Well, YEAH. Anyone over the age of maybe 40, *please, God?* knows what you're talking about. This new "family" bullshit is aimed at the YOUTH.
They are coming for the KIDS.
They are pitiless, vile, horrible.
The kids NEED US.
I think we grandparent types need to get together and form groups that will find ways to engage and nurture the young people... Before they are lost to us forever.
That's a beautiful idea Word Herder. If we add into the mix the amount of broken families in this country now it's terrifying to think about. Me and my siblings came up in a broken home, but we had grandparents, aunts and uncles that picked up the slack. Many of these young people now don't have anything like what we had... and they're duped into thinking someone who "likes" you on social media is a real friend or family member.
The pace of life on Earth has made teaching wisdom difficult if not impossible. The first time I flew on an airplane was to go to basic training (22 yrs old). My kids flew to places for pleasure and my grandkids give flight no more consideration than driving across town. Times and experiences have changed, and the kids adapt as they need to in order to fit into society and not necessarily family. People moved away from family and roots for work opportunities in mass from the 70's forward. New England saw an exodus that tore apart families. I know, I was there, and I was one of them.
For a time when diversity is supposed to be all the rage I see people, including kids, seeking out those of the exact same thinking (at least at the time of the thought) as they have and base their "friendship" on this like mindedness. Fleeting of course but then there are millions of others who will befriend you on your next thought. This leads to broad, shallow friendships that may or may not be helpful beyond the moment.
Patience, kindness and love will, eventually, win out...I hope.
"Patience, kindness and love will, eventually, win out...I hope." As do I Brian. Either that, or I hope I'm long gone before it gets to the point of no return... if we're not there already. :) Thanks for stopping by and for your comment as well.
The trouble that I'm running into is that nobody *wants* to do anything in the real world anymore. Why hang out in real life when you can just play video games and chat on discord? It's virtually impossible to build genuine connection when everyone is buried in technology 24 / 7.
Agreed. Churches used to be a decent place to make friends, but even they have been captured. I hope we see a turning point eventually, but the addiction to "fakeness" (I just made up that word haha) in our world will definitely be hard to overcome. Everything around us is *fake* anymore. It's frustrating.
You sure got it right in this one. Personally, it makes me sick, and I totally agree with, "The Word Herder". As a grandparent, and personally have had my grandkids swear to me that so and so on such and such of social media platform loves them, is their best friend etc. I have counseled my grandkids for years on the dangers of this new "reality" that kids live in. My 5-year-old granddaughter eats and sleeps these tablets. I can't even get her to eat or sit on the toilet without it being in her hands. My anger runs deep as my kids had none, and I mean none of the toxic BS that parents throw into their kids hands at birth. *Don't get me started*. All I can say is this:, we have to keep pushing and preaching what is right, and pray that some of what we say sinks in, even if it is just a little. I have to stop or I will rant forever.
I understand the frustration completely! I hadn't seen a local friend of mine for quite a while and recently saw them at the gas station with their son. Their son was always talkative and would engage me in conversation even when he was 4 and 5 years old. I had to bite my tongue as my friend wouldn't make his son put down the device and turn and even acknowledge I was there. The boy is lost now in a fake world... with fake friends.... Heaven help us. Thanks for stopping by!
Rob, you're right that we need to get out in the real world more and meet real people. It's sad, really, that so many people count strangers on-line as friends. I know of a woman who passed away of an accident a few years ago and her eulogy stated that she had thousands of "friends" on Facebook. Perhaps some were people that she actually met but most of them would be complete strangers. They wouldn't have flown across the country to her funeral. They wouldn't have brought over casseroles to the grieving family and offered real support. Instead, they posted crying emojiis. It's like reading about some stranger in the news. You feel badly that they met such an end but you're not particularly touched by it. Some relationships on-lline can develop into true friendships but most are, as you say, acquaintances at best.
That is so heart wrenching. I don't think we realize just how bad this is getting. I'm so glad that I got rid of "social" media (except Substack, but I don't really consider this social media) many years ago. No FB, no twitter, no any of that garbage. I'm not sure what the answer to all of this is. I know it may make some of my friends and family angry, but if/when they visit, the phones go in a box and are put in another room. They can do what we used to do... let others know where they will be and give them my landline phone number if there's an emergency. Thanks as always Anna. Glad you are here and adding to the banter. :)
It's funny (well, maybe not so funny) when you see two people out together at say, a restaurant, and instead of talking to each other, they're both on their phones. Maybe they're texting each other?!
