“Lazy Generation?”

not going to hijack a thread so starting a new one...

I know mine will not be near any of this for quite some time, but how lazy are kids becoming???

- need motorized vehicles

- handheld gaming computers

- XBOX etc.

- cellphone/texting

Wonder where bicycling, roller blading and even skateboarding has gone? Where has general atheletic activities gone? (tag, orienteering, hockey, playing 21 - baseball or basketball etc...)

no wonder the Canada ranks 35th of all countries at 61% obesity

and YES, I am at the gym over 3 plus times a week and still bicycle about 20k 3-4 times a week.

Kids are DEFINITELY more lazy now a days.

I am not that old, but when I was a kid, in the 80s and early 90's atleast, I played LOTS of sports and that was it!

T.V. was the only other alternative to spend my time (oh, and ofcourse studying ), and I would watch a bit of T.V. every night, which was mostly mind number cartoons.

But now I think because of the internet, these kids, spend upto 8 hours a day on internet alone, forget T.V. or radio.

They got Facebook! and oh lets not forget www.OHTA.ca

And YES, these kids are growing up obese. They need to run around playing tag instead of halo 3!

Is said lazy generation the product of "lazy" parenting? Just asking.

On the subject, it used to be that kids would be out playing all of the time on the streets. They'd make friends in the neighbourhood. You see very little of that now.

The "internet generation" not only is becoming obese, but they also have poor social skills and their grammar/language skills are laughable. Too much time Facebooking and text-messaging, and not enough time interacting with real people. I've seen cover letters that are written with the same sort of abbreviations/phraseology as short-form text messages. What kind of leadership, ambition and productivity will come from them when they hit the workforce?

In defence of our kids, though... you should see some American cities... like Memphis. Not that we shouldn't be encouraging people to be more physically active, though.

I know mine will not be near any of this for quite some time, but how lazy are kids becoming???

- need motorized vehicles

- handheld gaming computers

- XBOX etc.

- cellphone/texting

Oh wow. Well what do you expect. When every major city in North America has been structured around the car what do you think any person is going to opt for. I use a road bike to help train for track and not once have I gone on a ride where someone hasn't nearly ran me over.

I think this is what you're hoping for.

Unfortunately we don't live there.

Did you guys ever think that all this internet chatting and texting language is doing nothing more than what any language has ever done. Change.

Think of it this way, English scholars from every generation will always tell you that the old way was the proper way to talk. Ever watch an episode of Anne of Green Gables? I don't know what they're saying half the time. Going back to Shake-sphere, I don't have a clue what's going on.

Everyone always complains how the good days were. How that's the real way to be a better person. This line of thinking stuns me. The world changes fast and children have done nothing more than keep up. How about instead of chastising technology for causing obesity in children you instead provide the environment for them to flourish in. That said, I don't know how anyone believes that sports have disappeared. Maby you just don't know they exist because of the crowds of people trying to register their kids in hockey are in your way.

All these issues are based around stale thinking and poor community infrastructure. Perhaps people should contact their local MP if they are concerned about their child's health.

Change is always "Good" however, getting fat at an early age due to technology which is causing this is not so good of a "Change"

Not saying kids don't exercise or play sports anymore, and I'm sure the hockey club is full of kids, however, things like Technology is making it harder for them to do so, or better yet they do NOT choose to play sports like hockey anymore.

Why? Simple. They have TONS of other types of entertainment to choose from now such as xbox, iphone, facebook, you name it, its there.

Also, keeping in mind this is very recent. We don`t fully know what the future will hold for us, and I don`t think that every change is a good thing for our health.

Even new research is suggesting cell phone use can be linked to certain types of cancer.

Next thing you know they gonna have virtual reality sport games. Oh wait, they already do, its called Wii Fit!

The idea is to live long and healthy, and that needs to start at an early age.

I can't possibly agree for a single second that having a high rate of child obesity is a good thing, even if that's the "change" that's being heralded right now. Change is not always good, it's not always bad either.

ManlyMinute wrote:All these issues are based around stale thinking and poor community infrastructure.

Kids used to go outside and play with their friends, go to parks, etc. The new thinking is that this not good, and they must be put into organized sports. The cost of sports is going up and many lower-income families can't afford to have their kids play sports. My point was that there are a dwindling number of children playing recreationally and not competitively. It's taking its toll.

ManlyMinute wrote:All these issues are based around stale thinking and poor community infrastructure. Perhaps people should contact their local MP if they are concerned about their child's health.

If people are contacting an MP for this issue......WOW....nothing like people blaming someone else for your own misfortunes/problems.

It is as simple as bike down to the park and throw/bat/kick a ball around or play hide and seek. None of that costs much, if anything. But instead, parents buy a $300 gaming system and $60 games and tell the kid to go use it.

My neighbours teen won't cut the grass, won't roll out the garbage bin or roll back the empty bin from the curb, won't shovel snow, won't vaccum the pool, won't even toss a ball for their dog....but will sit and text away.....obviously I won't tell my neighbour how to raise their child, but WTF?

hwybear wrote:

My neighbours teen won't cut the grass, won't roll out the garbage bin or roll back the empty bin from the curb, won't shovel snow, won't vaccum the pool, won't even toss a ball for their dog....but will sit and text away.....obviously I won't tell my neighbour how to raise their child, but WTF?

Hopefully your neighbours not reading this

I notice a difference in my generation. An early 70s child, and growing up in the 80s we did have Atari and Coleco Vision, but my brother who is a few years younger than me is much more involved in "gaming". So are his friends. While most of my former classmates are on Facebook now, I haven't been on since Nov '09. You wanna catch up? Let's go for coffee. You wanna be BFF's? Annual birthday "e-cards" don't cut it. You won't catch me on a computer after work hours unless it's to do a paper.

