into ways of upgrading our current existing laws to ensure problems like this don’t keep happening. After that, as has been discussed earlier and seen in other countries around the world, we must continue to pass gun legislation laws because it will help to reduce overall violent crimes in the country.
wrong. Generation X consists of those between the ages 13 and 33 years of age.
Generation Y seems to be the topic of everyone’s opposing conversations, because we are accused of being the laziest generation. In my opinion how can this be when we are still growing and maturing and molding into our own identity? Although it seems as if we are the wild and care free breed, we’ve been exposed to a massive amount of information in the world in such short period of time;
In the article “It’s Not About You” by David Brooks, Brooks takes a different perspective on this current generation. Many of the past generation huff at the thought of the new age group. Brooks has an incredible, somewhat biased opinion relating to the new generation, which is not unusual since he is from the current generation. Brooks discusses and explores the idea that the current generation is expected to grow up, get educated, get married and then have children. Brooks speculates that the new generation will be less family-orientated and maybe more adventurous and more about just living life and getting to experience things. Overall, Brooks wrote something different from most stories regarding generations.
During Generation Xers formative years, “investigations called into question many major organizations including the U.S. presidency, military, organized religion, and corporations” (Fore, 2013). As a result, this generation generally had little confidence in institutions and instead placed more faith in themselves. At home, Generation Xers became “‘latchkey children’”, who came home from school without a parent or adult supervision, and their mothers now worked outside the home. They were responsible for themselves, and often became dependent on video games and television sets, which resulted in them being characterized as “independent and resourceful” (Fore, 2013). At work, Generation Xers relied on themselves and their peers to accomplish goals, and did not put much hope in companies or organizations. Unlike Veterans, Generation Xers disliked traditional hierarchy, challenged authority, and expected their leaders to demonstrate competence and fairness, as well as embrace a participative and diverse workplace (Fore, 2013). Similar to the Millennial generation, Generation Xers placed a stronger focus on their personal lives much more than the generations before them. “They were likely to stay with one company throughout their career as long as it did not interfere with their private lives” (Gilley & Waddell, 2015). This lack of organizational loyalty is often attributed to
Xers or Generation X is recognizing from the early 1960s to the early 1980s. Generation X has been witness to,
Gun Control in the United States has become a big controversial topic that has affected millions of Americans families due to firearms. Firearms that have taken the lives of many innocent civilians in the hands of criminals or individuals that harm others for different reasons. It is harsh to see what America is going through due to gun violence. Kids, elders, men, and women getting killed with firearms intentionally and accidentally. If we go back to history, firearms were created for different reason. For example, the Founding Fathers of the United States won the freedom with guns; fighting the British in many battles that is how this nation was able get its liberty, fighting the Spaniards because they wanted to steal gold, and fighting Native
Persons with disabilities encounter countless environmental and societal barriers which affect their daily lives. There is numerous definitions worldwide and in Canada for the term “disability”, and debates about who is considered a person with a disability. Winkler gives an elaborate definition of this term which will be used to define disability throughout this paper. Above and beyond the general definition, Winkler states “Persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others” (2009, p. 329). Winkler mentions that in addition
Various books, articles, and surveys have described individuals in Generation X as slackers, cynical about the future and resentful of Baby Boomers who have "taken all the good jobs" (Kruger 1994). This description is based on observations that Generation X workers jump from job to job, are unwilling to conform to organizational demands that do not suit them, and leave jobs that bore them and are not "fun" (Wyld 1994). Although persons in the two generations before Generation X-the Silent generation (1925-1945) and Boom generation (1946-1964)-interpret these behaviors as indi...
Every person belongs to a generation: you associate yourselves with a particular set of people usually based on age such as “Baby Boomers” from 1946 to 1964, “Generation X” from 1965 to 1979, and “Millennials” from 1980 to 2000, (Smola, 364). Parents’ generations differ from their children, and sometimes within their significant other. My parents, separated by two years, are both considered “Baby Boomers”, and my sister and I, also separated by two years are both considered “Millennials”. “Generation X” separates our generations, and as you can assume there are many differences between the two: “Baby Boomers” experienced the immense development of the economy and education (Kupperschmidt, 4).
Disability is defined as a long term condition that restricts an individual’s daily activities (Government of Western Australia Department of Communities, n.d.). A disability can be identified in numerous types which are physical, sensory neurological and psychiatric. Due to the assistance with appropriate aids and services, the restrictions experienced by individuals with a disability may be overcome. However, the ways society perceives disability may have a significant impact on individuals living with it and also families around them. Therefore, the aim of this essay is to reflect on the social construction of disability through examining the social model of disability and how it may impact on the lives of people living with disability.
A single generation consists of every person born within about a twenty year period. The three generations currently living on the planet are the baby boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y, also known as millennials . Baby boomers are the oldest generation still living. They are people born some time between 1940 to 1960 (Newman). This generation is the generation of folks who fought in World War II. After returning home from war, there was a great surge in population in the United States, hence the name Baby Boomers. Their children, Generation X, were born between the early 1960’s to the early 1980’s (Newman). This generation can also be known as the Post-World War II generation. The last generation, children of Generation X, are known as
...r gadgets in their times made them depend on more manual work. Whatever their field of education they were expected to learn the about the family business and lend their hands in it. So Their hard work made them learn the value of money the harder way. Based on these experiences they tried to give their children, the Gen Y a better life. They put in every effort to make their children’s lives more joyous and happy. Gen X believed in extreme hard work, leading simple lives and having in depth planning for the future. Their hard work made them work at the grassroots level and they knew the basics of every work done by them. Their concepts were very clear. Gen Y on the other hand lives in the copy paste age so their concepts are not so clear. Gen X feels that Gen Y is overconfident, irresponsible, and lacks awareness in many things. They do not plan about the future.
The Millennials generation is widely known to be “entitled, narcissistic, self-interested, unfocused and lazy” as Simon Sinek (2016) said in his interview on Inside Quest about the Millennial generation. Essentially, he is saying that Millennials have issues that will cause them problems for developing in the real world. I agree that Millennials are not prepared for the real world and they do have issues. Sinek (2016) starts off by asserting the Millennial generation is unprepared for the world because of by four categories parenting, technology, impatience, and environment.