What up DP Gangstas? Believe it or not, after a five month layoff from Webby Files running at full-force I actually received quite a bit of response from my "Gay Marriage Rant" from the other day. I guess that said feedback has convinced me to get back into the blogosphere again and post a few more random thoughts from here at WF HQ. I'm probably not going to be blogging everyday like I was over the summer, but I figure if I can satisfy your needs (all six of you) by scribbling some incoherent ramblings a couple of days a week, then hey...I've got some free time, right? Cool.
Speaking of my time. I'm sure that most of you who would actually make the effort that it takes to sit and read this little page are well aware that I finally got a job back in Chicago broadcasting. I'm currently the Executive Producer/Sports Anchor for "Stocks and Jocks" on 1240AM-WSBC and streaming live at http://www.stocksandjocks.net/. The long-time financial/political/sports program starring Tom "The Chief" Haugh and rotating guest hosts: Jon "Dr. J" Najarian, Tom Shanahan and Kevin Riordan currently airs Monday through Friday from 5:30-7:00am. I'll also be producing an afternoon show on the same station (in Chicago) that simulcasts nation wide starting in March. So there's that too. I guess that the point of this paragraph is to inform you that someone in my generation is working full-time again. Man does it feel good to be part of society.
The generation that I speak of (ages 18-29) is now being referred to as the "Millennial Generation." An interesting study was released about our little demographic yesterday and it contained some very fascinating data (in my opinion).
Let's go through it, shall we?
First of all, there is roughly 50 million of us Millennials in the U.S. today and by far we're the MOST educated generation in American history. Good, right? Well...it's true, education IS quite important and it is something that has been instilled in our age group with more ferocity than all previous generations combined. It has come to the point that its not a matter of IF high school students are planning on attending college after graduation, but WHERE and for HOW LONG? The problem that takes place when "everyone" gets their bachelor's degree is just like the problems you'd run into with anything else, you begin to flood the market with them. What happens when you flood the market with something you might ask? Well, I'll tell you what happens. That "something" that you've flooded the market with, completely decreases in value. Now, I'm NOT saying that a BA is worthless, I'm just simply stating that it's not worth NEAR as much as say...twenty years ago. Everyone has one now, so naturally, it's not as valuable. It's really that simple, and now the facts are backing it up.
Yes, we're the MOST educated generation in American history, BUT we're also the HIGHEST percentage of unemployed in over FOUR DECADES! That's right. We've all got the piece of paper that we were told would guarantee us a quality job after college, yet 37% of us are not a part of the workforce. Pretty unbelievable, right? Now don't get me wrong, a lot of these problems have to do with our (the entire world...except for China, maybe) current economic situation, there's no doubt about that, but they also have to do with the "entitlement" issues that I feel our age group possess. To a man, we'd rather collect unemployment checks and defer our student loans while waiting for the job that we feel we DESERVE as opposed to working a couple of part-time jobs in construction/food service/retail/etc. in the meantime. We've got college degrees, dammit! We're ABOVE those types of jobs. Right?! No. Not right. I believe that you're mistaken. That's just not the healthy attitude to have my friends, and believe me, I've been guilty of having it myself. Despite our levels of education, if we continue to convey this mindset while our economy bounces up and down at the bottom of the ocean floor (where it indefinitely remains) we'll always be viewed as the generation of "learners" NOT "workers." Learning is great, but we need to learn to work, because learning just to learn isn't going to help OUR kids live a better life than what we had growing up and THAT is ultimately the goal of a generation. ANY generation. Right now, OUR generation is treading backwards.
Real quick, before I get out of here, there were a few more stats that were touched on in this study about the "Millennials."
-We're the LEAST religious generation in modern history!
YES!!! I couldn't be happier about that statement. Religion = Stupidity/Ignorance. Period. I've never understood how somebody could be completely logical in ALL facets of their life, yet believe in a talking snake/animal containing arc/water into wine/people living to be 800 years old/etc. It doesn't add up. Religion IS the cause of ALL of our world's problems. ALL of them. If you don't believe me, just read a newspaper. There's AT LEAST a trace of religion contained in most of our political discourse that prevents progressive policies from being implemented and there's MUCH MORE than a trace when you're talking about all of the wars in our world's history. It causes far more grief than good. Believe me. Why can't everyone just be morally good without having to blindly follow two thousand year old traditions that promote racism, sexism, violence, homophobia, etc.? I don't know either, and it completely blows my mind that people still believe in this stuff in ANY capacity! So I must say that I'm very pleased to read that MY generation is reversing that trend. A tip of the cap...
-Only 61% of us grew up in a two-parent household. Much lower than the three previous generations. I also fall into this category having been raised by a single mother. I believe that this statistic directly translates into the fact that only 21% of us are married (half of the previous generation when they were our age). A good thing, me thinks, considering that the divorce rate is now well over 50%. Let's wait until our thirties before we tie the knot. It just may prevent you from making a BIG mistake.
-41% of us only have our cell phone in our homes (landlines are COMPLETELY pointless) and 38% of us have at least one tattoo. (See an older entry of mine from last summer entitled: "If You Told Me 20 Years Ago I'd See Kids Walkin' in Our Texas Towns with Green Hair and Bones in their Noses...I just Wouldn't of Believed Ya" to read how I feel about everyone in our generation getting inked up).
I guess that all in all I'm proud to be a "Millennial." I think that the sky is the limit for what we can accomplish on this planet. We're smart, progressive and inspired. A lethal combination! Let's not forget all of these attributes when we get into our thirties and forties. We don't want to turn into the people who've got us into this mess of a world that we're currently dealing with...our parents ;-)
Hit me up on facebook or in the comments section of this blog. Right now I'm listening to "Shutterbug" by The Love Shots. A young and up and coming band out of the Chicago suburbs. Check 'em out. Drink of choice: Greyhounds are delicious and refreshing.
Later.
Webby
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