As a teen living in the year 2010, you would probably expect life to be pretty simple. Of course, we have new technology, ever growing entertainment industry, and opportunities galore. Yet, life is not all it is cracked up to be. When President Obama ran for office, he began a theme of change. This “change” affects each and every American, young and old. Just looking on the news, on the internet, or on our cell phones, we receive world updates at the touch of a button.
The promises Barack Obama made during his campaign are not being fulfilled, but young Americans are still expected to have hope. In a time of pessimism, how do we learn to have hope? Not every adult realizes how much the present effects the future. Our future. Americans between the ages of twelve and twenty should be the ones panicking. With the United States in trillions of dollars worth of debt, it seems to be our generation’s duty to figure out the problems. After what seems like decades of insensible government, this new generation will be expected to fix the issues past generations enforced.
So as a teen living in this new time, we need to stop and help. Thinking about the future is not what we want to do with every waking moment of our lives, of course, but the importance of this extra thought can go a long way. War, recession, and politics surround us all. Walking down the street barely even occurs anymore without hearing something new about the world around us collapsing.
In schools and in homes across the country, children and adolescents are taught that violence is not the answer. Recognize, though, that for a fourteen year old, the war in Iraq has been happening for more than half of a lifetime. Through some eyes, violence is the only option, or that is the way our nation has made it seem.
Every teen in the United States is fighting a ever-lasting battle with the future. Where are we headed? Does America even have a reliable future? When this new generation becomes powerful, what will occur then? How can we change it? Questions could go on forever, but answers need to be found now. We cannot wait around forever for things to change themselves.
The future depends on the present.