The latter generation of people becoming more stupid?

[Cyanotical]

it's actually a fact that as a society, we are dumber than say 2500 years ago, however, this is due to the fact that it takes less intelligence to survive till adulthood today than it has in the past, that is not to say that our smarter people are less smart, that would be silly, however, the increased amount of "dumb" people brings the average down

if you took an ipad or smartphone back in time to ancient athens, the average athenian would not think it was magic, but would probably be able to figure out how to use it faster than most people today can, think of a society filled with nothing but PhD caliber people, once you realize that, things like the pyramids and ancient structures are not as impressive

[crocski]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

I'm 19 BTW and I wasn't bashing you on your age, i was only making the point that you're 15 and cant possibly be comparing generations at all, i dont think you have that right, YET! =D

Here we go again we the drugs thing, firstly weed isn't such a bad thing with moderation, its fine- i smoke and i'm not a ashame of it ( dont drink though) you need to research before you judge.

Secondly, i really dont think there a big difference in the things that were done (back then) then what is happening now.

From all the story i have heard from my dad, things dont seem to be any different (apart from technology of course), so that statement in its self is just conjecture.

One of my favorite quote "There is nothing new under the sun", something to think about.

Just to add if I'm not mistaken, (i really dont know the history) but wasn't the 60s, 70's and 80's like a drug period?

[EChondo]

As a Highschooler in the U.S.(and also have taken IB classes) I would lean more to say that intelligence is there in everybody, but common sense is what is really lacking. It could be a lack of information or just not caring. I know multiple "smart" people in my HS, but they do not have common sense. As an ex IB student I find the program to be, challenging, but I do not agree with most of the stuff they teach, at least in the U.S.

So to reiterate what I said, I believe everyone has some form of intelligence, but they do not apply it because they do not know how or weren't taught to think in that manner. I believe this is a problem with parenting. My parents raised me with the leather belt and I thank them for that as I am a better person because of it. The teachers can only teach so much, they can't teach the students manners, formal conversation nor common sense as that should be the parents' job.

Also, I would like to point out that today's youth can't get jobs mostly because of the poor choices our previous generations decided on. Like really? I need a Masters Degree to work at McDonalds?

[EChondo]

it's actually a fact that as a society, we are dumber than say 2500 years ago, however, this is due to the fact that it takes less intelligence to survive till adulthood today than it has in the past, that is not to say that our smarter people are less smart, that would be silly, however, the increased amount of "dumb" people brings the average down

if you took an ipad or smartphone back in time to ancient athens, the average athenian would not think it was magic, but would probably be able to figure out how to use it faster than most people today can, think of a society filled with nothing but PhD caliber people, once you realize that, things like the pyramids and ancient structures are not as impressive

I am not being skeptical about your wording, but "athenian" kinda sticks out to me lol. Would have much preferred "Greek", but meh, both work!

[c.pryor2223]

IMO it all depends on the individuals motivation and drive. As far as the U.S. goes, if your capable, you can probably get a scholarship. I think the easy accessibility to many previously hard earned luxuries (cars, A/C, fast food) has resulted in a vast increase in sedentary lifestyles (IE sitting on couch all day, desk job, ect.) Personally I grew up relatively poor as my mom was a single mother raising me and my sister. Where most of my friends had supportive families, pocket money, and a car at 16, I pretty much had to support myself as a young teenager and older. I mention this because one of the keynotes of this topic was parenting. To be completely honest i was intelligent enough to understand our situation and realize, (MOSTLY) nothing is handed to you in this world. If you don't get off your ass and do it yourself, it probably is not going to happen. Relying alot on others will generally lead to problems and stress.

SO, the point im trying to make, is that i believe intelligence, success, and happiness, is mostly up to the individual. Your parents should guide you towards these realizations, but sometimes you just have to get your hands dirty and do it yourself.

MOTIVATION AND ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING.

P.s. im 21 years old.

[TechFan@ic]

Put on your tin foil hats folks, because we have Monsanto to blame for this yet again .

