The New "Lost Generation"

Those of us born after the Baby Boomers have gotten a bad rap by our disapproving parents. They say we are lazy and unfocused. They refer to us as "late bloomers". They say we are the new "lost generation," referring to the generation during the first World War.

And to them I say, "you are right". We are a generation that is lost, and we have been given nothing to believe in. While other countries have evolved, we have grown up watching our own country regress, as our potential jobs and industries have been sent overseas. Our nation has fallen apart, much like our infrastructure, and I don't just refer to it's physical state, but also it's fiscal state. Our economy is nothing more than a Madoff Ponzi scheme, build upon a house of cards.

The examples set before us by our grandparents and parents alike, were war and materialistic greed. We are the "latch-key" kids, left to raise ourselves as the established the mantra of "all work and no play." Now we are underpaid, we overspend, and the growing stress of life kills us more rapidly.

Yet no one steps in to stop it.

We are a generation with no religion, only oppression of personal philosophy. Most of us are agnostic or atheist, as family values fell to the wayside; a casualty of our overworked single parents, who were to tired to take us to church, eat family meals together, and feel secure in our homes. As it was more important to "keep up with the Joneses" while we were virtually babysat with our cable tv, computers and video games.

When we were children, we watched the shuttles launch in to space, as we dreamed about our promise. Where will we go in the universe? What untold places would we explore? Now there is no space program, because our government is behind on the rent, and we are facing eviction. Our social programs are disintegrating, our health is failing, and we have no prayers left of ever retiring, as the prospect of Medicare and Social security fades in to black.

We are a generation that SHOULD be left with no hope.

But I believe.

I have a dream that one day, we will rise up and take what is ours-our government from politicians. We will make our leaders earn their paychecks by imposing strict term limits, eliminating "political dynasties." if they don't do what we elect them to do, they don't get respected. We take away privatized campaign funds, and let each candidate work with the same amount of money and airtime, so that we can elect leaders based on their abilities and qualifications, rather than who owes more backdoor favors to contributors and lobbyists. We eliminate political agendas, along with party ideologies, and work on dealing with issues on their own, rather than buying deals as a package, wrapped up it's pretty bureaucracy. We take back our country from big business, eliminate the bigotry and hate, and create a new American Dream, so that our grandchildren can once again be proud to call themselves Americans.

So you can keep calling us, "the new lost generation," because I find it inspiring to be grouped together with the likes of former "lists", such as Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and T.S. Eliot. Once you get out of our way, I think we will do as we did as children, and be fine left on our own.