I should have known better. There are certain topics that you can’t write about. Apparently the utter laziness of a generation is one of those taboo subjects. The shitstorm that unfolded was immediate and fierce.

The shitstorm followed the release of my article entitled The Laziest Generation in American History. The article quoted facts about the 20-24 age cohort (Gen Z) that were, shall we say, less than flattering.

The gist of the article is that the labor participation rate for Gen-Z fell by almost 10% between 1996–2016. That’s the equivalent of 6.7 million able bodied men and women opting out of the workforce before their 25th birthday.

Further, only 73% of the Gen-Z population are even trying to find work today. It’s alarming considering that this is the same age cohort that saved the free world from Adolph Hitler during WWII.

I opined that the culprit for these alarming statistics is laziness. And, the driving force behind the laziness is a combination of video games, fruit-flavored weed gummies, Netflix, Robinhood and DraftKings mobile betting. You can also add free, internet porn and piles of government-backed student loan money as catalysts.

Many of these kids are living in their parent’s basements and seem to be perfectly happy living a life of premium mediocrity. And they’re doing this during a period of record economic growth. You can’t swing a dead-cat without hitting a help wanted sign in America.

Victimhood as a Personal Mantra

I was genuinely surprised at the fiery responses to the article. The anger and disdain was incredible. But, at the same time I felt sorry for these people who harbor such a dismal outlook on life. They must be miserably unhappy people.

“These are the people who wake up offended and take orders from Twitter. Their over sensitivity has grown tiresome.”
—Bill Maher

An enormous number of Gen Z’ers see themselves as victims. And they clearly embrace “victimhood” as their personal mantra. In some circles, victim hood can be seen as a badge of honor. Victims often claim the moral high ground. As if they’re the only ones handed a raw deal in life. Maybe. But, there are lots of real victims in the US. Victims of racial and sexual bias, abused and neglected children, the sick and infirmed, many of the homeless, etc. These are real victims. And, they deserve our empathy and support.

The Gen-Z’ers are, ostensibly, victims of circumstance. They claim that circumstances prevent them from reaching their full potential. Circumstances like climate change, prior economic recessions and the supposition that “the system” has set them up to fail.

Adults in the Room

Shockingly, I received more vitriolic feedback from older generations. They aggressively defended the Gen-Z crowd. One of the angrier responses from an older reader was longer than the original article. (Ironically, someone has a lot of time on their hands.)

I wrote about this kind of anger and incivility back in July, 2021 in an article entitled The War on Civility.

Honestly, after reading some of the responses, I was a bit depressed. Not because someone didn’t like my writing, but because the comments I received were so angry and despondent. It made me worry about the future of our country.

One particularly angry reader called me the 2022 version of Archie Bunker.

Misery Loves Company

After a few days I decided the best thing to do was to bring you, my dear readers, into the argument. After all, misery loves company. So I have summarized some of the more colorful comments for your entertainment. (Apologies in advance for the spicy language.)

Reason #1: Climate Change

Apparently, many Gen Z’ers and their fans are convinced that prior generations wrecked the planet. Maybe we did. But the Gen-Z crowd believes we are all going to die within the next 10-12 years. There is no point in working since we’ll all be dead in a few years. Here are some real comments:

“You need to wake up. It’s your generation that wrecked this planet and have left us with no chance of any future. All in the name of capitalism. I hope it was worth it.”
“Your generation literally destroyed the entire planet. There are not enough jobs for the most educated generation in history. Well done.”
“Our casual disregard for our environment has resulted in changes of climate that any sane person can only see being exacerbated in the future.”

“My mother thinks like you. She bought her home years ago for 44k. Today, her house, in a rich Florida area, is valued over 2 million. THAT is what these young people are facing. THAT is why so many are giving up. WE (boomers) did this to young people. We are handing them an insanely expensive, dying planet”.
”Once Trump withdrew the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, our fate was sealed.”

Reason #2: Economic Desperation

This argument suggests that prior generations fleeced the economy to a point where there is no opportunity left for anyone else.

As a result, there is no point in even trying to find a job or do anything productive with your life. Here are some real comments:

“We have wantonly and recklessly mortgaged our children's future and left it to them to pay the rising costs. We have sowed the seeds of destruction and left a diminished world to deal with the whirlwind.”
“I have four twenty-something kids. The struggles they face make the ones I faced look like a walk in the park. Their generation isn't lazy, the deck has been stacked against them from the days of the Ronald Reagan presidency. With any luck they'll turn the status quo completely on its head.”
“I think the young people don't want to be played for schmucks who work for low wages to make billionaires richer. The curtain has been pulled back and people are done being exploited by the rich. The rich have hit a brick wall. They can't MAKE people work for them. That was outlawed in 1865 with the passage of the 13th amendment. Now it's up to the rich to figure out a way to make doing their work worth it. Some are getting it. Many are not. No one wants to work for $10 per hour.”

