Each year, Beloit College publishes their Mindset List, describing what incoming freshmen have been exposed to since birth. For 2010 this means children born around 1992/1993. The limited context of these young people is always startling for older folks.
For example: This Freshman Class has known only two presidents: Bush and Obama.
But what about the vast array of social, moral, political and economic issues that inform our society? What constitutes their historical context?
Generally, they have a limited understanding of Western Civilization.
They have a limited (and biased) understanding of our Founding Principles.
They have always known a Government that takes care of the poor.
They have have always known sex education in public school.
They have never known a time when people did not have access to credit.
They have never been without a computer, cell phone, or mp3 player.
They get their news from The Colbert Report or the Daily Show.
They view sex as recreational.
They do not comprehend the idea of conservative. For them, everything is disposable.
They have never known a world without AIDs, public homosexuality or porn TV channels.
As a consequence, when older people speak of the breakdown of society, these young people can't relate. When we bemoan the loss of our heritage (Western Civilization), they don't know what we're talking about. And when we speak of morality, they think of the relative morality which makes everything right....for me.
EX: When a senatorial candidate can reference his Vietnam military experience, over a period of several years, when in fact he never served in Vietnam. Then blame the media for not understanding his words, and have a sizable number of people accept that as reasonable, you know we're in trouble.
But, then, it probably depends on the the definition of "is."
Another bit of cultural trivia these young people don't understand.