Well, YEAH. Anyone over the age of maybe 40, *please, God?* knows what you're talking about. This new "family" bullshit is aimed at the YOUTH.
They are coming for the KIDS.
They are pitiless, vile, horrible.
The kids NEED US.
I think we grandparent types need to get together and form groups that will find ways to engage and nurture the young people... Before they are lost to us forever.
That's a beautiful idea Word Herder. If we add into the mix the amount of broken families in this country now it's terrifying to think about. Me and my siblings came up in a broken home, but we had grandparents, aunts and uncles that picked up the slack. Many of these young people now don't have anything like what we had... and they're duped into thinking someone who "likes" you on social media is a real friend or family member.
Maybe a "brainstorming session" on your page to toss ideas around...?
The pace of life on Earth has made teaching wisdom difficult if not impossible. The first time I flew on an airplane was to go to basic training (22 yrs old). My kids flew to places for pleasure and my grandkids give flight no more consideration than driving across town. Times and experiences have changed, and the kids adapt as they need to in order to fit into society and not necessarily family. People moved away from family and roots for work opportunities in mass from the 70's forward. New England saw an exodus that tore apart families. I know, I was there, and I was one of them.
For a time when diversity is supposed to be all the rage I see people, including kids, seeking out those of the exact same thinking (at least at the time of the thought) as they have and base their "friendship" on this like mindedness. Fleeting of course but then there are millions of others who will befriend you on your next thought. This leads to broad, shallow friendships that may or may not be helpful beyond the moment.
Patience, kindness and love will, eventually, win out...I hope.
"Patience, kindness and love will, eventually, win out...I hope." As do I Brian. Either that, or I hope I'm long gone before it gets to the point of no return... if we're not there already. :) Thanks for stopping by and for your comment as well.
The trouble that I'm running into is that nobody *wants* to do anything in the real world anymore. Why hang out in real life when you can just play video games and chat on discord? It's virtually impossible to build genuine connection when everyone is buried in technology 24 / 7.
Agreed. Churches used to be a decent place to make friends, but even they have been captured. I hope we see a turning point eventually, but the addiction to "fakeness" (I just made up that word haha) in our world will definitely be hard to overcome. Everything around us is *fake* anymore. It's frustrating.
You sure got it right in this one. Personally, it makes me sick, and I totally agree with, "The Word Herder". As a grandparent, and personally have had my grandkids swear to me that so and so on such and such of social media platform loves them, is their best friend etc. I have counseled my grandkids for years on the dangers of this new "reality" that kids live in. My 5-year-old granddaughter eats and sleeps these tablets. I can't even get her to eat or sit on the toilet without it being in her hands. My anger runs deep as my kids had none, and I mean none of the toxic BS that parents throw into their kids hands at birth. *Don't get me started*. All I can say is this:, we have to keep pushing and preaching what is right, and pray that some of what we say sinks in, even if it is just a little. I have to stop or I will rant forever.
I understand the frustration completely! I hadn't seen a local friend of mine for quite a while and recently saw them at the gas station with their son. Their son was always talkative and would engage me in conversation even when he was 4 and 5 years old. I had to bite my tongue as my friend wouldn't make his son put down the device and turn and even acknowledge I was there. The boy is lost now in a fake world... with fake friends.... Heaven help us. Thanks for stopping by!
Rob, you're right that we need to get out in the real world more and meet real people. It's sad, really, that so many people count strangers on-line as friends. I know of a woman who passed away of an accident a few years ago and her eulogy stated that she had thousands of "friends" on Facebook. Perhaps some were people that she actually met but most of them would be complete strangers. They wouldn't have flown across the country to her funeral. They wouldn't have brought over casseroles to the grieving family and offered real support. Instead, they posted crying emojiis. It's like reading about some stranger in the news. You feel badly that they met such an end but you're not particularly touched by it. Some relationships on-lline can develop into true friendships but most are, as you say, acquaintances at best.
That is so heart wrenching. I don't think we realize just how bad this is getting. I'm so glad that I got rid of "social" media (except Substack, but I don't really consider this social media) many years ago. No FB, no twitter, no any of that garbage. I'm not sure what the answer to all of this is. I know it may make some of my friends and family angry, but if/when they visit, the phones go in a box and are put in another room. They can do what we used to do... let others know where they will be and give them my landline phone number if there's an emergency. Thanks as always Anna. Glad you are here and adding to the banter. :)
It's funny (well, maybe not so funny) when you see two people out together at say, a restaurant, and instead of talking to each other, they're both on their phones. Maybe they're texting each other?!