I think I have a reason why some of us are cranky, and Cliff pointed it out. Look at the calander.

How many of us remember that by the year 2000, we would have:
flying cars
commercial space travel
SSTs
space colonies (orbital and Lunar)
pioneer bases on Mars and the start of asteroid mining
fusion power
no more dependence on hydrocarbons
cybernetic implants, both theraputic and enhancing
cure for cancer
a culture where your merit, your achievement is rewarded
an end to famine
an end to war
an end to poverty
an end to discrimination
an end to stupidity

Lets face, we were lied to our entire childhood. But those were dreams, they were things to work for. OK, so maybe we didn't succeed, but we've tried and we're still trying.

And now were are surrounded by kids who don't even have dreams beyond being the next pop/porn star. Half the current generation thinks that a credit card with a 19% interest rate is a good deal, becuase they can't think! Those that can have spent thier lives having thier souls and imagination crushed by an education system that has turned into theraputic therapy for morons. No one wants peace to have peace- they are scared of a draft and of having a low number. They don't care about people starving, or getting sick, so long as it isn't them. They don't care about anything but thier own security and comfort. They not only don't care that they might not have a brave new world- they don't WANT one!

I applaud the teachers, and the scout leaders, and the coaches that try to teach these little *censored* think. I dont blame them. I blame the safety-firsters and every parent who thinks that thier kid is going to grow up to be a rocket scientist, despite having an IQ that is barely room tempurature. I blame the people who can't be bothered to potty train thier little geniuses, much less teach them thier last name, before they go to kindergarten. I blame the people who never read to thier kids, who never bought them blocks, but gave the little punks thier own TVs with ALL the cable channels at age 10. I blame the people who think that worshiping mediocrity is a good thing- what the hell are they smoking?!

And yes, there are days where I take out a sheet that I painted a bullseye on, and stretch it out on the lawn. And sit next to it, with classic music or opera playing, a big bottle of tea made with loose leaves and real lemon and honey, reading a good book, and every so often looking up and taunting the asteroids. I know one is out there, it's waiting, just for us, but the bloody coward just won't come down here and show us what it's made of.

Ironraven, you're exactly right! Space 1999! It never came true! Dang! I even had the toy ray gun! It still bothers me from time to time!

I'd settle for fusion.

Ah... so many truths. It all boils down to personal responsibility. I don't want to lump all the youngin's in one group. I'm sure there are good ones out there. But there are so many idiots looking to have everything handed to them, it makes the weight of the world crush your optimism. I think that's the source of the gumpiness. Crushing and overwelming realization that our hopes are either dead or dying. <img src="/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

I kinda figured that our kids would know they were being excluded from that rant.

And your father said that about you, and his father said that about him, and his father's father said that about.......

I OBJECT!

So you think only the old GUYS get rude and cranky? What do you think the women have been doing all these years? We have a right to be rude and cranky, too!

For all you people who remember when John Glenn went into space: Can you imagine how awful it would be if we got the chance to be a kid again starting today, but were still able to remember our original childhood? Look at the comparison... there IS no comparison!

I knew how to read, tell time and knew my numbers up to 20 when I started kindergarten. Every year, I got my new school books, read them from cover to cover right away, then spent the rest of the year bored out of my mind. The kids today don't know how to read, unless their parents actually took the time to teach them, and what are the chances of that? The schools aren't capable of teaching them to read, they're just prison wardens for twelve years. The kids don't know much more by the time they leave school than when they first entered it.

Remember when the only time we were indoors was when we were sick? We roamed for miles, visited friends from school, made up games with cardboard boxes, tree branches and wagons. Today's kids don't know how to do anything unless electricity or batteries are involved, not to mention a lot of money.

There was one main rule at home: be home in time for dinner. We never heard the term "child molester", and we sure didn't need a mean German Shepherd or a sitter with a shotgun to keep us safe. If we climbed into the flood control channel so we could slide down the sandy slope on cardboard and a hobo was coming along, one of the teenage boys from down the street would jump the fence and remind us not to talk to strangers, and hang around until the hobo was out of sight. The kids today can be taken right out of their own bedrooms. Whose fault is that?

My father bought a new television with an 11" screen, and the neighbors all came over to see it. When things really got modern and the remote control was invented, we had to take the collar off the dog because his rattling tags kept changing the channels. The kids today can't figure out how to get into their bright red, parent-provided, brand-new sports car if the battery dies in their electronic door opener.

We actually had to figure out the answer to some problems on our own. If the badminton bird flew up to the roof, Donna would have to bring the wooden stepladder from next door, I would find the 4-prong garden "claw", and Julie would hold the ladder while I climbed up and scraped it off the roof. Getting a baseball out of the drain was trickier. A kid on my street couldn't figure out how to get a frisbee out of a tree with a stick, two feet over his head.

If we smart-mouthed an adult, it was okay for them to knock our head off. They would be backed up by our parents who told us that it was our fault. Today, the kids physically attack someone, and their parents sue their victim for existing.

If we found a wallet or purse or folded money with a grocery list paperclipped to it, we turned it in to the most likely person to know who it belonged to. Most of the kids around here just steal what they want -- from strangers or friends.

We had to work for money. It was just a fact of life. Who was going to give us money for nothing? Nobody. Today's kid expect everything t be handed to them even before they know they want it. Some don't mind having a job, as long as it isn't too hard, they don't have to think, and if La Parent provides the car and the gas money (they never think of insurance).

Drugs were aspirin and castor oil. Now the kids know all the names of all the recreational drugs, and who is selling them.

I think we're nasty because we know there's no hope. The eight-year-old little #@%$& next door is never going to improve, and neither will his parents. The kids can't spell cat, but want their own credit card. The only reason kids manage to learn their numbers is so they can dial their cell phone. You can ask them a question, and they haven't got a clue to the answer, because they can't think.

And no, it's not all kids. The homeschooled ones are much better.

I feel sorry for today's kids. I wouldn't wish today on any of them. <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Sue

Don't worry Susan, women aren't excluded. My wife sure is rude and cranky! Sheesh.

I just want to say two things:

One, I grew up in a matriarchy. "Guys", when used by males, is generally a short hand for "everyone". And that is a short coming of ours, perhaps.

Two, not all homeschooled kids are better off. I've seen too many of them that can quote whatever religous tract they memorized, but they can't read anything other than that, can't do math, and literally throw things and spit at anyone who isn't part of thier religion. This isn't in the middle east, this in Vermont and New Hampshire!

I second yer second point. There are too many irresponsible parents who "homeschool" their children. I have seen some keep their children at home for other purposes instead: to work them, to fulfill a selfish agenda. The kid is the one who suffers.

Case in point: A mother I know of homeschooled her kids. The younger daughter had a learning disability. The older son did become an Eagle Scout via him and his father being involved (his dad brought home the bacon, mom stayed at home). But, at 21 years of age, he still lives at home without a G.E.D. Seems like mom did a great job homeschooling him, huh? Dad should have done something. He's a genius of a kid, too, that's the sad thing. He could almost be thru with college by now, that's what he really wanted.

I have only seen the bad side of homeschooling, I am trying not to be biased and know it has its merits.