Generation WTF

The aftermath of an attack.

It never fails that kids are going to do stupid things but this current generation seems to be taking things to a whole different level. In a year that started with the mass proliferation of twerking among a younger and younger demographic we have now seen the devolution of ‘fun’ into the realm of aggravated assault. As many of you have seen on the news lately, more and more people are falling victim to what has been coined the “knock out game”.

The basic premise of the game is for youths to troll the streets, find an unassuming pedestrian, and try to knock them out with one punch. Thus far, the victims (men and women) seem to be of various ages, races, and in a variety of communities but the assailants seem to have three characteristics in common… they’re young violent idiots. I think it’s safe to say that MENSA is out for the question for these fine examples.

The truly sad situations have yet to unfold (and hopefully they never will). As far as I have heard, no one has died because of these attacks. While unlikely, it is still a possibility as this is essentially blunt force trauma to the head. You never know and hopefully we won’t find out.

The other situation, which says more about the state of this country than the attacks themselves, is that there have been a few instances where people have fended off their attackers. This is something I fully support. However, it may not be long before one of these attackers is injured and they wind up suing the victim or pressing charges. That is just sad but it is the legal CF reality in which we live.

Personally, if you attack me be prepared. I am going to fight back and I am not going to settle for one punch.

When these individuals are apprehended I don’t think that the traditional sentencing (and hopefully restitution) will be enough. I think we need to take a step back and employ a measure that seems to have fallen out of favor in recent decades. I think we send them to the military for extended service. Nothing like a drill sergeant to get rid of an attitude and if you really want to rehabilitate and give them a second chance, that is the way to do it. This would also give them a salary which should be garnished and distributed to the victims throughout their service.

Things need to change and many members of this current generation are in dire need of a readjustment. They don’t need to be given anything which they feel entitled to, they need to learn the cost of their lifestyle and the price of their actions. The need to appreciate what they have and respect what others have rather than covet what others have earned. While previous generations have been labeled with various descriptors (“The Greatest Generation” and “Baby Boomers”) and more recent generations have been classified with single letters such as X and Y, this generation should be classified with a simple acronym, WTF.