I sat in the college classroom—a bright-eyed freshman. My notebook was out, my pencil was at the ready—this was it! I was finally in an institution of higher education! I would face bigger challenges, have to work harder—more would be expected in the adult world and I couldn’t wait to get started. As I furiously jotted down notes and punched numbers into my calculator to double check my answers, the girl a few seats down raised her hand.

“Do we really have to memorize all five of those equations? That’s so much work! Can’t you just put them up on the board for us during the test?”

My jaw dropped. What had just happened? Was I back in kindergarten? But I was soon to find that this would not be a singular occurrence. Other students joined in on the plea and this mindset would permeate other classes as well. But apparently more was not expected of us—the professor did indeed write the equations on the board for our test just as requested.

Reality check: college was not exactly the challenge I expected it to be. And I was thoroughly disappointed.

I soon realized that my generation has a problem. We are, as a whole, rather lazy. Many of us simply don’t understand what it means to really work.

But work is an essential part of America. After all, isn’t that what the American Dream really is? That if you work hard enough, you will succeed? That if you work for it, anything is possible. I was under the impression that we were the Land of Opportunity, but now it seems more and more like we are the Land of Entitlement.

Why do we lack this work ethic? The answer is simple: our world is one of instant gratification. With all of technology’s advances, life is considerably easier than what it once was, and many of us, having known no other life, take it for granted—it’s an easy trap to fall into. Work no longer has much value and it is a direct result of the way we live.

Our mindset has two aspects: easy and fast. You only have to turn on the television and watch a few commercials to catch on to this frame of mind. Easy and fast sells, and it is expected.

The problem is that work is the exact opposite of these concepts. It is hard and it takes time. The result is sadly predictable; many of us reject a good work ethic. And there are plenty of distractions to assist us in this pursuit (all of which involve staring impassively at a screen doing absolutely nothing)—television, computers, video games, movies. These activities involve no physical or mental effort. These are instant gratifications. Even our social lives can be conducted without ever actually putting ourselves in a social setting.

However, far from being a minor annoyance, there are much bigger consequences that the future holds for this generation should we as a whole continue in this mindset and these practices.

I beg my peers to consider this: if we remain apathetic in our everyday lives, we will be apathetic in our political lives; furthermore, it is less likely that we will take the time or be willing to do the work to research the actual issues and will end up debating everything on pure emotion.

Lord Acton, a political philosopher and economist, once explained that the reason he did not condone the government feeding, clothing, or caring for the people was because with a loss of responsibility the people would become dependent on the government. Essentially, without any sort of work ethic, without a sense of responsibility, the people will ultimately enslave themselves. Freedom is work. We are not free simply because we are Americans. We are free because men and women worked to make it so. Because they died to make it so. And that work is never over. If we allow ourselves to lose our work ethic, we have given up our freedom. Is this where we are headed?

Thomas Paine told those who originally fought for our freedom, “That which we gain too cheap, we value too lightly.” We would do well to remember those words. This holds true for all that we do, whether it concern something as vast as freedom, or something as specific as our schoolwork. They are linked. What we manifest in our individual lives will take root and grow into everything we do.

So, here is my challenge to my generation: Yes, the world is an easy and fast-paced place to live now and it is only getting more so. We, as the future of America, face an important question: how do we salvage our traditional work ethic?

The answer is simple: we change because we as individuals recognize that we need to (after all, they say admitting the problem is the first step) and we choose to do so. Whether or not we get up off the couch and start working is up to us. These are our choices, our consequences, and our responsibilities.

So, I encourage you: get up and do the work (Who knows? You might be surprised to find what satisfaction a job well done can bring)! It may not necessarily be easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2011/08/19/why-worry-about-my-generation/#ixzz1VYQaWJuz

But, but, but it's much easier just to sit on your a$$ collecting a welfare check, food stamps, unemployment, WIC, get school paid for when your barely pass, get free medical insurance from the government etc. etc.

good article, except it slants a bit to one side

its not just working hard that is the goal, its being valued for the work you do,,,

this statement '“That which we gain too cheap, we value too lightly.” ' cuts both ways,, for those wishing to be productive and for those in control of the production

I think it is a misnomer that things like unemployment, or welfare, or food stamps come with no work,, most states do have actual requirements that involve quite a reasonable amount of actual 'effort' to remain qualified for even the most minimal 'assistance'

not to mention that those types of programs have been around long before our generation and during some of our most 'productive' times as a nation as well

I think people should be productive, I think from that productivity they should contribute to the society at large(Taxes) and I think when they fall on hard times, they should be the recipients of that which they have contributed to,,,,,

I just dont think people should make their final goal to be able to LIVE without any effort or contribution, which is becoming much more difficult to do anyway, although most who dont ever seek 'government' assistance continue to believe the stereotypes suggesting that those who do must be lazy or disinterested in being productive themself,,,,


and yes, I think technology overall makes us weaker and less patient and gives us a sense of 'entitlement' to fast and easy,,,,

Where's the scorn being heaped on corporations who take tax breaks, grants and other corporate welfare, but then outsource work to China and/or pay such low wages that the employee who does not 'sit on their a$$' can't even afford the $4/gal gas to get there?

After all, corporations are people, too? Right?


-Kerry O.

Maybe we sensible people ought to all get together and publicly stone both the lazy and the corporate slave traders.

