What's The Problem With America's Youth? I have the questions, I want your answers...

[dre 0]

A lot of countries now look down on America as a hypocrite, that doesn't stand for what it used to support.

This was true pretty much ever since America became an imperial power.

Now, America has a lot of internal conflict that it tries to hide, but shows through tiny, controlled outbursts.

The same thing they tried in Nazi Germany and in Soviet Russia.

The point of the quoted post is, stop concentrating on the problems with America's youth, while there are obviously more blaringly serious problems with the adults who actually run the (frigging) country.

If a mass assassination of the top 200 richest people in the world was to occur, then I could say with lots of confidence that 95% of the world's problems would disappear. Edited April 8, 2008 by dre (see edit history)

[Saint_Michael 3]

This was true pretty much ever since America became an imperial power.
The same thing they tried in Nazi Germany and in Soviet Russia.

If a mass assassination of the top 200 richest people in the world was to occur, then I could say with lots of confidence that 95% of the world's problems would disappear.

Wouldn't you think that knocking off the richest people would really help, think about the economic backlash that could happen when you got a few trillion dollars floating in the air, or possible loss, as board of directors and other corporate big wigs try to figure out who will take over, and spend millions finding out who and why someone would do this. I think 80% of the problems would go away if there was a better system to run economies, because right now a lot of people are paying for the weak dollar.

[dre 0]

think about the economic backlash that could happen when you got a few trillion dollars floating in the air

What could be worse than the current concentration of wealth and power?

I think 80% of the problems would go away if there was a better system to run economies, because right now a lot of people are paying for the weak dollar.

There can never be a better system as long as an actual system is there. Whenever there is a system, it will be abused, whenever there is power, it will be abused.

as board of directors and other corporate big wigs try to figure out who will take over, and spend millions finding out who and why someone would do this

Then the new leaders would have to be eliminated, since they will come either from the families of the rich or from other boards and positions of power. Representative governments will always fail, turns out the Greeks got the message many years ago. If every single person is not participating in government, then it's a failure bound to happen. The government will begin to exist solely for its own purpose and bidding. Alas, the problem is beyond government. Edited April 10, 2008 by dre (see edit history)

[tricky77puzzle 0]

What could be worse than the current concentration of wealth and power?
There can never be a better system as long as an actual system is there. Whenever there is a system, it will be abused, whenever there is power, it will be abused.

Then the new leaders would have to be eliminated, since they will come either from the families of the rich or from other boards and positions of power. Representative governments will always fail, turns out the Greeks got the message many years ago. If every single person is not participating in government, then it's a failure bound to happen. The government will begin to exist solely for its own purpose and bidding. Alas, the problem is beyond government.

Wow, someone is an anarchist.

But I think you're essentially right. The current concentration of wealth and power has created a two-tier society - the "evil guys" and the "poor guys".

Instead of just voting and sitting back to let the debates run, why not have the US and Canada hold referenda for every major law that is passed? (They do this in some European countries already.) That way, the people's voice can really be heard.

[dre 0]

Wow, someone is an anarchist.

I like to call myself well-informed. I pay attention to things like when the government gave sarin instead of a experimental cure for the common cold to people, for their own good, of course, and later admitted to doing it. War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength. Edited April 14, 2008 by dre (see edit history)

[Joshua 0]

Hmm... I hear the idea coming from some people that religion is a problem in America's youth... Once I'd have jumped at this to say 'No, it isn't', but now... I almost tend to agree... in a way. I'd say the real problem isn't Christianity, but the pseudo-Christianity that teaches what the Bible clearly teaches the opposite of, that it's alright to harm others. Roman Catholicism taught this a milennia ago and used it to kill off all the 'heretics' (who I think were the real Christians). The Puritans taught this centuries ago and killed off 'witches'. And today? Perhaps the most dangerous form of Christianity is the warmongering George-Bush version that says it's alright to go on crusades against other peoples and God supports it. And Islam? It's not just some of the people that believe it, but the scriptures themselves that support it, the harming of other people. Jihad is an idea clearly presented and the terrorists the ones simply understanding the Koran best. I don't think religion itself is the problem. People will use anything, religion, politics, even sports as an excuse for their wrong actions, a prop for their evil motives. Religion is just an easy resort since so many people look to it as authoritative so it's nice to make it look like it's on your side. The problem with saying religion is the problem is that everyone has religion in the sense of just beliefs about whether or not God exists and personal convictions. Atheists are religious in some sense. You look at the communist nations of the world like China and the U.S.S.R. who actively banned religion, were they the most moral of countries? Obviously it's not just religion that's the problem. The problem is people who think anything gives them the right to infringe upon the rights of others. The problem is people who want to take vengeance and live in hatred, because then they just become what they hate. Martin Luther King Jr. was religious but pointed this out, would people say he's part of the problem because he's religious? A problem with religion is it's just one of many factors that can be used by people to consider themselves different from other people. God didn't make everyone the same so people have a tendency to consider others different and alienated from them. Good religion is that which tells us to love our neighbors and do good for them in ways that matter, not with words but actions. We need to put ourselves in the shoes of others and see where they're coming from, only then can we love one another like God tells us to.

