Sweet Bird of Youth?
What do we do with young people?

We are giving them messages like “ go on your bone-idle life because your aims are still a long way off”, “ go on your childhood, because adulthood is in distance”, “bind your trade mark trainers, your skateboard, your cap on not quite straight and –you know the song- don´t worry, be happy”, “all of your mates do the same”.

Education? Why? What´s it for? When you finish it you won´t find any job; at least a steady job. These days promise you a junk job: more than ten hours a day in exchange for five hundred euros. So it is a real bugger you study or you work.

Money? That´s determined. What are your parents for? They have already lived their lives and their savings are your inheritance. Don´t worry, be happy. You will always have cash and your basic necessity will be met: food and drinks, clothes, gas to the car –if you have drive license-, tickets to concerts, rubber boxes and to change the worned wheel of your dazzling skateboard even.

In addition, in a free way, we advise you don´t get pregnant your girlfriend because a newborn complicates a bit the life. Either she and the baby come your home – your parents home- or you go your parents-in-law´s home. Dreadful!

It´s up to you.

Being politically correct, what we are saying for male is applicable for female although the pregnancy business it would be on the contrary.

This message is typical of a member belonging to a savagely capitalist party that I call bankitician, a range of entrepreneurs, presidents of football team, press barons, bankers and politicians, a new hybrid breed interested in running the needy mainly.

Fortunately there are lots of young people that they turn a deaf ear to it and go against the tide. But could they bring new hopes?

So –and I want to explain it clearly- I understand them. I´m referring to young people with trainers, skateboard and cap; they have lived in a bubble, in a world prepared by others, and these loony sods from their offices have achieved to make us to believe that´s the way. Be happy, yes, but worry about the matter because is an essential affaire.

Owen Jones has written a sleeck article in The Guardian; if you want to know figures click here.

From my Borstal.

LDR