[Zack]

OP. I think you need to realize that not everyone excels academically. But this does not mean they are stupid. By the sounds of it you have a lot of maturing socially to do. I was once like you, I never gave anyone a chance and because of that, I never had very many friends through high school. You need to be more open to other's flaws and accept people for who they are, even if they don't have a high GPA. There's more good in people than you think. I'm not trying to be a dick or anything, but it's just my opinion.

[Guest]

OP. I think you need to realize that not everyone excels academically. But this does not mean they are stupid. By the sounds of it you have a lot of maturing socially to do. I was once like you, I never gave anyone a chance and because of that, I never had very many friends through high school. You need to be more open to other's flaws and accept people for who they are, even if they don't have a high GPA. There's more good in people than you think. I'm not trying to be a dick or anything, but it's just my opinion.

100% agree :)

[Prettyfinej]

I would say it's more a case of stupidity being easier to broadcast than it was in the past than people actually being dumber.

[IdeaStormer]

This is what you hear from all the older people all the time, yet the world continues to evolve. If the latter generation is so not so smart, then how do you explain all the cool tech we have now that we didn't have before? Or are you categorizing the new tech as dumb? Tech only continues to get better and will in the future, which will be from the latter generation(s).

[fishymamba]

OP. I think you need to realize that not everyone excels academically. But this does not mean they are stupid. By the sounds of it you have a lot of maturing socially to do. I was once like you, I never gave anyone a chance and because of that, I never had very many friends through high school. You need to be more open to other's flaws and accept people for who they are, even if they don't have a high GPA. There's more good in people than you think. I'm not trying to be a dick or anything, but it's just my opinion.

This. There is more to life than just academics. I had the option of taking 5 AP courses last year when I was a junior, but I decided to take 2 so I had some time to spend with friends and do other things, I didn't want to be stuck working all the time. I can still go to a good college with my grades so why should have I spent 4 years of high school working all the time just to save 1 semester of college? Like Zack said, don't judge others, different people view life differently and have different goals.

[Lukiose]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

The sole fact that you're a smoker in itself tickles my nerves, so i'm siding with Brainiac on this one ;)

In my (very biased) opinion, smokers deserve the death penalty. If you wanna commit suicide, find a way other than smoking, jump off a building, stab yourself (whatever). Don't smoke and pollute the environment, and more importantly, harm other humans. You being a smoker itself has already lost your right to speak up as you're a huge disgrace who is NOT ashamed(You should be, seriously) of bringing harm to others.

Smokers? More like stealth terrorists.

[Guest]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

In more reasonable thing about smokers; I believe merely they should not have access to the public health system..

[Lukiose]

~The true POV from an Asian perspective~

I'm 16 and Asian. And i do understand your point of view, i shall elaborate on the "Asians' increasing bad-assery' trend.

As technology is becoming more and more accesible/advanced (Globalisation), like you said, Asian kids are increasingly 'white-washed'. Being flooded with cultures of different trends and values, mostly of the West (America and Europe comes to mind). Being an Asian myself, i can safely say that we were brought up in a very conservative and competitive society.

(Being totally racist here) As weird as it may seem, anybody that is a decent Asian view Americans in a very bad light [YES, THIS IS TRUE]. The majority of Americans in our eyes are stupid, fat and lack moral values, due to lack of social enforcement, and has since become the norm. (Which is really funny because Americans think that all Asians have -.- eyes :P) What is acceptable in their society may not be in ours, but due to the increasing effects of Globalization and exposure to western cultures, some Asian kids who were not-as-well brought up by their parents will naturally believe that being 'bad-ass' is the norm of the society.(I would pin it as moral degradation) Hence the increasing trend of such cases.