[332083 0]

What is the problem with America's youth?Not just violence, but things like skipping school, dropping out, failing, the insane ability to destroy the English language, and i guess violence too.

What causes students to feel compelled to skip school? Is it some kind of "Fight the Man" mentality? Of course no one realizes that working at McDonald's for the rest of your life isn't as bad as going to school for five* (yes, only five) hours a day. Most likely because the people telling them this are the ones considered to be "The Man" and they must be disobeyed at all costs. My school is second to last on the list regarding overall school performance in the [not so] great state of Illinois. We [this is a broad generalization and in no way includes myself] have one of the highest dropout rates and one of the lowest graduation rates in the state and, obviously, the second lowest average test results. Our [another broad generalization not about myself] average ACT scores are lower than the state's average of 20.5. (ours were around 17)
That paragraph basically questioned the first three interrelated problems.

"Wait!" you exclaim. "What do you mean 'destroy the English language'? I'm confused!"
No, I don't mean "Spanglish" or weird accents or Cajun people (no offense). I mean people's inability to use grammar and real words or sentences.
Phrases like "Shut up talkin' to me!" are common at my school. Why not say "Shut up"? or "Stop talking to me"? We cannot seriously blame the internet for the grammar and spelling problems in America. No one uses "Shut up talkin' to me!" in the AIM or MSN. (I did once, but the computer round-house kicked my face and said not to do it again.)

Violence is obvious. I don't want to talk about it. That would take too long.
UNRELATED SIDE NOTE:
Think about this: Why do people use <[brackets]> so often on MySpace? It bothers me.
UNRELATED SIDE NOTE v2.0:
I saw it says http://forums.xisto.com/no_longer_exists/ on the top of this page, but I went there, and it doesn't exist. someone should buy that domain and use it.

I'm 15, I used to skateboard and snowboard a lot, apparently you haven't been a teenager for years,(no offense intended), i go through more pressure in everything i do in real life than my mom does, she has two jobs and 4kids.
My teachers asked why i have only D's and F's, I tell them, besides having a job, whats my motivation?
You know what happens?
I get yelled at for the next 15 minutes about not needing motivation.
So my grades drop from F's and D's to F's and F's, I fall in love with an intelligent girl, I was then motivated to appear not like a total idiot in front of her, so I was motivated, I currently have all A's and one B+.
My teachers all are astounded at my lack of interest in school, yet being I can go from all F's to almost all A's as quickly as i did, and still act the exact same way I did when straight F's.
I have been told a million times by teachers and adults to get my act together, do this, do that, get your blank up and do this, stop being lazy, stop blah blah blah.
I have a knack for strategy, my teachers all believed i was just some uneducated punk, just because i enjoyed street skating and snowboarding, I took one teacher in a strategy ga,me and annihilated him, leaving him speechless and wondering how he lost.
I know a whole lot of teenagers that have almost all D's in school, and can outsmart any teacher at our schools in a second.
We do good on one test, we are constantly pressured into doign the exact same thing over and over again, with higher expectations and punishments thereafter.
Most guys that are like me are constantly distracted, i suspect I have ADD, but am not entirely sure.
I also am constantly distracted by the girl I love, I see her stare at me for awhile, and for the next 30 minutes I don't pay attention in class, and fix attention and watching her smile and go red when i catch her staring at me.
Sigh, almost no adult ever understands me.
Or any of my friends.

[tricky77puzzle 0]

Hmm... I hear the idea coming from some people that religion is a problem in America's youth... Once I'd have jumped at this to say 'No, it isn't', but now... I almost tend to agree... in a way.
I'd say the real problem isn't Christianity, but the pseudo-Christianity that teaches what the Bible clearly teaches the opposite of, that it's alright to harm others. Roman Catholicism taught this a milennia ago and used it to kill off all the 'heretics' (who I think were the real Christians). The Puritans taught this centuries ago and killed off 'witches'. And today? Perhaps the most dangerous form of Christianity is the warmongering George-Bush version that says it's alright to go on crusades against other peoples and God supports it.