Reason #3: No Good Jobs

Now that the environment has been destroyed and prior generations fleeced all the money out of the system, there are supposedly no good jobs left. Here are some real comments:

”What a lazy and quite frankly, tired, take. This reads like a 2022 version of Archie Bunker railing about the good ol days of 2016 when rents had, year over year, every year, grown at 9%/yr since the 80s while labor representation and wages have been slashed at every chance, with our leadership codifying anti-worker sentiment into law across the country.”
“It IS that they can barely afford to live. It IS that they are fighting to stay alive and keep their families alive against a rampant virus that Trumper's don't respect. It IS that they can afford nothing. It IS that they are constantly fed lies by Fox. It IS that our politician's do ZERO on their behalf to improve people's lives.”
“Maybe some people aren't working because they get more on unemployment. I got twice as much money on unemployment than working full time and I'm a substitute teacher.”
“Is it hard to blame people for not wanting to become wage slaves for the rest of their days until they retire?”

“Employers who don't want to even pay a living wage. Like Walmart where you can get counseling of how to get public assistance to make ends meet. In the 70's GM was the nation's biggest employer, pension, good wages, health care. Today the nation largest employer is Walmart, no pension, shit wages and part time work so they can avoid benefits. That's progress!”

Reason #4: Prior Economic Downturns

Some of my former readers suggested that economic recession in 2008-2009 left future generations without any real opportunity. As if a nuclear bomb went off and they are left to clean up afterwards. I guess they fail to appreciate that we all lived through that same recession. And, our grandparents lived through the Great Depression. Here are some comments:

“The writer is just hoping to make a fist-shaking-at-clouds theory that young men (and only men) are digitally lazy, when in fact they are the ones creating these worlds and staying in school so they can learn how to do it.”

“You forget to mention the fact that this same generation has the highest high school graduation rates of any generation, they have more college degrees and more technical know how than your generation could dream of and in return we got the the 08 housing crisis and crippling college debt that we were promised wouldn't be an issue because we would be rolling in dough from our awesome degrees.”

“What the fuck do you know man? Millennials will never recover lost wages from the 08 crash, ever. Look it up. We will always be behind the curve. Because YOUR generation destroyed the American economy. Utterly fucking obliterated it. absolutely robbed future generations for your unsustainable pensions and social security. You don't know shit, man.

“Okay, boomer.”

”You, sir, are an idiot.”

Reason #5: Prior Generations Fault

Apparently the Gen-Z lack of motivation is caused by me, personally, and you. Here are some comments:

“I find your article deeply offensive. If you want to look at the causes for the rising generations "failures", you need only look in the mirror. Ask not for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.”
“I'm a boomer and we destroyed this generation's chances for success. Look in the mirror for the cause.”
”Another angry white dude complaining cause he can’t afford his Grey Poupon.”
“You and those like you are a parody of the white angry old man yelling at the no good dope smokers to "get off his lawn". I think this article takes the award for most tone deaf, backwards 1950ish propaganda claptrap bullshit I have ever read on this platform. And that's saying a lot!”

Reason 6: General Hopelessness:

Some readers argue that the deck is so terribly stacked against the victims that there is just no hope in the future. So, why work or struggle to get ahead only the make the billionaires richer? Here are some real comments:

“An interesting opinion from someone too lazy to proofread his own writing.”
“Most of us are stoned as hell while working at our mindless, pointless jobs. Western nations transitioned to a service economy, so we don't produce anything but returns for a business, and we have zero connection to our work.”
“They’re awake to the fact that America has been authoritarian and fascist in its foreign policy since forever, and because capitalist pigs like you are never satisfied, they finally turned those guns on their own people.”
“Instant ramen and Netflix and video games cost practically nothing but doing anything remotely “ambitious” like a college degree means 100 K debt wage slavery for next 40 years. Screw you.”
“Millennials are NOT lazy. They are depressed. Sad. Angry. Overburdened. In debt. Life is unaffordable. They see the writing on the wall. Marriage and children are beyond them. They cannot afford a home. They seek to self-medicate. Decompress. Find escape. But you essentially ignore all this trauma.” (the article isn’t about millennials)
“This is comically ignorant”.
“It sucks to be an adult in the USA, the responsibilities are akin to serfdom, you will be encouraged to get indebted and you will never get out from under it.”

Courtesy Susan Holt Simpson via Unsplash

Reason 7: It’s America’s Fault

This category suggests that the United States is finished. That the American Dream is dead. Here are some comments:

“What do you expect? Donald Trump literally destroyed the economy and the country while making himself and his rich friends even richer.”
“And this is the result: a generation who’s seen through the lie that is the dream of American meritocracy. America is a 3rd world country with a Gucci belt and we all know it now.”
”The point of capitalism is not to work. The point of capitalism is to exploit all possible sources to exhaustion. Finally, capitalism teaches that might makes right, and when you want something, you take it by force. The young people have the strength and vitality to take over whenever they decide. You old farts should be careful about poking sleeping bears.”

So what do you think? Are the Gen Z kids truly victims of Climate Change, the economy and the end of the American Dream? And, what about the adults that defend the laziest generation?

I want to hear from you and I’ll do my best to respond to your comments. In the meantime I’d be grateful if you help me make some new friends. Would you mind sending this article to a few friends?

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The Laziest Generation in American History (Part Two)