Then the right and the left would both be happy,

to realize your self 'u have to be in the right place at the right time..................and this is out-off our will

This 'generation' see's flaws and wants change.
They have watched their grandparents and parents
work their ***** off, retire and die short of
enjoying their 'golden years.'

They don't see the lifestyle many live as the 'american dream.'

They are creative, sharp and choose to do what they love first, with
the understanding that when you do what you love the money comes.

Most see them as a lazy ungrateful bunch.
I don't, I appreciate their enthusiasm to make the world a better.
Out with the old, in with the new.

I agree with most of what the OP had to say.

To address some of the comments since, we need to also consider how in much of the country there is the lack of a sense of community.

As a nation, we are in this together. As a family, a neighborhood, a generation....whatever social grouping you wish to choose, we are in this together. And this can be tied into the arguments of business, government, education, and so on. With a sense of community, we all work to promote the common good. At the same time, we can work to improve ourselves and our quality of life individually. Without a sense of community, we allow a minority to achieve more influence over the majority of our lives. This is why some groups warn about the break down of families within this country: it is the basic social unit....the foundation of the greater community.

Just wanted to toss that out there to see people's thoughts.

I agree with what you are saying here action.

ITs not just about us, but we have become and raised millions who believe it should be....apparently. The 'greater good' is an idea that will be sorely missed once it is completely replaced with the 'whats good for me' idea.

Corporations that take tax breaks hire more employees and put the money back into the economy.

people buying gas, groceries, paying bills ,,etc,,


are also putting money 'back into the economy'

True, the bulk of tax revenue is from the private citizen, not from businesses.

Personally, I see a way to lighten the tax burden for both the private citizen and businesses alike, but the politicians we elect will never back it. Partly due to personal motives, and partly due to pressure from lobbyists. The sad thing is, it would help businesses to create more jobs while allowing the vast majority of people to keep more of their earnings.

I personally like the pay forward type of system like in the (netherlands?) where there is a social/legal requirement to do for others

as it was explained to me, taxes are paid, and once people are at a certain income level they must hire someone else to do something and when that person reaches an income, they hire someone,,, and so on

so there is not SUCH disparity between the 'have more than they could ever spends', and the 'barely feeding their kids',,,

Not only that, but we also demand truth and transparancy on all matters from those in power. We aren't satisfied for what passes for it and won't accept less. It's time things change and we take back our power. They're supposed to answer to us, not the other way around.

But what good is it when the middle class is being evaporated in so doing? Not like our economy is exactly flourishing anyway.......

They haven't lately-- they cite 'uncertainty' as a reason to NOT hire people. Even as they take the grants and tax breaks and then outsource work to China.

And sometimes, even when they do hire, it's people without green cards that they pay under the table. A lot of that money goes to the Mexican economy, not ours.

Besides, I don't see you making the argument that the money people get on welfare goes back into the economy. At least with poor people, you know it's going directly into the economy immediately, not into the casinos on Wall St. with their thousand point swings that ONLY line the pockets of the brokers.


-Kerry O.

The majority of people in this country work for small businesses. Where are their tax breaks? Truth is, taxes hurt small business much more than large businesses, especially Social Security and Medicare. If the government really wanted to create jobs, they would look to help small businesses. Some would grow. New businesses might sprout up. In fact, local goods or services might becomes cheaper because of reduced overhead, causing a boost in sales.

Right now, restaurants are hurting real bad in my area. Part of it is that drinking laws make it so that legally a bar/restaurant owner can only serve a person two beers before the owner might be punished for customer being publicly drunk. In other words, a third beer - even if the customer has been there two hours - can get the restaurant owner penalized. On top of that, food prices have gone up, as have utilities and taxes. Meanwhile, fewer families are going out to eat, yet the bar is booming. (Bars are always busy in a bad economy.) By law, a restaurant requires that 60% of revenue be generated by food, compared to 40% generated by liquor. As overhead goes up and customers dwindle, the ratio can be reversed (40/60 rather than 60/40), and that means the state government can revoke the license. All it takes is one mistake, and the state can bring this into place.

Government needs to stop listening to special interests and start listening to the people. Government policies actually shrink job growth. They hinder business. I don't think it should be laissez-faire, but we regulate too much. I see a way to generate sufficient tax revenue on the federal end without any business taxes. To me, the trickier issue is state taxes, where states have taken an attitude of "keeping up with the Joneses" on top of all else.

The very first thing they need to realize is that raising taxes during a poor economy is a fallacious argument no matter how it's put forth. If the people and businesses aren't making sufficient money already, they cannot afford to pay the taxes. Therefore, the government needs a way to enlarge the tax base. In the Middle Ages, that meant raiding or conquering your neighbors. Well, we can't do that any more, so we need to grow and strengthen businesses to help the people earn more. When that happens, tax revenue will increase again.

This is part of the sense of community I was talking about before. People have their blinders on. They don't reach out and listen to each other. They just go "well, I'm hurting too, so it's all justified". People focus too much on their narrow view. Meanwhile, those who stay silent lose their voice. I can you through my town and show you things forced upon us by the town council, despite dissent at town meetings. Sidewalks in the woods that lead nowhere. Quarter million dollar horse trails that benefit only 4 or 5 people out of 6600. And so on. The town leaders have stopped listening to the community because the community stopped getting involved. Now leadership needs to be held accountable, but the residents simply threw up their hands in defeat. They caved.

Don't cave like them. Make leadership accountable for irresponsibility. Think about your community, not just your own pocket like our government does. Otherwise, you are no better than the leaders who you complain about.