My sister in law who is 23 gets chauffeured around. I would've been given $1.25 and told to catch a bus. If we wanted to be social, we went out. Saturday nights with SIL are on the PC webcam on IM. It's amazing. My hubby is a former pro sports player. His cousins are currently pro sports players. Saturday mornings started at 6-7am with laps around rinks. We girls danced and karate'd our way through adolescence. Our son will be at the rinks and not playing NHL10 on Xbox360. I know it's much easier to plop him down and hand him a controller, but it is not the best thing for him. I do believe it has to do with lazy parenting, or, more appropriately, busy 2-income households with parents exhausted and at their wits end trying to juggle home life and the office.

Marquisse wrote:My sister in law who is 23 gets chauffeured around. I would've been given $1.25 and told to catch a bus. If we wanted to be social, we went out. Saturday nights with SIL are on the PC webcam on IM. It's amazing. My hubby is a former pro sports player. His cousins are currently pro sports players. Saturday mornings started at 6-7am with laps around rinks. We girls danced and karate'd our way through adolescence. Our son will be at the rinks and not playing NHL10 on Xbox360. I know it's much easier to plop him down and hand him a controller, but it is not the best thing for him.

Getting out and actually interacting with other people is what makes us grow and mature as human beings... as you've indicated. This is what the "internet generation" is missing. And I'm not that far removed from them, either: I was born in 1979.

When I had problems in my youth, my parents didn't jump in and take care of it for me. They asked: "What are you going to do about it?" It was my problem, so it was my responsibility to fix it. So many parents these days try to solve problems for their kids, that the kids do not have a sense of responsibility and have a greatly reduced ability to cope with the stresses, problems and demands of the working world. That's not a positive change.

I also spent a lot of time on outdoor rinks just playing pick-up hockey in Ottawa, I hiked in the Gatineau Hills, biked along the Rideau Canal, etc. My friends and I actually got together and did things, as opposed to e-mailing and text-messaging non-stop. It's easier and healthier to actually meet a live person than to text-message to the point of getting carpal tunnel. All of that recreational outdoors stuff is still available, in abundance. Technology really isn't the problem, in and of itself. It's the fact that many parents are relying on it to raise their kids.

Ok well this is what I'm seeing. Not a single person here has once had something to say other than "I'm active, and my kids sure aren't going to be lazy either." Ok well thats real nifty. I've got a story too. I didn't want to go outside and play as a kid but my mother smacked me up side the head and gave me some common sense. Not that difficult of a lesson to teach. (and try not to take the physical violence literally.)

What I see is a bunch of people complaining about how lazy kids are nowadays but still flat out refusing to do anything about it because it's not their problem. Just blame electronics, despite the fact that YES they are more interisting and fun. How bout next time someone doesn't like the way something is they try and do something about it. Hmmmmm. Interesting thought here. What would someone be if they saw an issue but didn't do anything about it? Lazy?

My cousin is about in the 40's now and he has lots of childhood storires too. Alot of them seem to revolve around throwing sticks at each other. Everyones generation does stupid things. Don't blame mine because you see kids parked on their asses in front of a computer screen for hours on end. I am completely capable of play 4 hours straight of a single video game and still remain completely active and intelligent. I even believe video games help people cognively progress. Any takers?

ManlyMinute, what is your point? I cannot do "anything" save and except where it concerns my own child. BTW, that is THE solution, as it's teaching our contribution to the next generation to be active and interested in their own health/lives. It means less of a drain on healthcare, social services, and more contribution to the economy.

Speaking of having to figure things out ourselves and maturing, Radar Identified, my cousin went to war with a cab company because her 24 year old was so drunk one night that she couldn't take money out of her ATM, so the cabbie took her iPod as payment. Rather than cousin's daughter call and fight it herself, her mother did for her! At 24, she is old enough to put out her own fires. It's not allowed (what the cabbie did) but she's old enough to commence action on her own.

The last time my mother went to war for me, I was 10 and being bullied by a nitwit in the junior high across the football field from our elementary school.

My point is that this topic started of as a national statistic. 61% of children are considered obeese. All anyone has done here is beliache(sp*) about how other children are fat and how their children will never be like that.

Usually when people have an issue about something and like to complain about it, I like to ask those people what they're doing about it.

You can't do anything about it? Com'on. I've coached dozens of public school kids into Youth Nationals by the time they've gone through highschool. I've also encouraged numerous more parents into signing their kids up into bi- and tri-athalon events.

From what you've said I've done more about this child health issue than you ever have and I haven't even broken a quarter century yet.

You can't do anything? Step up to the plate. Who is really being lazy.

With all *due* respect, ManlyMan, I haven't commented on anything regarding my volunteering duties in my personal life, so you wouldn't know what I contribute to. I wouldn't at this juncture either, as it's extremely uncouth to brag about one's charity in order to win a virtual pissing contest.

Many of the techie generation and beyond suffer from Entitlement Elephantitis, and are far beyond any help your local rugby team volunteers may offer. However, by far the most interesting to me is how they want to be President and CEO in their entry-level positions, and get miffed when they are sent fetching coffee, indignant that their English Lit degree hasn't offered them the corner office. I will give them this though, they have created a new texting language because it was just too darned frustrating to communicate in proper English. Kudos on that.....who's lazy again?

You volunteer? Good on ya, but keep it to yourself, pal. Many here do so too, including those who do so daily on their jobs. Aside from what contributions to society I make, my kids are being brought up with respect, a yearning for the outdoors and in sports. I'm offering the future a healthy adult who will contribute to society, and that's a valuable contribution in itself.

Cheers, Manly.