Likewise, with the vast amount of information freely accessible on the internet, younger people nowadays in essence, have lost their thirst to experiment or learn new things by heart as everything(Almost) can be solved with a simple search on Google. Simply put, the majority people of our age and younger have lost the belief in putting in the best effort you can for everything. As far as i am concerned, for all we know, they may consider themselves the social norm already, ​while we, the more intellectually sharp, are being perceived as geeks/nerds simply because we want, and are using our brains :)

Thus, the increasingly little time Parents are spending on children, the ever-changing society and influx of foreign cultures are all to blame for the increasingly worrying trend. But truth be said, we can't do much, except educate our children well in the future.

Small Print: Totally putting the blame on Americans here :P, sorry if this comes off as too offensive, but facts are facts XD

[Lukiose]

Thought I'd put this here:

http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs50/i/2009/260/f/9/Some_People_by_MumblingIdiot.jpg

To be honest, I don't think much has changed with the behaviour of "this generation," nor are most people any different to you and I. Intelligence of people seems to something that's easy to measure and judge, but I believe that that's not at all the case.

It's often that case that the person who shouts the loudest gets heard the clearest - because of the way things are. It's often common for people to find interest in this out of the ordinary, so things that they can't imagine doing themselves. This includes things like incidents of violence, or people doing something rather stupid, like having a large sum of money stolen. Does that mean that every kid/teenage does that? Of course not, the actual percentage of such incidents are rather low, it's just that it becomes huge when it happens. Based upon that, most people tend to assume that their peers are stupid and such, but is that really the case?

Of course, there are things that seem to be common interests amount the younger population, socialization and fitting in with others plays a large role in school - in which case some people will either think, or pretend to think that education isn't that important, but I don't think that's something unique about this generation - it's probably been like that for decades. Is that a bad thing? Partly, though learning how to interact with others is also a valuable skill to learn, academic achievement is also important but not necessarily better.

I'm currently 16 and also attend a school that follows the IB curriculum, but I've started to realize that currently my knowledge is still highly narrow, biased and limited. I believe my experiences with posting on various forums has widened it bit, but there's still much that is mystery to me, such ideas and opinions that I simply don't understand. I know next to nothing about how people may behave in other schools and in other countries, I'm admittedly assuming that it's around the same as mine. I may have shared similar views to yours sometime last year, but after looking at my peers with that similar mindset, I believe I've started to realize that most people are neither superior nor inferior to me, just different.

On the note of technology and it's influences, it's worth keeping the positive aspects in mind too. First off however, naturally the availability of such forms of entertainment can hinder the concentration of some, but that doesn't mean that students 30-40 years ago studied 24/7 because they didn't have any forms of distraction - they probably did. That's again another assumption, there's always stuff like magazines, record players and such. Secondly as I mentioned, it's not just negative. The internet makes a huge amount of information freely available to everyone, plus it allows people to interact with each other on a large scale, with people from different countries and backgrounds. I've said this before and how it's affected me, but I'm pretty sure it's also influenced a lot of others too.

Anyways that's my two cents, just something to consider and think about.

Thank you for the comic, it really helps to put you in different perspectives and tell you that people change. Do not judge a book by it's cover.

[deafboy]

Assume everyone is an idiot until proven otherwise...

I suppose I should have started it with an "I assume" instead of "Assume"

It takes a long time for me to take people out of that category...

[Salmiakbal]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

I'm sorry Lukiose, but your comment scores 11/10 on my rage scale. Who are you to say people should die when they smoke? I'm not defending someone that smokes nor am I defending myself (never smoked before) but you have serious mental health problems if you really just believed what you said. You have no idea what you're talking about

[Lukiose]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

It is fine, everybody is entitled to their own opinions. I for one is extremely critical against smokers for personal reasons. But while i hold great respect for ex-smokers who have quit for good, withstanding smokers who blantantly say that they are not ashamed of smoking and continue to do it are complete eyesores for me.

No doubt i'm only 16 and still hold a very narrow view of many things, over time the extent of my views would change, but i do agree with windspeed that a (obviously) more reasonable way of handling things is that they should not have access to public health privileges, or they should be made to pay additional healthcare taxes.

