Why are full grown adults acting like children?

[Anonymous]

Grammatical typo above. Meant to say that 3 line summary was also written by me and I am the OP.

[Anonymous]

People can stay in college and delay getting a job into their late 20s now, all with student loans backed by the government, that they might eventually say you don't have to pay back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. Kids are being kids. Adults are not being adults.
2. We’ve seen this problematic dynamic expressed in many ways, this is the most dire.
3. Democracy will not withstand adults who can’t act and think like adults.

Thank you. I speak much more like OP. I wish I could speak more like this. I think the world needs both though. Part of the problem is people can't even read anymore. Its "too much work".

Writing in a unclear, meandering manner is not effective if you want people to understand what you're saying. Writing concisely is much harder for most people because it requires them to be more precise with their analysis and word choice. I still don't understand what OP was trying to say and OP doesn't seem to care to explain.

Not much of a scholar, are we? Just respond to RFPs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is happening on college campuses is for the young. A period in development where they are trying to make sense of the world around them, form deep counterculture peer groups, where their fight (NOT flight) instinct and sense of indestructibility is strongest, and where they feel they know everything even though it’s an incredibly narrow slice of reality. This makes sense. This is developmentally appropriate and evolutionarily designed.

But what typically follows in full adulthood is a period of growth with more world experience, a finally fully developed brain, and the capacity for a more nuanced and complex worldview.

We have for a while been experiencing a sociological shift - a period of arrested development for adults (while also projecting adulthood on children - different topic for another time). Socially and psychologically this has been occurring for at least the last 20+ years impacting the family and our psychological wellness (especially our children’s). Then in the last decade or so we saw that turn to our domestic politics (in brief: politicians that act like petulant toddlers), and now it’s coming to roost in the geopolitical sphere. This is not a video game or simulation. This is not Model UN hypotheticals. This is our safety and our existence as a nation here. This is the preservation of democracy. This is about living in an imperfect world with the best international leaders at the helm. (Imperfect is an understatement yes, but I’ll take democratic principals over any of the other options on the table! And if we continue down this path, they won’t even be “options”.)
We are imploding from the inside.

Youth rebel and see things simply. As they should. And we should listen. And, as adults, take it in along with our more nuanced understanding of how the world works.

Kid wants to stick finger in outlet. Adult covers outlets because we know better. But then we find a tactile activity for the little one because
we also listened to their needs and used our judgment to find the mutual path forward. And eventually kid also learns, hey finger in socket is not great. Just looked like a smiley face, but I’ve learned there are wires and currents and it’s just more complicated than I realized when I was baby.

In short, this adult/child dynamic is the natural order of balance, of ying and yang. This is harmony. As is found in nature. When harmony and balance are disturbed, the ecosystem falls apart. These are very simple natural principals.

We are imploding. This is not a game. This is our physical and geopolitical safety. We can come together as a nation AND continue to push leaders to do the right thing by the world. We can care about injustice and not seethe at each other here. We can grow up and not all act like teenagers. Enough is enough. Put on your adult pants and be a leader. For your kids, for your neighbors, and for the world.

But where is my free stuff?

[Anonymous]

University “safe spaces” equipped with adult coloring books and adult “weighted stuffies,” tells you all you need to know, OP.

We have infantilized an entire segment of the adult U.S. population.

Who do you believe did this to us?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. Kids are being kids. Adults are not being adults.
2. We’ve seen this problematic dynamic expressed in many ways, this is the most dire.
3. Democracy will not withstand adults who can’t act and think like adults.

Thank you. I speak much more like OP. I wish I could speak more like this. I think the world needs both though. Part of the problem is people can't even read anymore. Its "too much work".

Writing in an unclear, meandering manner is not effective if you want people to understand what you're saying. Writing concisely is much harder for most people because it requires them to be more precise with their analysis and word choice. I still don't understand what OP was trying to say and OP doesn't seem to care to explain.

Your response is utter codswallop. Not to mention: a mere diversion.

Are you incapable of adult dialog, OP ?

[Anonymous]

What exactly are you saying and who are you taking to? State your point clearly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:University “safe spaces” equipped with adult coloring books and adult “weighted stuffies,” tells you all you need to know, OP.

We have infantilized an entire segment of the adult U.S. population.

Who do you believe did this to us?

