The Wiley Coyote Generation

Attention:  I apologize, this gets a little political, that will happen sometimes, but don't worry, I will always warn you.  P.S. I tend to lean to the left.

God, there's been so many teen suicides this year.  What is it about our culture that leaves so many young people making a conscious decision to either take their lives or take the life of another?  Between Facebook, MySpace, and the endless layers of self-expansion that our new found multi-media seems to bring to the table, I can't help but wonder if it's just an over all sense of immortality that gives our youth such an immense lack of value for human life today or are we honestly going to blame "bullying"?

I'm calling it the Wiley Coyote Generation.  It's as if they believe that they could drop a piano on someones head without any real consequence due to the illusion that they will wake up the next morning and find that very person in the exact same condition he was prior to the piano-head situation.  Let's face it, "bullying" is nothing new.  Kids have been brutal to each other as far time can tell.  They're not nice, in fact, they are assholes.  But that is the nature of teenagers, that's what they do.  Now suddenly, every poor, terrified mother in America is launching a crusade against meanness?  But what are we telling these disillusioned children who are being bullied, if you end your life we will make these kids pay for their cruelty?  Bullying is just a symptom.  The problem lies in the very thing that is teaching these teens that the solution to their problems is suicide?  I spent my whole life contemplating ending it-depression, unbalanced meds and a lack of tools was the dilemma.  But I never actually succeeded and I believe the reason was because I had a sense that there were repercussions to my actions; death is eternal, and I knew deep down that it was not an illness one can recover from.  The same goes for murder; there are some people I would love to kill; 95% of Orange County is just one example, conservative republicans and Sarah Palin is up there too, but I won't do it for three reasons, one, 1000 more will pop up in their place, let's face it they're like fleas, two, I am afraid of the consequences of my actions and, three, the enormity of it all is enough to deter me from taking any real action that would result in the elimination of an existence, even if it were Sarah Palin.  These are some of the dilemmas that people in my generation and before have faced, an overall sense of value for human life and fear of the consequences one might confront if that life were taken.  But these issues or dilemmas do not seem to phase today's youth.  I would rather us look at that than the fact that there are some assholes out there bullying each other, because, frankly, there will always be assholes, that will never change, it's how we choose to handle it.

It really isn't funny at all and I hope I didn't give anyone the impression that the recent teenage suicides that have taken place in the past year are to be taken lightly.  Sometimes it's just easier to laugh, I guess.  But really, it's sad and infuriating.  If the minimum wage wasn't so pathetic, maybe both parents wouldn't be forced to work well children were being raised by the Internet and their television sets.  The modern day America seems to demand much but offers little.  How are we supposed to raise our children to be happy, healthy human beings when the cost of living is so high and they are surviving off fast food and basing their primary development on online social networks.  It's no wonder children feel alone and alienated when we place so little value on our education systems and demand so much of parents financially, where are kids supposed to look for examples?   The breakdown of the family system has nothing to do with gay marriage or the fact that we eliminated prayer in public schools, the breakdown of the family system is a direct result of the large multi-million dollar corporations paying their employees $9.00 an hour, and than making a 210% consumer profit.  Perhaps if their wasn't such a tremendous imbalance in the distribution of wealth, families could afford to actually live the traditional American dream, honoring the so-called family system and raising their children to value their lives and the ones around them.  But I suppose this is the very reason it's called a dream.  Until something changes, I guess The Wiley Coyote Generation will have to settle for The American Nightmare.  I think I'm done for the evening.  Sorry this isn't perkier.  Now I want a drink but I have to settle for chocolate.