[IdeaStormer]

~The true POV from an Asian perspective~ I'm 16 and Asian. And i do understand your point of view' date=' i shall elaborate on the "Asians' increasing bad-assery' trend. As technology is becoming more and more accesible/advanced (Globalisation), like you said, Asian kids are increasingly 'white-washed'. Being flooded with cultures of different trends and values, mostly of the West (America and Europe comes to mind). Being an Asian myself, i can safely say that we were brought up in a very conservative and competitive society. (Being totally racist here) As weird as it may seem, anybody that is a decent Asian view Americans in a very bad light [YES, THIS IS TRUE']. The majority of Americans in our eyes are stupid, fat and lack moral values, due to lack of social enforcement, and has since become the norm. (Which is really funny because Americans think that all Asians have -.- eyes :P) What is acceptable in their society may not be in ours, but due to the increasing effects of Globalization and exposure to western cultures, some Asian kids who were not-as-well brought up by their parents will naturally believe that being 'bad-ass' is the norm of the society.(I would pin it as moral degradation) Hence the increasing trend of such cases. Likewise, with the vast amount of information freely accessible on the internet, younger people nowadays in essence, have lost their thirst to experiment or learn new things by heart as everything(Almost) can be solved with a simple search on Google. Simply put, the majority people of our age and younger have lost the belief in putting in the best effort you can for everything. As far as i am concerned, for all we know, they may consider themselves the social norm already, ​while we, the more intellectually sharp, are being perceived as geeks/nerds simply because we want, and are using our brains :) Thus, the increasingly little time Parents are spending on children, the ever-changing society and influx of foreign cultures are all to blame for the increasingly worrying trend. But truth be said, we can't do much, except educate our children well in the future. Small Print: Totally putting the blame on Americans here :P, sorry if this comes off as too offensive, but facts are facts XD

You need to go view or re-view those Fast and Furious movies :D

[Lukiose]

~The true POV from an Asian perspective~ I'm 16 and Asian. And i do understand your point of view' date=' i shall elaborate on the "Asians' increasing bad-assery' trend. As technology is becoming more and more accesible/advanced (Globalisation), like you said, Asian kids are increasingly 'white-washed'. Being flooded with cultures of different trends and values, mostly of the West (America and Europe comes to mind). Being an Asian myself, i can safely say that we were brought up in a very conservative and competitive society. (Being totally racist here) As weird as it may seem, anybody that is a decent Asian view Americans in a very bad light [YES, THIS IS TRUE']. The majority of Americans in our eyes are stupid, fat and lack moral values, due to lack of social enforcement, and has since become the norm. (Which is really funny because Americans think that all Asians have -.- eyes :P) What is acceptable in their society may not be in ours, but due to the increasing effects of Globalization and exposure to western cultures, some Asian kids who were not-as-well brought up by their parents will naturally believe that being 'bad-ass' is the norm of the society.(I would pin it as moral degradation) Hence the increasing trend of such cases. Likewise, with the vast amount of information freely accessible on the internet, younger people nowadays in essence, have lost their thirst to experiment or learn new things by heart as everything(Almost) can be solved with a simple search on Google. Simply put, the majority people of our age and younger have lost the belief in putting in the best effort you can for everything. As far as i am concerned, for all we know, they may consider themselves the social norm already, ​while we, the more intellectually sharp, are being perceived as geeks/nerds simply because we want, and are using our brains :) Thus, the increasingly little time Parents are spending on children, the ever-changing society and influx of foreign cultures are all to blame for the increasingly worrying trend. But truth be said, we can't do much, except educate our children well in the future. Small Print: Totally putting the blame on Americans here :P, sorry if this comes off as too offensive, but facts are facts XD

You need to go view or re-view those Fast and Furious movies :D

Never watched the movie :P

Not really bashing any country/people here, it's just that the clash of cultures is resulting in people doing things that are not accepted everywhere, hence the rising trend of 'bad people' everywhere.