+1
College students are no longer "kids." The left is entirely responsible for this generation of emotionally stunted drama queens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. Kids are being kids. Adults are not being adults.
2. We’ve seen this problematic dynamic expressed in many ways, this is the most dire.
3. Democracy will not withstand adults who can’t act and think like adults.

Thank you. I speak much more like OP. I wish I could speak more like this. I think the world needs both though. Part of the problem is people can't even read anymore. Its "too much work".

Writing in a unclear, meandering manner is not effective if you want people to understand what you're saying. Writing concisely is much harder for most people because it requires them to be more precise with their analysis and word choice. I still don't understand what OP was trying to say and OP doesn't seem to care to explain.

Not much of a scholar, are we? Just respond to RFPs?

Oh my. choked on my coffee.
The OP was finely written and it's v. early on a Saturday. We should all be stretching those brains and reading paragraphs, nay, VOLUMES of glorious literature.

[Anonymous]

If you are incapable, or unwilling to understand, the original post, you may be one of these infantilized adults.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. Kids are being kids. Adults are not being adults.
2. We’ve seen this problematic dynamic expressed in many ways, this is the most dire.
3. Democracy will not withstand adults who can’t act and think like adults.

I know what examples come to mind to me very quickly--Trump loyalists from the rally-goers to Rudy Giuliani
Just wondering what OP has in mind

Yes, good examples. This goes far beyond political tribalism though. Examples on the right. Examples on the left. Examples on this board. Examples abound. What I do not yet know though: are the most infantile and petulant adults indicative of the larger swath of society or are they simply loudest are therefore SEEM numerous? A good microcosmic example: Are the most infantile replies here just 1 or 2 people, or many?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1. Kids are being kids. Adults are not being adults.
2. We’ve seen this problematic dynamic expressed in many ways, this is the most dire.
3. Democracy will not withstand adults who can’t act and think like adults.

Great post, OP. As it relates to our current political landscape, many adults are indeed not thinking and acting like adults. Over the past two to three decades and with very effective use of modern media, the wealthy and powerful people and entities controlling our two-party system have pushed nonstop toxic partisan political narratives to successfully divide the American public into two very distinct "sides" to a degree not seen since the American Civil War. Those seeking to remain in power have found that the "us" vs "them" mentality is a great tool for keeping the sheep in line and maintaining status quo. Adults of all backgrounds have fallen for it hook, line, and sinker. Partisan control in government has become more important in the minds of voters than a fully functioning government that operates in the beautiful manner in which it is intended to operate. Who cares if the long standing problems our country faces are never addressed and resolved as long as anyone with a pulse on our side is victorious over the evil other side? One day, probably sooner than later, the dysfunction in our Federal Government will have a noticeable impact on the day to day quality of life experienced by most of us and that's what it will take for adults to start acting like adults and for the American people to reclaim control over the process of determining who can and should be serving as our leaders in government.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1. Kids are being kids. Adults are not being adults.
2. We’ve seen this problematic dynamic expressed in many ways, this is the most dire.
3. Democracy will not withstand adults who can’t act and think like adults.

Great post, OP. As it relates to our current political landscape, many adults are indeed not thinking and acting like adults. Over the past two to three decades and with very effective use of modern media, the wealthy and powerful people and entities controlling our two-party system have pushed nonstop toxic partisan political narratives to successfully divide the American public into two very distinct "sides" to a degree not seen since the American Civil War. Those seeking to remain in power have found that the "us" vs "them" mentality is a great tool for keeping the sheep in line and maintaining status quo. Adults of all backgrounds have fallen for it hook, line, and sinker. Partisan control in government has become more important in the minds of voters than a fully functioning government that operates in the beautiful manner in which it is intended to operate. Who cares if the long standing problems our country faces are never addressed and resolved as long as anyone with a pulse on our side is victorious over the evil other side? One day, probably sooner than later, the dysfunction in our Federal Government will have a noticeable impact on the day to day quality of life experienced by most of us and that's what it will take for adults to start acting like adults and for the American people to reclaim control over the process of determining who can and should be serving as our leaders in government.

Yes, agree 10000%. What I think is interesting through is that this domestic political manipulation is now also being weaponized by foreign adversaries. This is a whole new ball game. And it’s terrifying.

[Anonymous]

Typical liberal behavior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Typical liberal behavior.

You’re missing the point and that response is frankly exactly the kind of myopic thinking I’m speaking of. This isn’t left or right. This is so much bigger than that. We desperately need to get our heads around that before it’s too late.