2008 Woodie Awards
The Incompetence of a Generation
Andrew S. Lay
Issue date: 9/20/06 Section: Opinion
On the fifth anniversary of 9/11, President Bush said that the turmoil in the Middle East is the great trial of our generation. The young men of the 1940s had World War II. Many of our fathers fought in Vietnam. The war of our generation, the great call of our generation, is the war on terrorism.
This presents a dark future for our country. The youth of our generation are not up to the task. They lack the fundamental skills of logic and foresight that would enable them to see the danger this war presents to our country. They lack the patriotism and selflessness that is necessary to fill the beleaguered ranks of our all-volunteer Armed Forces. It seems to me that they are more focused on the spiritual and intellectual void they so eagerly dwell upon in this generation raised by MTV.
Self-sacrifice, perseverance, these qualities are lacking. They have been replaced by narcissism, the well-being of one stands tall over the success of America in this time of war. In World War II over one million of our boys eagerly accepted the call. Many were too young to enlist, so they lied to get in. Our generation sees our boys dying on TV and they think, "Better him than me." What a sad state of affairs. Where is the courage? Where is the honor? Where are the heroes of our generation? They are fighting for their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan while those left behind give no consideration or second thought about our soldiers. Only a special few love their country enough to want to defend it.
Some might say that this is a fool's war, like Vietnam. They say, "Why should I fight in a war I don't believe in?"
Many of our generation have been deceived. They have been so polluted by the media's political doubletalk that they have lost all faith in our government. Everyone thinks we're at war for oil, or to line the pockets of politicians. While much of this is true, the fact of the matter is that the war in the Middle East does indeed present a direct threat to our way of life.
This presents a dark future for our country. The youth of our generation are not up to the task. They lack the fundamental skills of logic and foresight that would enable them to see the danger this war presents to our country. They lack the patriotism and selflessness that is necessary to fill the beleaguered ranks of our all-volunteer Armed Forces. It seems to me that they are more focused on the spiritual and intellectual void they so eagerly dwell upon in this generation raised by MTV.
Self-sacrifice, perseverance, these qualities are lacking. They have been replaced by narcissism, the well-being of one stands tall over the success of America in this time of war. In World War II over one million of our boys eagerly accepted the call. Many were too young to enlist, so they lied to get in. Our generation sees our boys dying on TV and they think, "Better him than me." What a sad state of affairs. Where is the courage? Where is the honor? Where are the heroes of our generation? They are fighting for their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan while those left behind give no consideration or second thought about our soldiers. Only a special few love their country enough to want to defend it.
Some might say that this is a fool's war, like Vietnam. They say, "Why should I fight in a war I don't believe in?"
Many of our generation have been deceived. They have been so polluted by the media's political doubletalk that they have lost all faith in our government. Everyone thinks we're at war for oil, or to line the pockets of politicians. While much of this is true, the fact of the matter is that the war in the Middle East does indeed present a direct threat to our way of life.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Emily Tavis
posted 9/21/06 @ 8:38 AM PST
Hi Andrew!
I love that you state your excellent (in my opinion) points of view, we all should spend more time on the things in life the REALLY matter. (Continued…)
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