Our generation has often been criticized for our overindulgence with technology, not enjoying the outdoors adequately, being lazy, taking too many selfies, being on social media too often, and just being stupid in general. However, has the intellectual capital actually deteriorated with each generation, or are we just the victims of the older generations’ misunderstandings.

One common accusation is that kids are always on their phones, laptops, tablets, or whatever technological commodity we may possess. In the little device of a smartphone, people can unlock the answers cultivated by thousands of years of civilized evolution, streamline communication, check the weather, map a route, organize an event, plan out dinner, and accomplish exponentially more. The simple truth is if older generations had similar tools in their time, they would be doing the same things. It would be foolish not to capitalize on the convenience that technology has provided for us. The problem is people tend to automatically limit technology usage to only the bland and mindless entertainment it can be used for. 

I realize that some of my generation is guilty of overindulgence of social media, laziness, stupidity and all the horrible accusations we are known for; however, any generation will certainly hospitalize its incapable idiots as much as it will nurture bright pupils. Indisputably, decades ago there were also children who stayed indoors too much, children who spent too much time talking  over the phone, reading comic books, doing drugs, or any deviant activities.

We are often blamed for not working hard enough, not enjoying nature enough, or not studying diligently enough. Many of us do work and study incredibly diligently to achieve our aspirations. We study in a competitive college admission process corrupted by extreme competition. We work in an economy suffering from the failures of previous generations. We enjoy the remains of a planet’s environment polluted by the people before us. This is not to say that the environment’s degradation or the economic climate is not our responsibility, but considering the rising figures of college tuition, the increasingly competitive job market, the intensifying political polarization, the dying health of our planet, this generation of students is shouldering burdens that “lazy and stupid” kids would not be able to.

Perhaps these recent generations have the image of stupidity because social media has introduced to the digital generations an easy connection to the outside world. Any idiot can have a platform to speak their mind or to post their mindless actions. Social media has amplified the voices of those who would not have been listened to in previous generations. Isaiah Seo(12) resonates the same belief: “Some people have built their careers doing stupid things on Instagram or YouTube. This is something that would never have happened just not too long ago.” While stupidity can easily overshadow the intelligence our generation exhibits, it is unfair to label “kids these days” as collectively idiotic.