[IdeaStormer]

~The true POV from an Asian perspective~ I'm 16 and Asian. And i do understand your point of view' date=' i shall elaborate on the "Asians' increasing bad-assery' trend. As technology is becoming more and more accesible/advanced (Globalisation), like you said, Asian kids are increasingly 'white-washed'. Being flooded with cultures of different trends and values, mostly of the West (America and Europe comes to mind). Being an Asian myself, i can safely say that we were brought up in a very conservative and competitive society. (Being totally racist here) As weird as it may seem, anybody that is a decent Asian view Americans in a very bad light [YES, THIS IS TRUE']. The majority of Americans in our eyes are stupid, fat and lack moral values, due to lack of social enforcement, and has since become the norm. (Which is really funny because Americans think that all Asians have -.- eyes :P) What is acceptable in their society may not be in ours, but due to the increasing effects of Globalization and exposure to western cultures, some Asian kids who were not-as-well brought up by their parents will naturally believe that being 'bad-ass' is the norm of the society.(I would pin it as moral degradation) Hence the increasing trend of such cases. Likewise, with the vast amount of information freely accessible on the internet, younger people nowadays in essence, have lost their thirst to experiment or learn new things by heart as everything(Almost) can be solved with a simple search on Google. Simply put, the majority people of our age and younger have lost the belief in putting in the best effort you can for everything. As far as i am concerned, for all we know, they may consider themselves the social norm already, ​while we, the more intellectually sharp, are being perceived as geeks/nerds simply because we want, and are using our brains :) Thus, the increasingly little time Parents are spending on children, the ever-changing society and influx of foreign cultures are all to blame for the increasingly worrying trend. But truth be said, we can't do much, except educate our children well in the future. Small Print: Totally putting the blame on Americans here :P, sorry if this comes off as too offensive, but facts are facts XD

You need to go view or re-view those Fast and Furious movies :D

Never watched the movie :P Not really bashing any country/people here' date=' it's just that the clash of cultures is resulting in people doing things that are not accepted everywhere, hence the rising trend of 'bad people' everywhere.[/quote']

Again, watch Fast and the Furious :D

[Lukiose]

Is it about the hot chicks and lean guys? XD

[crocski]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

What do you think I'm smoking, cigs? you guys need to educate yourselves rather than ramble on your one minded view of things.

Find me first person that has died for smoking weed? I hope you know weed is the medicine for the future, like it or not.

The level of ignorance amazes me. Educate before you speak.

Society has your minds on one-way street.

I dont even wanna have this stupid discussion.

Thanks for your bad wishes =]

[crocski]

I dont even know if I should comment here, because it may lead to something of a 'big deal'. But how old are you? like 15, how many generations have you experienced to say that this generation isn't smart to your standards?

I am calling you out on your outrageous statement.

You should be just grateful that you were blessed with the knowledge you claim you have and remember everyone is not gonna be the same. It a society, to my recollection a society isn't made up of high-class citizens, its a balance between the 'stupids' as you put and the 'intelligent'.

This notion that you have that everybody must be on the same level is ridiculous ( at least thats the message i am getting).

What do you think I'm smoking, cigs? you guys need to educate yourselves rather than ramble on your one minded view of things.

Find me first person that has died for smoking weed? I hope you know weed is the medicine for the future, like it or not.

The level of ignorance amazes me. Educate before you speak.

Society has your minds on one-way street.

I dont even wanna have this stupid discussion.

Thanks for your bad wishes =]

[Administrator]

Discussions like these are interesting to read but i must stress some of the core values of this forum quickly before certain things continue

No user of this forum should be attacked - while our Code of Conduct has not been officially released i would like to leave you with 2 quotes that generally sum up the whole idea

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure - "Be excellent to each other"

Will Wheaton - "Don't be a dick"

There is an incredible difference between debating and attacking, and while many posts here have been debating there have also been some attacks mixed within. I will not be letting the ban hammer drop and I will not be handing out infractions but this is heavily due with the moderation team still being put in place and many of our rules still being roughed out.

Just chill guys - Be excellent to each other - and don't be a dick!