And Islam? It's not just some of the people that believe it, but the scriptures themselves that support it, the harming of other people. Jihad is an idea clearly presented and the terrorists the ones simply understanding the Koran best.

I don't think religion itself is the problem. People will use anything, religion, politics, even sports as an excuse for their wrong actions, a prop for their evil motives. Religion is just an easy resort since so many people look to it as authoritative so it's nice to make it look like it's on your side.

The problem with saying religion is the problem is that everyone has religion in the sense of just beliefs about whether or not God exists and personal convictions. Atheists are religious in some sense. You look at the communist nations of the world like China and the U.S.S.R. who actively banned religion, were they the most moral of countries? Obviously it's not just religion that's the problem.

The problem is people who think anything gives them the right to infringe upon the rights of others. The problem is people who want to take vengeance and live in hatred, because then they just become what they hate. Martin Luther King Jr. was religious but pointed this out, would people say he's part of the problem because he's religious?

A problem with religion is it's just one of many factors that can be used by people to consider themselves different from other people. God didn't make everyone the same so people have a tendency to consider others different and alienated from them. Good religion is that which tells us to love our neighbors and do good for them in ways that matter, not with words but actions. We need to put ourselves in the shoes of others and see where they're coming from, only then can we love one another like God tells us to.

Of course religion isn't the problem. Religion is never the problem for anything. It's the people doing it that are bad. Just like guns don't kill people, but people with guns kill people.

China bans religion? Not anymore, I don't think, as long as it's private and no one publicly knows about it.

Every religion has something wrong to it. Even Christianity isn't perfect. (Yes, that's right. Even the religion of God and Jesus isn't perfect, because humans are the one to carry it out.) For some reason, I need to keep asserting that every religion has its flaws. But, although every religion has its flaws, it is not directly the problem for anything. Just like, if a mentally disabled person makes a huge mistake while practising surgery on a dummy alongside you, it's not his fault that you hired him.


It seems, that with all the anti-(insert controversial topic here) propaganda going around now, that some of the people who advocate relationism (putting yourself in another's shoes; yes, I made the term up on the spot) are anything but relationists. They're willing to stop the killing of a few cells at any cost, but have no idea what trouble the mother is going through. Instead of focusing on terrorists, why not try looking at people close to home? (Yes, I realize that we're going off topic. But let's try to relate this to youth.) The youth are influenced by these people. They're actually learning from their elders not to put themselves in the other person's shoes when things like this happen.

Is there sone soft of "cutoff" to how dangerous the situation is, after which you stop thinking about the other person and just do whatever it takes to achieve your end?

[332083 0]

Of course religion isn't the problem. Religion is never the problem for anything. It's the people doing it that are bad. Just like guns don't kill people, but people with guns kill people.
China bans religion? Not anymore, I don't think, as long as it's private and no one publicly knows about it.

Every religion has something wrong to it. Even Christianity isn't perfect. (Yes, that's right. Even the religion of God and Jesus isn't perfect, because humans are the one to carry it out.) For some reason, I need to keep asserting that every religion has its flaws. But, although every religion has its flaws, it is not directly the problem for anything. Just like, if a mentally disabled person makes a huge mistake while practising surgery on a dummy alongside you, it's not his fault that you hired him.
It seems, that with all the anti-(insert controversial topic here) propaganda going around now, that some of the people who advocate relationism (putting yourself in another's shoes; yes, I made the term up on the spot) are anything but relationists. They're willing to stop the killing of a few cells at any cost, but have no idea what trouble the mother is going through. Instead of focusing on terrorists, why not try looking at people close to home? (Yes, I realize that we're going off topic. But let's try to relate this to youth.) The youth are influenced by these people. They're actually learning from their elders not to put themselves in the other person's shoes when things like this happen.

Is there sone soft of "cutoff" to how dangerous the situation is, after which you stop thinking about the other person and just do whatever it takes to achieve your end?

teenagers feel the need to have motivation.
Almost always.
Plain and simple.
No motivation, no effort, almost always.

[tricky77puzzle 0]

teenagers feel the need to have motivation.Almost always.
Plain and simple.
No motivation, no effort, almost always.

I fail to see how that's related to the topic...