Respect and Gen Y

I had a disturbing, as well as disheartening, run-in with a young woman during the week.

She had parked her car in one of our company car spots. I'd been out and returned in my company car only to find there were no spots available - so I double parked (leaving her exit blocked) and left a note on her windscreen to knock on the back door do I could let her out when she returned.

Sounds simple enough. The manager told me he had done the same thing in the past and people had been apologetic and headed off embarrassed.

Not this 19- or 20-something.

You see, I was the one who had inconvenienced her.

"Did you not see the signs on the building wall?" I asked (this was after waiting 5 minutes in the rain while she ended a phone call).

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I saw the signs," she said. "Hurry up and move so I can get out!"

"Excuse me?" I asked.

"That (blocking her in) is a very arrogant thing to do."

"Oh, and you jumping in a company car park, that is clearly marked, isn't? I might just go back inside for half an hour and you can wait a bit longer."

"Yeah, well, go ahead. I'll call the authorities then - I don't care if I get booked or whatever."

The young woman's car - the police were given the rego nuumber.

By now I could tell I was going to get nowhere with this young narcissist - she could not have given a shit about anyone or anything.

So I moved my car, let her out, parked my car in its spot and went back upstairs to finish my work.

When it came time to head home I exited the back door - and found a bloody huge gouge on the driver's door of the car.

The cow had returned when the car park had emptied and no one was around and keyed the car.

What is it that makes these kids so aggressive today?

There's a very good article from the Christian Science Monitor (see here) that offers some reasons - in part:

The "all about me" shift means much more than lots of traffic at self-revelatory websites such as YouTube and Facebook. It points, says the study's author, to a generation's lack of empathy, its inability to form relationships – and worse.

"Research shows [narcissists] are aggressive when they have been insulted or threatened," says Jean Twenge, a psychology professor at San Diego State University and lead author of the report, called "Egos Inflating Over Time." "They tend to have problems with impulse control, so that means they're more likely to, for example, be pathological gamblers [or] commit white-collar crimes."

But that aggressiveness, selfishness and lack of empathy is what has more "normal" people worried.

The Sydney Daily Telegraph reported today that police are sick of being used  as punching bags during alcohol-fuelled violence (Link here).
There's that lack of respect thing again.
As one comment on the site noted: "There once was a time when Police were respected. We as children were taught to respect the police, to call on them in need and to go to them when in trouble. Now it's belt a cop, sue a cop and every other thing the doogooders can throw at them. Stop now and give police powers to 'BIFF'. and bugga any one who objects."
Another post suggested we should blame the courts for not imposing penalties that are tough enough or that fit the crime.
Personally, I believe there has been a combination of influences (or probably non-influences).
When my generation was growing up we had little in the way of possessions. We had big families in small houses. Now there are small families in big houses!
We copped a belting when we deserved it - at home and at school. I can still remember my father taking his belt off and using it on me when I got out of line; and the teacher pulling out the cane at school to give your two, four or six "cuts", depending on the severity of the "crime" committed.
We'd stand for the national anthem, which was screened at the beginning of a movie in cinemas.
At school we'd sing the national anthem, salute the Australian Flag, and sing the school song - with gusto!
That's just scratching the surface - but those acts were about engendering respect - for others, for the school, Queen, and country.
I don't know what's to become of these aggressive Gen Ys, but I'm sure glad I won't be around to see it.
Hopefully the respectful ones, from good homes with caring parents, will be able to overcome the narcissistic ones.