Talkin’ Bout My Generation: Theories Why We Aren’t Talking About the Recession

Photo Credit: aphasiafilms

After almost three months post-commencement, x-amount of job applications, and moving back to my parents house, the big, bad ugly truth about the “real” world is starting to sink in. Anyone with a television knows that we are facing the worst economic reality since the Great Depression, but it takes an active economic participant to feel this recession. So after four years of an adolescent isolated existence in dorm rooms and college libraries, many of us are only recently being pushed into the dark hole of 9.4% national unemployment. The standard responses to how the summer is going tend to be, “frustrated”, “still looking for a job”, or “bored”. I find it quite unfortunate that few people my age are really engaging in conversation about the recession, why it happened, or what it means for us in the future. So, I have to ask…why?

Sarah Lynch for Forbes wrote an insightful piece on Friday called, “Our Side of Paradise: For some recent college graduates, the recession is more of a blessing than a curse”. My first reaction was WOW! Really?? A blessing?

For a generation trying to find its place in the job market, the excuse of a “bad economy” has actually been a relief–even a breath of fresh air–for recent grads.

The thing is, some lucky (some may say “spoiled”) recent college grads are OK with the idea of unemployment–at least temporarily. As a generation once defined by SAT scores and the number of clubs on our resumes, we have found ourselves suddenly free of the conventions of school and the pressures of finding a “good” job.

I’d be the first to admit that I too became consumed with SAT prep courses, U.S. News and World Report college rankings, AP classes, GPAs, activities, internships…all with the aspiration of success in the future. Yet, either with maturity or time to self-reflect, I’ve come to recognize defining yourself on such things instead of on who you are will never make you happy. It becomes an endless pursuit and constant competition for a goal you never sat around and thought about. And true, as much as I am bored at home, I am certainly lucky, and possibly spoiled to have a place to rest my head.

So, THEORY 1: Recent college grads aren’t engaged because they may be enjoying the time to figure what they want for themselves.

The days of August are slowly fading to soon be replaced with yellow school buses and autumn leaves. I swear I might go into shock when I put on that first autumn sweater and I am still at home and not at school, the first time in almost 18 years of my life.

THEORY 2: Being at home for the summer is habit for recent graduates, when the weather changes, perhaps we will begin to recognize that we are actually unemployed and not going back to school.

Lastly, I almost hate to mention it, given that it is the most frequent criticism of my generation…perhaps we (the Class of 2009) are not talking because we tend to be apathetic. This is always highlighted by our voter turnout rates. Here are the current numbers according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey of November 2008 released on the Internet in July 2009:

For those 18-24 years old, 58.5% are registered to vote and 48.5% voted in the last Presidential election. As the age-ranges increase, the percentages also increase. By looking at the Census Bureau’s Historical Time Series Tables, only the years 1964, 1968, and 1972 had higher turnouts for 18-24 years old and barely with percentages at 50.9, 50.4, and 49.6.

Here CBS News spotlights young voters with MTV’s Gideon Yago:

CBSNews, posted with vodpod

Very interesting stuff! Especially the notion that the political parties do not court us as a group. I really am not sure if we are even taken seriously! Even the political active young people! I had to do some digging for this transcript, but here is a snippet of what MSNBC’s Dan Abrams said about Jason Rae, a 21-year old 2008 superdelegate for the Democratic National Convention.

ABRAMS:  Yes.  All right.  I mean, Peter, again, Jason, you know, Jason couldn‘t be giving more of the right answers here as to how he‘s going to move forward.  But he‘s 21 years old and he‘s never voted in an election before and he‘s going be one of the handful of people picking Obama versus Clinton.

So THEORY 3: We are not discussing our fates during this recession because either we are apathetic OR not taken completely serious in the political process.

What are your thoughts about this? Any other reasons?