Don't know? Don't care? What is it with the youngs?
They're having an especially tough time right now. Aren't we all!
This is Essay #169
I’m sensing that we’re ALL getting close to the edge. What nightmarish crap is gonna happen today!? 😳 I feel less alone when you choose to read Susan Speaks. In the Substack sea, little columns like this are getting buried, so if you’re subscribing, THANK YOU! And if you’re not, why the hell not? 😂 You want to be here!
At my gym, there’s this girl I see regularly. Young, energetic, with eyebrows being the only part of her makeup routine she seemed to care about.
(Weird, the current obsession young gals have with their eyebrows.)
Anyhoo, I mentioned the government shutdown would likely happen and I hoped it wouldn’t affect her. She seemed aghast.
“How can they do that? How will people pay their bills without a paycheck?”
Ummmmm… where to start? 🤦♀️
When I was her age, I was working non-stop. At 27, I was newly married, had a baby, and was trying to get the agency off the ground. There was barely time for sleep, let alone politics. I get it.
Her lack of awareness about the current state of affairs shouldn’t shock any of us. But it should concern us. When people are just trying to survive, they barely have time to get to the grocery store, let alone read what dumb ass thing the felon and his fascist pals did today. Of course they feel defeated and think their future is beyond their control.
OOOOOHHHH… speaking of dumb ass things. Did you see THIS? 😳
If this isn’t proof of full blown insanity, I don’t know what is. 🤦♀️
Anyhoo… as I was saying. An excellent report1 from the Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics shows the dismal state of mind of our youngs.
Do take a look at this. It’s a sobering snapshot of the mood of the next generation of people who will be shaping America’s future.
Done this past spring, the findings were striking. Some highlights:
More than 4 in 10 young Americans under 30 say they’re “barely getting by” financially, while just 16% report doing well or very well;
Fewer than half feel a sense of community, with only 17% reporting deep social connection;
Just 15% believe the country is heading in the right direction, and fewer than one-third approve of President Trump or either party in Congress;
Traditional life goals are shifting, with only 48% of young Americans saying having children is important;
Only 19% trust the federal government to do the right thing most or all the time.
Fewer young people prioritize traditional family milestones: 57% say getting married is important, and only 48% say the same about having children. However, Republicans are significantly more likely than Democrats to value these family-oriented goals—as well as homeownership.
Tariffs, DOGE, abolishing the Department of Education, and other key aspects of President Trump’s agenda face limited support from young Americans; of the eight policies polled, none has more than 35% support.
When I read through this data, I could see how effective the Republican party has been in degrading public education, not to mention their wildly effective social media propaganda. The findings are pretty depressing since the future of the country falls onto the shoulders of this next generation.
So how do we get them to pay attention to how our government works? Or at least get involved?
The fascists had Charlie Kirk who, as we all know, was pretty successful in gaslighting young people into thinking racism and misogyny was a perfectly acceptable way to live your life.
Who do we have? No one.
Maybe thats because we think it should be a given to love your neighbor and do no harm and have freedom and healthcare and stuff? I dunno.
Even thinking about running for an office is daunting, but Run for Something is trying. This group is helping Democratic, progressive young people figure out how to get started. Check this link. (My suggestion to them is start local. Be an alderman or a state rep or dog catcher or something.)
I’m not holding my breath for any forward thinking from the current “leadership” in the Democratic Party. (Ken Martin? He’s the best they could do as DNC chair? 🤦♀️) After the way they treated David Hogg, it seems futile.
Reaching this demographic, helping them understand what’s in it for them, teaching them how the process works, is key. Maxwell Frost is just 28, and Jon Ossoff is the youngest member of the Senate at age 38.
Maybe the youngs can begin to squash the racist bullshit so freely sold to our society which I’m convinced is the root of all our problems. Maybe they can offer some fresh thinking, challenge the status quo, show some interest in their constituents, without a “business as usual” outlook… that sounds lovely.
A girl can dream.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have some elected officials who should have retired a long time ago. Chuck Grassley at 92? Jim Clyburn from South Carolina is 85? Nancy Pelosi is 85? STOP! WE NEED TERM LIMITS!
Yeah, I know… a girl can dream.
Finally, we all have those people in our lives who steadfastly refuse to discuss the reality of what’s staring them in the face.
“I won’t discuss politics in my house” my one time best friend said. (“One time”, yes. I’m done.) My brother (who admittedly has a slight learning disability) screams “freedom”, “guns”, “God Bless our Fallen” and other catch phrases, thinking he will sound well-versed and enlightened. I’ve given up trying to even share my OWN fears with him. His silence to the facts is telling.
In my lifetime, I have never experienced a crisis like this. (Watergate was nuthin’.) And admittedly, I haven’t always been a news junkie, but with so much at stake now, and especially seeing the disintegration of basic human decency in our society, you can bet I’m paying attention now. And not to corporate media, since we all know they suck.
So, I ask, what will it take for the youngs to get involved and change their own course?
When my young gym friend runs out of money for eyebrow pencil, maybe she’ll finally take notice.
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The Spring 2025 Harvard Youth Poll surveyed 2,096 young Americans between 18 and 29 years old nationwide and was conducted between March 14-25, 2025.
My glass half full response to your understandable angst: At least the polling of youth shows that they aren't buying into the bullshit. Some of them are depressed and sort of in, "I give up mode," which is scary.
The left does have some voices that are resonating. Hasan Piker, for example, is on Twitch 7 hours a day, just gabbing, sort of like Joe Rogan, but live, all the time. All the kids are on Twitch, especially young males, who we really need to shake by the shoulders. They know who Piker is, even though we don't.
He's so far to the left that he scares some people, but he speaks to a lot of the angst you talk about in the polls.
I'm sure there are others. I just don't know who they are because I'm not in that age group.
Kids aren't in the streets yet, but they will be soon. Cities where ICE is active are deploying resisters across all age groups.
I think the kids will come around. Like you said, a lot of them are just trying to make ends meet right now. No time for a lot of protest unless something closer to home happens.
We'll just keep on yelling, right? Until those kids who seem asleep wake up. Remember, teenagers and young adults do love to sleep in.
As the father of two adult children pushing into their mid thirties I’m kind of surprised at how engaged they are. My son who has ADHD gets hyper focused on things, but I’d rather that, than not at all. My daughter who is gay is also engaged especially given gay rights are under attack. I constantly remind them, that, not voting is not an option. Today’s “young’s” as you call them Susan, can be difficult to get through too but I harp until they’re sick of it and I get the reply “yeah, yeah”, 😂😂😂! So far despite the “yeah yeah’s” I think what I tell them has resonated 😂😂😂!